Most berry bushes have shallow roots, with the largest root mass only 20-30 cm below the soil surface.The minerals accumulated in the topsoil must be sufficient for the plants, because the roots close to the surface are not able to collect water and nutrients from the deeper layers.For this reason, before planting fruit bushes, especially strawberries and wild strawberries, the substrate must be well prepared.
It is worth starting this work a few weeks before the planned planting.One of the first and most important steps is to eliminate weed infestation. If there are permanent weeds in the place where we intend to plant our plants, they absolutely must be removed.It can be done mechanically, digging through the quarters and pulling out all the weeds by hand.
couch grass is especially harmful to cultivated plants.It is an extremely expansive weed extracting almost all nutrients and water from the ground, moreover, it has many underground runners and it is difficult to remove it by hand.Instead, it is worth spraying with a total herbicide.
These preparations move throughout the plant, causing the loss of not only the above-ground part, but also the underground roots and stolons.For the measure to work, you need to wait a minimum of 2 weeks after applying the herbicide for soil cultivation.
After this time, we can start fertilizing the selected part of the plot. Apply organic and mineral fertilizers to the entire surface.Dig the manure right away so that it is well covered with a layer of soil.This will prevent volatilization and loss of nitrogen. Mineral, phosphorus and potassium fertilizers also need to be mixed with the soil.
