Agrotextile is an increasingly popular material for plant covering. The agrotextile cover is light (it does not burden or damage plants), partially permeates moisture, air and light, allowing plants to continue their vegetation processes. As a result, the nonwoven agrotextile wins in competition with other, more traditional plant covering materials.
Rose bushes wrapped in winter white agrotextile
In gardening stores, the choice of this type of material is increasing. Along with the popularization of the use of agrotextiles and the introduction of various types of agrotextiles for sale, we may have a problem with choosing the right typeagrotextileto cover our crops.There are nonwoven agrotextiles of various thickness and color (white or black). Using the wrong type of nonwoven agrotextile can do more harm than good. Therefore, it is worth finding out which nonwoven agrotextile is used for and what types will be the best for amateur use on plots and in home gardens.
Winter white agrotextile
Most of us will most often use agrotextile to cover plants for the winter. The agrotextile will protect our shrubs, trees and even creepers against frost and cold, drying wind. For covering plants for the winter,white agrotextilewith a thickness of 50g / m² (this means that a square meter of agrotextile weighs 50g), often sold under the namewinter agrotextile
"In home gardens and allotmentsWinter agrotextileis used in the protection of conifers, roses, covering vines, briar, rhododendrons and other species not resistant to the negative effects of winter.Plants located in places exposed to frosty, drying winds require special protection (e.g. on terraces and balconies, as well as in exposed areas). Such a cover will be very useful in snowless winters, when the plants are deprived of a protective layer of snow. In crops on the plot, winter agrotextile is also used to protect many species of vegetables (wintering parsley, leek, spinach).
When covering the shrubs, gently wrap the plants with agrotextile so that it tightly covers them from the base to the top. The nonwoven agrotextile has no right or left side, it does not matter which side you spread the agrotextile on. After covering the plant, fasten the agrotextile by tying a string or binding its edges with a stapler. At the base of the plant, we cover the agrotextile around with soil so that the wind cannot double it. You can also pin it with long nails with a washer.
For most plants that require winter cover,winter nonwoven fabricshould be put on after the first frosts and left on the plants until spring, when the danger of frost is over."
Spring white agrotextile
Amateurs growing vegetables on their plots can also use the lighterwhite agrotextilewith a thickness of 17 g / m², 19 g / m² or 23 g / m², also known as spring agrotextileIt is used to protect vegetables that were sown at an earlier date. The purpose of using spring white agrotextile is to protect plants against frosts, large temperature fluctuations between day and night, as well as against violent rainfall or hailstorm. As a result, in the vegetable garden we will obtain an earlier and more abundant crop.Vegetables that respond well to the cover with agrotextile are: lettuce, early cabbage, Chinese cabbage, kohlrabi, cauliflower, radish, radish, carrots, celery, early potatoes, paprika , strawberries. Vegetables and other plants from sowing or planting are covered immediately after sowing or planting seedlings, while plants from winter sowing, as well as two and perennial ones, when the outside temperature stabilizes at a level above 5 ° C (usually from mid-March).The best effects will be achieved when the cover is applied to a moist soil surface (it will keep the moisture accumulated in the soil and reduce evaporation). it constrained and did not distort plants, which, after all, grow and will need more and more space. The most convenient way is to spread the nonwoven fabric in the direction of the wind. Then its edges need to be attached (secured against being torn off by the wind) by covering with mounds of earth, arranging stones or bricks, or other weighting materials available on the plot. We should place such a load about every 1 meter.
Black mulching nonwoven agrotextile
The agrotextile can also be used for mulching the soil. For this purpose,black agrotextilewith a thickness of 50g / m² is used. Mulching with black nonwoven agrotextile protects plants against the development of weeds, soil pests and helps to maintain moisture in the soil.Another advantage is the increase in soil temperature thanks to the cover, which in turn promotes the development of the root system and accelerates plant growth.
Black nonwoven agrotextile , unlike the often used black foil, is permeable to water. Thanks to this, rainfall water reaches the covered soil and there is no lack of water for plants grown in mulched soil (this problem often occurs when mulching with a water-impermeable film).
A common mistake is to cover the plants with black agrotextile. Under such conditions, bushes can easily overheat and become ill
The best results are obtained when mulching the soil with agrotextile in the cultivation of thermophilic vegetables such as tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, melon, watermelon, as well as lettuce and strawberries. Then we arrange the non-woven fabric in stripes between the rows of plants. In a similar waymulching nonwovencan be used in the cultivation of flower seedlings.
In home gardens, agrofiber is increasingly used to mulch the soil between plants in decorative flower beds. In this way, we limit the growth of weeds that cannot penetrate the non-woven layer. After unfolding the agrotextile, we pour garden bark or gravel over it. As a result, theagrotextilewill not be visible and the surface of the bed will look natural. However, remember to properly prepare the soil, clean it of weeds and fertilize it before spreading the agrotextile on the bed.
