Solarize Soil

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    ztomatoztomato
    Greenhorn
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    Does soil solarization have any negative effect?

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    jeffrycopejeffrycope
    Green Thumb
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    Well the basics is that it cooks the soil to kill weeds and pests… so in the end you have a patch that doesn’t have nearly enough microorganisms to help your own plants kick off well. Mycelium (fungus) in the ground is critical to help plant roots take in nutrients (they swap it for water and sugars the plant provides), lots of tiny bugs dig galleries that help water and air seep in, worms and so on.. so in the short term there are lots of negative effects.

    The good news is these are temporary setbacks. Nature will come back, new fungus will appear, bugs and critters, too. And you’ll have rid the lot of the more problematic weeds and pests, so it’s easier to monitor and keep them from coming back. All in all a good solution, but like all things quick and easy, not a very delicate one…

    You can speed re-population of microorganisms with fermented teas, I saw this website had a lots of info on that.

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    ztomatoztomato
    Greenhorn
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    Thank you for the detailed explanation. I also read that adding compost after solarization would fix its negative effect. Next year, I will be trying to get rid of septoria and similar funguses that appear on tomatoes when I plant them. Spraying leaves with fungicides proved to be ineffective and cumbersome. So, that row would be functional only a year after.

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    jeffrycopejeffrycope
    Green Thumb
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    Correct, compost is an excellent way to replenish soil with life after solarization. Good luck, keep us updated!

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