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| Due to the heat wave, and being 8 in. shy of rain, my clay soil is getting very difficult for my plants to grow in this year. And I'm worn out with constant watering that will not drain properly. Clays turned into brick. Sigh.
Still no rain in forecast for at least a week. So I was considering removing some sunflowers and soloridizing 4 by 12 feet of one end of the bed. The problem is: this area connects to my tomato section of the bed. (It's one long bed, 4 by 36)
So how how close to the tomato plants can I get with the plastic? I've read how this is done and will totally bury all four sides of the plastic 12" into the soil. Wouldn't it be more productive to solardize the soil instead of just letting sunflowers grow? (Of course the J beetles eating on them would say , nay. lol ) Good idea? bad idea?
Thank you so. Appreciate all your help. Sue
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Follow-Up Postings:
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- Posted by blazeaglory 10 SZ22 OC Ca (My Page) on Sun, Jul 8, 12 at 2:48
| I would solarize my entire garden if I could just to be on the safe side:-) But I was wondering also how close you could get the plastic to the plants without killing the plants roots. I know in strawberry fields they get pretty close to the plants but Im unsure. |
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| In our area of the world soil solarization can take 10 to 12 weeks, but the heat generated under the plastic will not adversly affect plants growing fairly close by. If I were to do this I would stay a foot, minimum, away from plants I wanted to keep. |
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- Posted by blazeaglory 10 SZ22 OC Ca (My Page) on Sun, Jul 8, 12 at 13:40
| Yeah how true. In a hot summer around here It can take less than a couple of weeks:-) I guess there are benefits and drawbacks to every area huh? You guys can grow lots of nice deciduous fruits when I cant but I can grow some nice tropics. A foot sounds like a good distance and I would wait until I read a nice HOT forecast was coming. |
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- Posted by gardengal48 PNW zone 8 (My Page) on Sun, Jul 8, 12 at 17:31
| 10-12 weeks is excessive. I've attached a link from the Illinois extension service outlining the how-to's - 4-6 weeks is more than sufficient at this time of year and is supported by a bunch of resources. |
Here is a link that might be useful: UofI extension - solarization
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- Posted by toxcrusadr (My Page) on Mon, Jul 9, 12 at 10:48
| Thanks for the link gardengal. I have a small raised bed with nothing in it right now and was thinking the same thing. It's been a problem spot anyway, temps have been 100+ for 11 days in a row, perfect for roasting the crap out of whatever is in there. :-] It's down to a balmy 90 today, might be time to get that going. |
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| A study on soil solarization at Michigan State University found that because of the number of cloudy days and the number of rainy days fairly typical of the midwest, soil solarization took longer since the soil needs to be raised to certain temperatures and held there for a certain amount of time. The article from the University of Illinois looks to me very much like one I saw from the University of Southern California, even though the UI people have not attributed it propeerly. |
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- Posted by toxcrusadr (My Page) on Tue, Jul 10, 12 at 10:40
| Rain? I forget what that is. I think my county has been magically transported into the Gobi Desert somewhere. |
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- Posted by gardengal48 PNW zone 8 (My Page) on Tue, Jul 10, 12 at 15:14
| Solarization utilizes solar radiation to heat up soil temperatures and solar radiation is present even under cloudy conditions. It's called diffuse radiation. That's how solar heating panels and solar powered lights work anywhere in the country, even in the more often cloudy and rainy PNW :-) FWIW, virtually any resource you review on soil solarization recommends a 4-6 week period during midsummer regardless of location, when the sun is most intense/nearly directly overhead, temperatures are highest and sunlight more prevalent than clouds. During a drought and heat wave in July is pretty much ideal :-) |
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| How deep should this solarizing reach and then how long will any beneficial results last, and also how long will any harmful results last? |
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- Posted by gardengal48 PNW zone 8 (My Page) on Tue, Jul 10, 12 at 17:59
| If covered for the recommended period of time, the heat will penetrate as far as 18" although the optimum "kill zone" (for lack of a better expression) is 6". And this is where the majority of soil pests and pathogens will reside as well as most weed seeds. The beneficial results will last until the soil is invaded/affected by new insects, weeds or pathogens - impossible to say specifically. There are less harmful results from solarization than one would imagine (solarization is NOT sterilization) - remember that the vast majority of beneficial soil organisms can tolerate the high temps of the composting process. Solarization also speeds up the breakdown of organic matter in the soil, assisting in the release of soluble nutrients. Do some research on soil solarization - there's a lot of info out there. |
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- Posted by toxcrusadr (My Page) on Tue, Jul 10, 12 at 18:56
| I assume it would be a good idea to add some fresh active compost to it afterwards, to give it a microbial boost. Not compost made from the diseased junk that previously grew there, of course. :-] |
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| I did a solarization once. I lost a growing season on that area doing it. I used a thin mil clear plastic and it was breaking up after 7 or 8 weeks. |
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| Ahh.. thanks for all the answers to my post. I appreciate all your input and the links. I did alot of reading and decided to go for it! I'm now into 3 days of solarization on part of my bed! As one of you stated, this weather seems perfect. It's bloody hot and dry. |
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| This is totally anecdotal, but I'll share it in case it helps: I did solarization two different years, and the year I started in early June (before the longest day) worked great, while the year I started in mid July (sun already waning) it hardly worked at all. So, if you get less than stellar results this year, you could try starting earlier another year when the sun is higher. But with the heat, you may well get great results even with a waning sun. One tip -- once the plastic starts to deteriorate at all, pick it up. The worst is when it becomes brittle, and you ( or in this case, I) don't pick it up, and a storm comes, and the next several weeks are spent picking up tiny pieces of plastic from all over the garden and yard! |
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