Professional or hobbyist gardeners would understand the significance of maintaining healthy soil. The quality and health of soil is fundamental to cultivating a thriving garden and those who grow vegetables for consumption must be extremely vigilant regarding soil problems.
Fungal complaints are among the most frequently occurring issues as these trigger spores that multiply within soil during tilling or cultivation and thrive on the nutrition that is meant for the soil, thus stealing its nourishment. Another common complaint is that of Nematodes (microscopic worms) that are usually good for the soil but some may grow parasitic for the plant and result in wilting or stunting of your plants. If the soil develops an unhealthy bacterial culture then there is a strong chance that it may enter the roots and infect the plant.
Viruses also multiply in soil by taking it as the host and thrive on its nutrition, assaulting the cultivation internally and overtime. The problem proliferates with wet weather, unhealthy airflow issues, but by keeping an eye on certain symptoms, you can easily figure out the problem and act fast. Always look for moldy coatings, wilting of the plant leaves, rotting of the plants or fruits if growing in your cultivation. Here is how to keep the problem at bay:
Simple preventive measures to protect plants
As a preventive measure, make sure your plants are resistant to certain viral, bacterial, parasitic and fungal problems.
1. Ensure cleanliness of your growing area
2. Maintain routinely watering, fertilizing, rotating of the plants/crops
3. Do your homework on the types of seeds and products you use for your plants
4. Fungal problems can be effectively blocked by limiting high moisture environment and maintaining better airflow and removal of infected plants or crops
5. Maintain adequate sanitation within your garden to avoid accumulation of garbage or rotting substances and ensure that there is no compost within your rotten or infected plants
6. When planting tomatoes, choose a different area in your garden than you previously used for tomato plantation
7. Invest in healthy, hygienic and suitable seed-transplants during spring
8. Limit overhead watering to control wetness and humidity as these environmental conditions contribute to thriving of the unhealthy microbes
9. Cage your plants for better airflow to lower fungal activity and culture
10. Reduce mulching among infected plants as this could result in rain splash transfer or contamination of the plants
11. Invest in safe fungicides and maintain a preventive routine when you notice the symptoms and make sure that you closely observe the symptoms to understand when to destroy the crop for restricting the chance of infection spreading
12. Understand the pathogens are always existing in the soil so your course of action for protecting your garden and soil should be to keep the pestering growth of microbes at bay by using resistant crops, high quality compost, fungicides and healthy fertilizers, etc
Regardless of the type of crops you grow or even if you just maintain a garden for aesthetic purpose, preserving air and soil quality within the garden is obligatory so educate yourself on the basics of prevention and commonly occurring problems and follow the routine for keeping soil health damage at bay.
