Si želite imeti lasten vrt, pa nimate prostora zanj?
Svojo zelenjavno oazo si lahko na primer ustvarite kar na svojem balkonu.
Tudi če nimamo dostopa do sejalnih površin ali če živimo v bloku, kjer je naš prostor omejen, smo lahko deloma samooskrbni. Če pridelujemo pridelke doma, zmanjšamo uporabo transporta, ki bi pomenil dodatno onesnaževanje okolja z emisijami. Ker je kratka pot od pridelka do uporabnika, pridelki vsebujejo več vitaminov in mineralov, kot uvoženi. Posamezen pridelek tudi ni škropljen s fitofarmacevtskimi sredstvi, kar je boljše za naše zdravje. Pridelki niso posebej pakirani v svojo embalažo, ki bi po nepotrebnem onesnaževala okolje. Ni potrebno hoditi v trgovine, saj so posajeni pridelki zlahka dostopni in jih lahko vzamemo iz svoje visoke grede, ko se nam to zahoče.
Bi imeli kaj takšnega, kar imamo pred šolo?
Kako lahko sami sestavimo visoko gredo?
Sestavimo leseno ogrodje, prostoru primerne velikosti, ki nam je na voljo. Pri izbiri lesa je najboljši sibirski macesen, ki je zaradi svoje počasne rasti izredno odporen na vremenske vplive. Po notranji strani polepimo z zaščitno folijo. Na dno postavimo zaščitno mrežo proti voluharjem, nad njo drobno grobo kamenje (3), saj to preprečuje zaustavljanje vode. Nad kamenje postavimo veje (4), ki služijo kot hranilo za daljše obdobje. Postavimo jih vzdolžno, da lahko zrak kroži. Sledi pas pokošene trave (5), saj je ta odlično gnojilo in pomaga pri zadrževanju vlage in preprečuje izpiranja. Nato sledi večji pas komposta (6,7), ki vsebuje mikroorganizme, ki pozimi pospešujejo proces razkroja in ustvarjajo humus. Sledi plast kartona (8), ki je ob razpadanju dobra vaba za deževnike, hkrati tudi zadržuje vlago, zato grede ne rabimo zalivati vsak dan. Na koncu damo rodovitno prst (9,10), ki prispeva k boljšemu uspevanju pridelkov.
Pomembno je, da za gredo izberemo lokacijo, ki bo izpostavljena soncu in bo dobro prezračena. Gredo postavimo spomladi. Organske materiale, kot so veje, listje, trava in kompost, dodajamo preko leta. Priporočljivo je, da humus dodamo nekaj tednov pred začetkom rastne sezone, kar običajno pomeni konec aprila ali v začetku maja. Do naslednje pomladi se bo ta zemlja nekoliko posedla.
Spomladi na gredo posadimo in posejemo zelenjavo. Držimo se pravila, da višje rastline (npr. paradižnik) sadimo na sredino grede, proti robu pa nižje. Tako višja zelenjava ne bo senčila nižje. Na gredah ustvarjamo mešane kulture, in sicer tako, da med seboj sadimo zelenjavo, ki sodi med ugodne sosede.
Katere rastline lahko gojimo skupaj in katere ne ter zakaj? (dobri in slabi sosedje)
Dobri sosedje:
- paradižnik in bazilika, saj paradižnik potrebuje podporo, bazilika pa je koristna za odganjanje škodljivcev in izboljšanje okusa paradižnika,
- korenček in čebula, saj se dobro dopolnjujeta v rasti,
- solata in špinača, ki jih navadno posadimo pod višjimi rastlinami, da sta v senci,
- fižol in kumare, saj se fižol lahko vzpenja po opori, medtem ko kumare plazijo po tleh, kar izkoristi prostor v višino in širino visoke grede.
Slabi sosedje:
- krompir in paradižnik spadata v isto družino (Solanaceae), kar pomeni, da sta bolj nagnjena k istim boleznim in škodljivcem,
- fižol zavira rast čebule, čebula pa lahko tudi vpliva na okus fižola z njeno aromo,
- kumare in krompir: krompir zahteva veliko hranil in vode, kar lahko zmanjša razpoložljive vire za kumare,
- solata in korenje: korenje lahko razvije veliko korenino, ki lahko tekmuje za prostor z rastočo solato, kar lahko privede do manjšega pridelka pri obeh.
Visoke grede predstavljajo ustvarjalno rešitev za vrtnarjenje na omejenem prostoru, ki omogoča izjemno učinkovito rabo zemlje ter povečuje samooskrbo s svežo in zdravo hrano. Visoke grede ne le omogočajo izkoristek vsakega centimetra prostora, ampak tudi zmanjšujejo negativne vplive na okolje. Z njihovo pomočjo lahko pomagamo ohraniti biotsko raznovrstnost. Poleg tega nas spodbujajo k trajnostnemu načinu življenja in povečujejo ozaveščenost o pomenu lokalne samooskrbe. Zato visoke grede niso le način vrtnarjenja, ampak tudi simbol trajnostnega in odgovornega odnosa do okolja ter prihodnjih generacij.
Viri:
- LONČAR, Sanja. (1965). Samooskrba v praksi: več pridelka, manj površine. Ponatis: Ljubljana: Jasno in glasno, 2021. Preverjene naravne rešitve za življenje in preživetje.
- Ustni vir: Karin Kočevar.
- Slike so lasten vir.
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ENGLISH:
THE SECRETS OF RAISED GARDEN BEDS
Do you want to have your own garden but you don’t have the space for it?
You can create your own vegetable oasis right on your balcony, for example.
Even if we don’t have access to sowing grounds or if we live in an apartment building where our space is limited, we can be partially self-sustainable.If we produce the crops right at home, we reduce the use of transport, which would additionally pollute the environment with emissions. Because the distance between the crops and the user is short, the crops contain more vitamins and minerals than the transported ones. The crops are also not sprayed with phytopharmaceuticals, which is much better for our health. They aren’t wrapped in packaging that would unnecessarily contaminate the environment. There is no need to go to a store because the vegetables are easily accessible and can be taken from the raised garden bed when needed.
Would you like to have something similar to what we have in front of our school?
How do we build a raised garden bed ourselves?
| Figure 1: Composition of a raised garden bed, image source: Ula Lesar |
We build a wooden frame, as big as the space available. The best wood to choose is the Siberian larch, which is—thanks to its slow growth rate—extremely resilient against bad weather conditions. We stick protective foil on the inside. On the bottom, we put protective mesh against voles, and small rough stones (3) on top because they don’t let water pass through. Above them we put smaller and bigger twigs (4), which will serve as nutrients for a longer time period. We arrange them longitudinally for air circulation. Next, we put a layer of mown grass (5) on top of the twigs as it is a great fertiliser while also helping retain moisture and preventing leaching. Then comes a layer of compost (6,7), which contains microorganisms that escalate the process of decomposition in winter, followed by a layer of cardboard (8), which, when decomposing, is a good bait for earthworms and at the same time retains moisture, so the garden bed does not need to be watered every day. At last, we put a layer of fertile soil (9,10), which contributes to better crop growth.
It is important to choose a sunny location and a well-ventilated one. We set up the raised garden bed in spring. We add organic materials, such as twigs, leaves, compost and grass, throughout the whole year. It is advised that we add humus some weeks before the growing season, which usually means at the end of April or at the beginning of May. The soil will slightly collapse until next spring.
During spring, we can plant and sow our vegetables. We should stick to the rule that we grow the taller plants (e.g. tomatoes) in the middle of the garden and the shorter ones on the sides. This way the shorter plants won’t be in the shade because of the ones that grow higher. We can create vegetable diversity in garden beds by planting the veggies next to the appropriate neighbouring plants.
Which vegetables should we plant next to each other and which ones should we avoid (good and bad neighbours)?
Good neighbours:
- Tomato and basil, because tomato needs support and basil is useful for repelling pests and enhances the tomato’s flavour.
- Carrot and onion, because they encourage each other’s growth.
- Salad and spinach, which are usually planted under higher plants to be in the shadow.
- Pole bean and cucumber, because the bean can grow as a climbing vine on a trellis, while the cucumber can grow on the ground. This takes advantage of the space in a raised garden bed.
Bad neighbours:
- Potato and tomato belong to the same family (Solanaceae), which means that they are both inclined towards the same illnesses and pests.
- Bean inhibits the growth of onion; onion can also impact the taste of bean with its aroma
- Cucumber and potato: potato needs a lot of water and nutrients, which can cut off some of the cucumber’s supply.
- Salad and carrot: carrot can develop a big root, limiting salad’s space, which can lead to smaller yields of both vegetables.
Raised garden beds can be a creative solution for gardening in a limited and smaller space, which can enable very efficient soil usage and lead to better self-sustainability through fresh and healthy food. Not only do they enable the utilisation of the area’s every centimetre, they also help the individual to be more ecologically aware. With their help we can assist in sustaining biodiversity. They also encourage us to live a sustainable lifestyle and spread awareness about the meaning of local self-sustainability. That is why these gardens aren’t just a different way to grow plants, but also a symbol of a sustainable and responsible relationship with the environment and the future generations.
Sources:
- LONČAR, Sanja. (1965). Samooskrba v praksi: več pridelka, manj površine. Ponatis: Ljubljana: Jasno in glasno, 2021. Preverjene naravne rešitve za življenje in preživetje.
- The photos are our own source.