Growing pepper seedlings: how to plant seeds correctly
As you know, the key to a bountiful harvest is a strong seedling. Pepper is no exception. This culture has a long growing season, therefore, growing seedlings brings the time of its fruiting closer. In addition, young bushes are demanding on temperature and watering, and the seedling method allows you to provide seedlings with comfortable conditions, thanks to which they grow more developed and form more ovaries. To get high quality and healthy plants, it is important to know how to plant correctly. peppers for seedlings... The choice of sowing time, seed preparation, selection of nutrient soil - all these factors play a decisive role, so we will dwell on them in more detail today.
Sowing time
Pepper is a thermophilic culture, and in order to grow it in the open field, the seeds are sown for seedlings in early spring. The exact time depends on the climatic conditions, because by the time the bushes are planted in the ground, there should be a stable above zero temperature and warmed up soil on the street, namely:
- in the south, pepper can be sown already at the beginning of February;
- in the middle lane, it is better to wait until the end of the month;
- in northern latitudes, it is not at all worth sowing earlier than at the end of March.
Seed preparation
To speed up the germination of seeds, they must be pre-prepared. For this:
- select hollow seeds by soaking everything in salt water (good ones will remain at the bottom, and those that float must be thrown away);
- disinfect by keeping in a solution of pink potassium permanganate for half an hour;
- stimulate by soaking in Epin for 20 minutes.
It is better to germinate treated seeds before sowing, as it will take a long time to wait for sprouts in dry form. This is easy to do: you need to put the seeds on a piece of cloth and cover with a second shred on top. The rag should be periodically sprayed, and as soon as the sprouts appear, immediately plant.
What kind of soil is needed for seedlings?
Healthy pepper seedlings will only grow on fertile soil that can provide the plants with the necessary nutrition. Such soil mixtures are sold in the store (the packaging should say "for seedlings"). Also priming you can cook it yourself by mixing;
- 1 share of sand;
- 2 shares of peat;
- 3 shares of garden land.
Home substrate is subject to mandatory disinfection by piercing in the oven.
How to plant peppers for seedlings?
Pepper is very freedom-loving, requires a lot of light and space and does not tolerate crowded plantings. In this regard, it is better to sow seeds right away in small separate cups, placing 1-2 seeds in each.
The most convenient option is peat tablets or pots, it is also easy to grow seedlings in cassettes.
When sowing, it is not necessary to deepen the seeds, it is enough to lightly sprinkle them with earth, otherwise the sprouts will delay their appearance for a while. Sprinkle the planted pepper abundantly and build a shelter over the containers to create greenhouse conditions. After germination, it can be removed.Seedlings should be periodically moistened (pepper loves moisture) and kept in a bright place, if necessary, providing additional lighting so that it does not stretch out.