2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38
Eggshell seedling containers? Sometimes it happens! There are many ways to independently make good and very original containers for seedlings - every gardener will definitely pick up something interesting for himself, and maybe he will try all the options. And the efforts made will certainly please with the result
Eggshell
Small vegetation can be planted in eggshells pre-filled with soil. For seedlings of peppers and tomatoes, such original containers, of course, will not work.
When planting seedlings grown in such containers in the beds, the shells are squeezed in the hand until they crack, trying not to damage the roots of the plants, and the seedlings are planted in the holes along with the remnants of the shells - the earth will be very grateful for such feeding, because lime is very important for the full development of vegetation. In addition, lime improves the structure of the soil and helps to reduce its acidity.
You can prepare the shells in advance - the eggs are not broken entirely for this purpose, but only slightly break their tops and extract the contents from them. Sloppy sharp edges of the shells can be trimmed with a knife. And in order to make a hole for water drainage, the bottom of the shells is pierced with a knitting needle or a sharp awl.
Prepared shells (either boiled or well washed) are placed in containers. However, ordinary egg trays can also replace containers quite well. Then the eggs are filled with the nutrient mixture and the seeds are sown. As a rule, seedlings in such a container grow stocky and rather strong, so planting them in the ground is very successful.
Nutrient Cubes
Making such cubes will not take much time and will not require huge efforts. Initially, this will require one part of humus and three parts of peat, or one part of sod land and five parts of humus. These components are well mixed with each other.
A small amount of water, potassium sulfate in an amount of 15 g, superphosphate (50 g) and ammonium nitrate (15 g) must be added to the resulting mixture. As a result, the mixture should resemble very thick sour cream in consistency. You can form cubes from it using special molds or manually. You can use a pallet or some other container with a flat bottom. Fill the tray with a well-mixed mixture in a layer of about 8 - 10 cm. Until the composition has dried, it is cut with a sharp knife into identical and even cubes of the required size. For greater convenience, the cubes placed on the pallet can be separated from each other with ordinary cardboard, and then start sowing the seeds.
DIY seedling cassettes
Thin plywood must be cut into strips of the required size. It is important to calculate that their length is a multiple of the number of cells. For example, in order to equip ten cells 5 cm wide in one row, the strip should be cut 50 cm long and additionally add 3 cm to the connections. Thus, the total length of the strip should be 53 cm. Every 5 cm, cuts are made on the strips - about a centimeter is not cut to the end. The strips are connected to each other by joining the resulting slots (one slot is docked with the other) - and the cassettes are ready. As for the pallet, you can make it yourself from fiberboard.
Plastic bags, as well as cassettes and cups from them
It is also allowed to grow seedlings in plastic bags. Large bags are a good starting material for making original seedling cassettes. To do this, dense bags are filled with a pre-moistened soil mixture, after which they are placed in a pallet and sealed with tape. A large number of holes are pierced with a thick needle from below, and small cross-shaped cuts are made at the top with a sharp knife - through these cuts, seeds are subsequently sown. Water the soil mixture in bags about once a week, since the soil in such containers remains well-moistened for a long time. Before planting seedlings, the packages are cut, and the extracted shoots are transplanted into the ground.
You can also make cups from polyethylene. They are made by analogy with paper ones, rolling them up in a cone, and the edges are fastened, or rather soldered, with the help of a highly heated knife blade. Before planting seedlings in the beds, the cups are simply torn apart.
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