2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38
The best time to grow seedlings of "flowerbeds" is the end of winter - the beginning of spring. With the correct planting of shoots, you can get healthier and more hardy plants than purchased ones. Let's reveal a few secrets
To get beautiful flowers from seedlings, you need to follow the rules for preparing a sowing substrate, sowing seeds and daily care - watering, feeding, shading if necessary, diving seedlings in a timely manner. Flower seeds are sown in special containers and installed on a glazed balcony, in greenhouses, on a windowsill. But before that, it is important to prepare well the containers and soil for seedlings.
1. Preparatory process
First, you need to prepare the potting mix, preferably on your own, since there is no guarantee of the quality of the ready-made mixes sold. Garden, forest or field land is harvested in the fall. In winter, it is necessary to decontaminate it. Twice or three times, the earth must be brought to a warm place for 7-10 days. During this time, weeds will sprout and pests will wake up. Then the earth is brought out into frost, where the natural death of pests and weeds occurs.
Disinfection will also be required for seedling containers, which are disinfected with a solution prepared from 200 g of bleach or 100 g of copper sulfate diluted in 10 liters of water. In order to avoid stagnation of liquid and decay of the roots of seedlings, it is necessary to have holes at the bottom of the containers and good drainage.
To accelerate germination and improve the viability of seeds before sowing, you need to soak them in one of the stimulants (Epin, Zircon, HB101).
On a note:
Be sure to consider the sowing depth of the seeds - it should not be too deep. Stick to the rule: Cover the seed with a layer of soil three times the thickness of the seed itself.
2. Lighting and airing
For watering seedlings, water at room temperature is used, poured into a watering can with a fine sieve. After watering, the sown seeds, covered with glass or foil, are left in a warm place. The best option for the temperature at which the seeds germinate quickly is 20-24 degrees. C. Lighting is not required during this period. To prevent the seeds from suffocating, it is necessary to ventilate the crops daily and remove the resulting condensation.
As soon as shoots have appeared, the container is set to light, and the ambient temperature decreases (16-18 degrees C). With a short daylight hours, the seedlings should be additionally provided with light using fluorescent lamps. The use of conventional incandescent lamps is not recommended.
On a note:
Apartments that are heated with central heating are characterized by dry air. For this reason, in the room where the seedlings are placed, it is necessary to control and regulate the humidity indicator.
3. The use of a pick is obvious
Picking (planting) is done after the first leaves appear on the seedlings. It is necessary for the better development of plant roots. Before picking, the plants are watered. Then each sprout is gently lifted from the bottom using a special peg (you can use a small wooden stick), and placed in a spacious and deep container. It is advisable to opt for strong and well-formed seedlings.
After picking, the seedlings are shaded for 2-3 days - if the plants are not exposed to direct sunlight, they will take root better.
4. How to succeed
In order for the seedlings to grow successfully, they need to be fed 2-3 times. For this, mineral, organic or ready-made fertilizers are used. The first feeding is carried out when 2-3 leaves appear, and the last one - a few days before the seedlings are transplanted into the ground.
5. Treatment of diseased plants
Often, seedlings are affected by a black leg - the stem below becomes dark, thin and rotting. If the sprout is watered frequently, using cold water for irrigation, the disease develops faster.
Noticing the appearance of the disease, you need to carefully select the damaged plants, water them with a special solution (dilute 1.5 g of potassium permanganate in 5 liters of water), and then do not water for several days. Also, calcine and cool the sand to mulch the soil.
When the seedlings grow up and get stronger, and the frosts stop returning, you can plant the plants in the flower garden.
On a note:
Before planting, the seedlings need to be hardened: during the day, take them out into the fresh air, and bring them into a warm room by night.
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