Preparing tomato seeds for planting seedlings: processing, how to soak

Preparing tomato seeds for planting seedlings is important and necessary in order to minimize the risk of developing a large number of problems in the future. Thanks to this stage, the risk of developing fungal diseases of the plant is minimized, and the sprouts appear he althy, strong. But the preparation must take place in accordance with all the rules, otherwise vegetable growers risk being left without a harvest.

The right choice

How to prepare tomato seeds for seedlings? If it was decided to grow tomatoes on your own, then this should be done from the very beginning. You need to buy not seedlings, but seeds. This is the only way to be sure that all the important nuances of caring for them will be observed.

Grains for sowing are better to buy, but you can also harvest (only from a quality crop). There is always a drawing of the expected harvest on the packaging. It is important to study the packaging times indicated on the package and the weather conditions that a particular variety can withstand.

In regions where the climate is cold, it is better to choose early varieties. In warm areas, you can try to grow late varieties. It is important to consider the place where future seedlings will be planted. There are special varieties for the greenhouse, open ground and even for the window sill of the house.

Once a variety has been chosen, another question arises, how to process the seeds so that the crop pleases with its quantity and quality without big problems?

Preparation of tomato seeds for sowing seedlings begins with selection. After the purchase is made, the pack is opened and the selection for further care begins.They are poured onto a paper surface and only those that are large and dense are selected. Empty, small ones will have to be thrown away.

Properly prepare the seeds by determining their density, liquid with table s alt will allow. As soon as the grains fall into such a solution, you can immediately determine the qualitative part. Dense seeds end up at the bottom, while hollow ones float to the surface.

Even on purchased grains from a pack, many microbes and fungi live. When they hit the ground, they begin active life. The first sprouts sprout weak and die. Therefore, the preparation of tomato seeds for planting seedlings is not complete without disinfection.

A recipe based on potassium permanganate is effective and popular. But you need to do it right. A too saturated solution or an increase in the time the grains are in it affects the speed and quality of seedlings. Tomato seeds in potassium permanganate should be no more than 35 minutes.

It is enough to add 1 g of potassium permanganate to the water and mix well. After the grains have been in this solution for the allotted time, they are washed with plain water and left to dry completely in a warm room.

Preparatory steps

Preparing tomato seeds for sowing includes procedures to strengthen the plant, reduce the risk of disease and increase the number of crops in the future. Before planting seedlings, seeds must be disinfected, hardened, bubbling and additional feeding.

Many vegetable growers, sparing time and effort, are wondering if it is necessary to soak the seeds? It will not do the processing of tomato seeds before planting without soaking. Seeds can be covered with a thin layer of melt or rain water for 48 hours. If too much water is poured in, they may rot.

There are many other solutions for soaking tomato seeds used by gardeners.You can use aloe leaf juice or a purchased solution. Tomato seed treatment before sowing can be carried out with solutions based on sodium humate, Zircon or Epin extra. They stimulate growth and strengthen cultivated plants.

Pre-sowing preparation of tomato seeds continues with the hardening procedure. Soaked grains must go through the hardening stage. Hardening of tomato seeds before planting is recommended for persistent transfer of adverse weather surprises in the future (wind, hot days or cold nights).

In order to harden future plants, you need to place the grains in a wet towel and leave to lie at a temperature of 20 degrees for about 12 hours, then the towel is moved to a cold place for 7 hours. It is necessary to harden the seeds in this way for three days. Throughout this period, you need to monitor the temperature and humidity of the air, otherwise the planting material may rot or become moldy.

Hardened seedlings will not succumb to temperature changes and withstand bad weather.

Tomato seed treatment before sowing needs a disinfection procedure. Seed disinfection is carried out using a wide variety of recipes, the most popular are prepared on the basis of potassium permanganate 0.1% and hydrogen peroxide 10%.

Tomato seeds before sowing also need such a procedure as bubbling. It allows the seeds to swell, saturate with oxygen and germinate faster in the future. Seeds are poured with half a glass of water and stirred periodically (bubbling) for 4 hours. If the house has an aquarium, then you can connect the tube to the compressor. The grains will be even more enriched with oxygen. After a while, they are placed on a dry cloth to dry completely.

Pre-sowing treatment of tomato seeds to increase yields is carried out with feeding.The following recipe is popular. Nitroammophoska, sodium humate and wood ash are poured with a liter of water. Tomato grains in potassium permanganate are kept in a specially made gauze bag, which is dipped into the resulting solution for half an hour. After that, the seeds are in a wet towel until they begin to germinate. As soon as the first sprouts hatch, they are transplanted into prepared soil.

In order for the processing of tomato seeds before planting was not in vain, each step must be performed correctly. Take into account the place of further planting of seedlings, taste, height of bushes, weather conditions and other factors.

Read more about the soaking procedure

On the question of whether tomato seeds should be soaked before planting, a definite positive answer will be given. Soaking tomato seeds is recommended for growth and high yields. If you skip this stage, then the seedlings will come out badly and the bushes will be susceptible to many diseases, as well as pests.The harvest will also not please with its quality and quantity. Whether to soak the seeds is up to everyone, but the further result will depend on this stage.

Soaking tomato seeds can greatly reduce the risk of these problems. It is extremely rare for treated seeds to become diseased.

There are many recipes and ways to soak tomato seeds before planting. How long you can soak tomato seeds depends on the recipe and the ingredients used. What can you soak the landing base in? Recipes that are popular and effective among agronomists and amateur gardeners.

1. You can soak the prepared base in aloe juice. The product is safe, natural and nutritious. Increases plant resistance to diseases, stimulates growth at any stage of development. How to soak seeds in aloe leaf juice? The fleshy leaves of aloe are placed first in a cold place.After that, juice is squeezed out. Can be used neat or mixed with water. The cloth bag with the contents is dipped in the solution for 24 hours.
2. Seeds are useful to brew in the composition of wood ash. 60 g of ash is dissolved in one liter of water and left for two days to infuse. After two days, the infusion is ready for use. In the infusion for enrichment with mineral components, it is necessary to leave the base for 4 hours.
3. Tomato seed processing can take place in solution with Epin. This is a plant-based preparation that not only stimulates the growth of the plant, but also increases its resistance to various adverse factors (lack of light, cold weather). In warm water (100 ml) add 5 drops of the drug and leave for about two days. Epin for seedlings is used to stimulate the process of its germination.
4. Tomato seeds can be soaked in a mixture based on chicory acid. The drug Zircon is a powerful activator of the growth of seedlings and their roots. You need to soak the seeds in Zircon for about a day.
5. Fitosporin can be used to soak the seeds. It is a biological means of protecting grains from diseases. About 3 drops of the drug are added to a glass of water and the seeds are soaked for three hours. After the procedure, a protective film of beneficial bacteria forms on the seeds. It prevents the penetration of pathogenic bacteria inside.

Tomato seeds can be soaked in solutions with various ingredients that will positively influence the further development of the cultivated plant: honey, mushrooms, tea, onion peel. The main thing is to keep the proportions so that care does not harm future seedlings.

Fight disease

The disinfection procedure is necessary in order to get rid of all pathogens that live on the shell of seeds. The most common recipes include potassium permanganate and hydrogen peroxide.

• Soaking seeds in potassium permanganate tomatoes is carried out for the purpose of disinfection. How to soak tomato seeds before planting in the composition with potassium permanganate? A solution of a light pinkish tint is being prepared. If the mixture is saturated, then the tomatoes may die. Keep the seeds in potassium permanganate for no more than 35 minutes. After 30 minutes, they are removed from the mixture and washed. You can use baking soda for this purpose. This will completely disinfect the planting material.
• Preparing the solution is very simple. 30 g of soda is diluted in a liter of water. In this solution, the seeds are left for three hours. Then they are washed with clean water and placed in gauze soaked in fertilizers. After three days, you can start sowing seed material. Thanks to these solutions, the seedlings will have a strong stem, roots and a high yield.

• How to treat tomato seeds with hydrogen peroxide? For two days, you can soak the seeds in 10% hydrogen peroxide to achieve a disinfecting effect.The amount of the active ingredient should be equal to the number of seeds. A solution with hydrogen peroxide reduces the content of nitrates in fruits, increases the rate of germination, and strengthens immunity. In addition, it helps to disinfect the surface of each grain, which often contains dormant microbes and fungi.
• Often, gardeners use the biological preparation Fitolavin when growing tomatoes on their own. The composition based on streptothricin antibiotics prevents the development of the most common diseases among tomatoes. The drug is absolutely safe for humans and does not affect the beneficial soil flora.
• Thermal disinfection has been popular since ancient times. The method allows you to get rid of harmful microbes and increase productivity. To this end, for planting material, a place will be organized for two days where the air temperature will be about 30-50 degrees.

If already at this stage we start fighting bacteria and fungi, then in the future green bushes will be able to fight the invasion of pathogenic bacteria on their own.

Start of sowing

The prepared base must go through the germination process at the end. For this purpose, tomato seeds are placed on a damp cloth, covered with another layer of wet cloth and cleaned in a warm room. Re-wet the fabric as needed. As soon as the first sprouts hatch, the seeds are planted in the soil.

Preparing tomatoes for sowing is not complete without good soil. Seeds need special conditions to germinate:

• the soil should be doused with boiling water before sowing to get rid of any infection;
• disinfect the seeds themselves;
• loosen the soil well;
• plant no deeper than 1.5 cm;
• the soil should not be cold;
• presence of sufficient moisture;
• awakening seeds from dormancy.

How to prepare tomato seeds for planting, there are other rules. Before sowing, they should visit a warm place. If they are in the cold and immediately planted in the ground, then the first sprouts will hatch not after three days, but after three weeks.

You can prepare the soil for tomato seedlings yourself. Chernozem, humus, peat, superphosphate or wood ash will come in handy. Components can be mixed with each other.

When sowing cooked grains in one large container, you must follow the rules. The distance between the recesses should be at least 2.5 cm. After planting, the container is covered with glass or plastic wrap. The soil requires regular watering and ventilation. As soon as 90% of the seedlings emerge, the film is removed.

When determining the time for planting grains in the ground, gardeners rely on personal experience, be sure to take into account climatic norms, the selected variety of tomatoes and the conditions in which they will grow.

If seedlings are planned to be grown in a greenhouse, the end of February is considered the best time to sow seeds. For further outdoor cultivation, but under cover, the best time is the beginning of March, and without cover - the end of March.

But some vegetable growers do all the actions that relate to planting and caring for plants according to the lunar calendar. It is developed by astrologers and agronomists. In their opinion, the Moon, being at different distances from the Earth, acts on the entire living part of the world. It is necessary to sow, replant plants with the growing moon. In this case, the seedlings develop well and quickly. Dates according to the lunar calendar are calculated annually different.

As soon as the first true leaves appear, the seedlings dive (pinching long roots, leaving the weak and short ones untouched). Large and strong bushes can be transplanted into separate containers, for example, disposable plastic cups. At the bottom of the cups, be sure to make holes so that moisture does not stagnate.

In order to avoid problems with seedlings, you need to follow important rules for caring for it:

• you need to water regularly, better with a watering can, without pressure;
• seedlings are placed in a well-lit place, without drafts;
• the container constantly needs to be turned on different sides so that the stems are even and do not stretch upwards;
• there should be enough space for the development of each bush;
• every two weeks it is recommended to apply mineral or organic fertilizers.

There is nothing difficult in caring for tomato seeds. If you give a little more time to the preparatory stage, taking into account all the features, then in the future there will be fewer difficulties and the result will pleasantly surprise you.

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