The nuances of growing eggplant seedlings

To obtain healthy and strong eggplant seedlings, it is necessary not only to sensibly care for the seedlings, but also to pay enough attention to the preparatory stage. In addition to choosing the right containers and preparing the right soil mixture, you also have to process and germinate the planting material.

All types of eggplants are classified as early, medium and late. Early maturing varieties are famous for their ability to tolerate low temperatures, insufficient lighting and thickening of plantings.

You should also pay attention to the "Dwarf 921" and "Early maturing 148". Both of these varieties mature on average in 110 days, delighting gardeners with a bountiful harvest of pear-shaped vegetables.

Mid-season crop varieties allow harvesting fruits for a longer period than in the case of early ones. They are not afraid of dry air and thrive even if irrigation is not regular. As an option, similar characteristics are possessed by "Goliath F1", the weight of the fetus of which can exceed 1 kilogram. Good yields are also observed in Epic F1, Almaz and Black Beauty.

Finally, late varieties can also be planted for seedlings, the harvest of which ripens at the end of summer. The pear-shaped eggplants "Mishutka", which ripen in 130-140 days, and the rounded vegetables "Sophia," get good reviews, which take 135 to 145 days to wait.

The time for planting eggplants for seedlings is determined depending on the climatic characteristics of the region. For representatives of the middle zone, including the Moscow region, the first half of February is suitable in the case of mid-season varieties and even the end of January for late-ripening varieties. It is customary to use planting material in the southern regions in early February, and work in the Urals starts in early March and continues until the middle of the first spring month.

In Siberia, famous for the late arrival of summer, it is customary to organize sowing of seeds during a month, starting from the second half of February. It is important to remember that if the material is planted too early, then the seedlings will hatch ahead of time, but they cannot be transferred to a permanent habitat due to low temperatures.

When determining the timing, the characteristics of the variety are also taken into account., that is, whether it is early, mid or late ripening, as well as in what conditions it will grow - on open or closed ground.

Seed should be purchased only from trusted sellers, carefully reading the information on the packaging, including the expiration date and characteristics of the variety. Of course, you can prepare them yourself or take them from the nearest market, but only specialized stores allow you to get processed grains, completely ready for planting.

Beginners are advised to give preference to hybrids - as a rule, they have more resistant immunity and bear fruit abundantly. From breeding varieties, it is worth taking those that belong to the first generation and are marked with the F1 marking. It is believed that they tolerate temperature fluctuations better and are less likely to get sick. The optimum age of the seed does not exceed 4 years.

Planting seeds should be preceded by the preparation of all components for this procedure.

Eggplant seedlings require soil that has a neutral pH level, that is, does not go beyond 6.5-7. It is important that the light mixture is breathable and rich in nutrients. For culture, a store-bought product intended for seedlings is suitable, although it will be equally effective to mix it yourself.

In the second case, 2 parts of humus and 0.5 parts of sawdust are added to 1 part of peat and 1 part of turf.

Eggplant seedlings do not respond very well to picking, so they are initially recommended to be planted in individual containers with sufficient volume - about 250-500 milliliters. The easiest way is to use available plastic cups in the work, at the bottom of which drainage holes are cut independently. Plastic constructions made up of several recesses fastened together are also suitable.

Eco-friendly peat pots will allow you to plant seedlings directly in them in the future, without injuring the root system. This container has many advantages for the formation of seedlings, however, it requires more careful monitoring of the soil moisture level, since such containers dry out pretty soon.

Peat tablets have similar characteristics: they are convenient for use, they can be directed directly into the open ground, but they dry out rapidly and, as a result, decrease in size, injuring the root system.

There are several ways to process eggplant seeds. As a rule, the gardener himself chooses which ones to use, giving preference to one or two options. The best place to start is with calibration. In this case, the grains are dipped into a solution of a teaspoon of salt and a glass of warm water, slightly stirred and left for a third of an hour. Those samples that, after the above-mentioned period, will be on the surface, will not rise in the future, and therefore they should be immediately eliminated. The seeds remaining at the bottom are washed and dried on a napkin.

It is time to start heating the seed material one and a half months before planting - it will be enough to pack the seeds in a linen bag and put them on the battery. Periodically, the workpiece will need to be shaken and turned over. Rapid heating requires the use of a thermos filled with water at a temperature of about 50 degrees. The seeds, also in a bag, are immersed inside for 5 minutes, and then dried.

To prevent contamination of the planting material, it will be necessary to hold it in a bright pink solution of potassium permanganate or in a mixture of a tablespoon of 3 percent hydrogen peroxide and 0.5 liters of water. The procedure lasts no more than 20 minutes, after which the grains are washed under the tap and dried.

For hardening, the seeds are harvested in a wet cloth bag or wrapped in wet gauze. Since they have to stay in such a state for 14-16 hours, the bundle will constantly need to be sprayed. After the required period is maintained at room temperature, the grains will need to be transferred to the refrigerator and left for 12 hours.At the final stage, the planting material stays from 14 to 16 hours in a room where room temperature is maintained. Finally, the eggplant seeds are suggested and simply soaked by organizing this procedure 3 days before sowing.

The selected seeds are laid out in a cloth bag or wrapped in gauze, after which they are placed on a plate and filled with water so as to lightly cover the bundle. The resulting structure is moved into a plastic bag. An excellent solution would also be to use a growth stimulant.

It is customary to plant eggplants in several ways.

The traditional method is considered the simplest, but most effective. Grooves are created in the soil, the depth of which does not exceed 0.5-1 centimeters. They are filled with seeds so that a gap of 1 centimeter remains between individual specimens. The depressions are covered with earth and abundantly moistened with a spray bottle. The container is tightened with cling film or covered with glass, after which it is transferred to a room where the temperature is maintained from 22 to 25 degrees.

Sowing in a "snail" - that is, the soil twisted into a special material, allows you to significantly save space. To implement this method, a blank is required, which is a tape made of insulation or a substrate for a laminate, the thickness of which is in the border of 12-15 centimeters. Its length is determined depending on the number of grains - the more there are, the longer the tape should be. The earth is crumbled and slightly compacted over the prepared strip so that its thickness is 1.5-2 centimeters. The material is gently rolled into a roll so that the soil remains inside.

The "snail" is fixed with an elastic band, and it is given a vertical position. The ground inside will need to be slightly crushed to indicate the sides with a finger or pencil. After soaking the mixture with Epin's solution, you can proceed to the formation of recesses for the seeds. The depth of the holes should be made equal to 0.5-1 centimeters, and the distance between them should be kept within 3-4 centimeters. Each cavity is filled with a seed and sprinkled with earth.

When sown in boiling water, the plastic container is filled with earth, forming a layer of 3-4 centimeters. The seeds are carefully laid out on the surface and evenly poured with boiling water. The container is covered with a plastic lid and stowed away in a warm, well-lit space.

It is easy to work with peat tablets: the circles lying in a tray with a lid are irrigated with a mixture of 500 milliliters of water and "Fitosporin", after which a grain is laid out in each. Having deepened the seeds by about 1 centimeter, it remains only to sprinkle them with earth. "Greenhouse" is covered with a lid included in the kit, or with a regular package.

The landless method allows you to do without soil before the start of the dive. Alternatively, toilet paper is folded in 8-10 layers, soaked in a solution of hydrogen peroxide and removed to the bottom of the container. The seeds are neatly laid out on the surface and pressed against it, which will be facilitated by the use of a toothpick.

Eggplant picking is carried out when the plant has two full leaves. To do this, each seedling is sent to its own cup or container. There is no need for this procedure if the seedlings were planted in peat tablets, peat pots or "snail".

During the pick, the gardener should try to keep the eggplant root system intact, and therefore, if possible, it is carried out together with an earthen lump. The seedlings taken out of the common container are deepened to the cotyledonous leaves and watered with warm water.

Growing eggplant seedlings at home is carried out according to the usual scheme.

To properly grow a culture, it needs to provide a day of light, lasting at least 12-14 hours. To do this, most likely, you will have to organize additional illumination with fluorescent or LED lamps. In order for the bushes to develop evenly, they will also need to be rotated periodically.

The need for watering is determined by the condition of the soil - if its top layer is dry, then the seedlings should be moistened. The amount of liquid used depends on the size of the seedling. The water should always be warm, at least 22 degrees.

If the seedling does not need a pick, then the first time it should be fertilized, after waiting for the appearance of 2-4 full leaves. If the eggplants had to be planted, then feeding is carried out 10 days after the pick. The composition will have to be diluted in order to prevent the appearance of burns on the young roots of the culture.

In general, it is proposed to feed the seedlings for growth with the preparations "Athlete", "Fertika Lux", "Agricola". A mixture made independently of 1 gram of potassium, 1 teaspoon of wood ash, 0.5 teaspoon of saltpeter, 4 grams of superphosphate and 1 liter of water turns out to be quite good.

If you properly care for the eggplants, then the next fertilization should be carried out 10 days after the first procedure. In this case, you can use 1 part of chicken manure and 15 parts of water, infused for 1-3 days. 7 days before planting on open ground or in a greenhouse, the culture receives superphosphate.

In order to prevent the appearance of diseases in eggplant, it makes sense to treat seedlings with Fitosporin and Fitoverm as a prophylaxis. However, in some cases, you still have to attend to the treatment - for example, if the culture has a black leg due to excess moisture. The diseased plant looks lethargic, and a thin "ring" is formed near the roots. The problem is solved by changing the irrigation regime, as well as using "Previkur".

When the leaves curl and then fall off, this may be due to improper irrigation or excessive potassium application. In principle, too bright light can cause the leaf to fall.

Light spots on the leaves are formed when plants are irrigated with cold water, which the root system is unable to absorb. Transparent thinning formations may indicate acidic soil or sunburn.

If the seedlings grow poorly after diving, then nothing needs to be done - as a rule, it takes 7-10 days for it to adapt to a new situation, and then it starts to be active again. However, sometimes the plant withers due to hypothermia of the roots - this problem can be easily solved by making a substrate.

When the seedlings are stretched out, insufficient lighting, high temperatures, thickening or excess nitrogen-containing fertilizers may be the culprit.