How to plant peppers for seedlings

Many garden plant seeds cannot be germinated directly in natural conditions. So, for a start, pepper seeds must be prepared and germinated at home, and with the onset of optimal climatic conditions, transplanted into open ground.

Content:

• Seed sowing dates
• Soil selection
• Seed preparation
• Planting seeds in the ground
• Seedling care
• Picking pepper seedlings
• Landing in open ground

Every self-respecting gardener at least once in his life asked himself the question: "How to plant peppers on seedlings so that they grow strong for the season?" But really, pepper belongs to the category of whimsical plants, so you need to work hard on its cultivation.

Seed sowing dates

A very important point is the fact that pepper seeds have a long germination period. It is necessary to be prepared for the fact that it will take a long time to wait for the first shoots. The second nuance that should be taken into account when choosing the date of sowing seeds for seedlings is the fact that pepper seedlings before planting in natural conditions should be at least 60-75 days old, otherwise all your efforts will go to waste - immature seedlings may die in the beds ...

If you take into account all these recommendations, then it is easy to understand that the optimal sowing time is the interval from February 20 to March 15.

Soil selection

Choose a fertile soil mixture for germinating seeds, but light, loose. You can purchase a special soil mixture for growing seedlings, but it would be more reasonable to make it yourself.

The ideal soil mixture for pepper is a mixture of compost, soil from a summer cottage, on which seedlings will be planted, and black peat in equal proportions. It is very important that in the place where the soil will be collected from the site, in the past year they do not grow potato and tomatoes... You should also add sifted wood ash in a ratio of 1 cup to 3 buckets of mixture.

Seed preparation

First of all, you need to select quality seeds. All grains that have any defects should be discarded. To speed up the germination process, you should soak the pepper seeds for 30 minutes in a solution of potassium permanganate and a growth stimulator. After that, you need to warm up the seeds.

To do this, put the seeds wrapped in a damp cloth in a bag and place them closer to a heat source, for example, to a battery. The seeds will germinate in warm conditions for about a week.

Planting seeds in the ground

Before as plant pepper in the ground, it is moistened, but so that it is not excessively wet. Seeds should be planted in a container. To do this, you can use wooden boxes, cardboard bags, for example, for juice, cardboard boxes, etc. Today, many people use plastic glasses for these purposes.

It is necessary to pour the soil mixture into the selected containers, and then pour it with a weak solution of potassium permanganate. In containers, make 1.5 cm depressions with an interval of 3 ... 4 cm between the holes. Now you can start sowing itself: in each hole there are 2 seeds, which must be sprinkled with soil mixture. Please note that crops do not need to be watered immediately.

For better seed germination, the containers must be covered with foil and placed in a warm place. The first shoots of pepper will appear in about 7 ... 12 days, but only if the temperature remains within + 24 ... + 26 degrees.In the event that no shoots appear on the 13th day, the seeds can be thrown away.

Seedling care

When the pepper has risen, the film can be removed, and the temperature in the room must be maintained within + 20 ... + 22 degrees. Seedlings should be illuminated, which is especially important if natural sunlight does not illuminate the plants much.

It is recommended to use fluorescent lamps as illumination. Initially, the backlight should work around the clock, a little later, you can reduce the time to 16 ... 18 hours a day.

At first, it is not necessary to water the seedlings, then it should be watered every 3-4 days. Top dressing of seedlings is done with a solution mineral fertilizers... The picking of seedlings is carried out in the interval from 15 to 20 days from the moment of emergence.

Picking pepper seedlings

As for the pick, then you yourself should determine whether it is worth doing it or not. Some gardeners argue that picking plants develop a strong root system, while others say that this only harms and increases the risk of seedlings becoming ill.

If, nevertheless, you decide to make a pick, then the right time for it is the appearance of the third leaf on the plant.

Prepare the soil, make depressions in it and moisten it. Take the seedlings carefully and plant them in the hole to the height of the cotyledon leaves so that the roots do not bend. After that, keep the seedlings in the shade for a couple of days - so it will get stronger.

Landing in open ground

A couple of weeks before planting pepper seedlings in open ground, you need to start hardening, for which you can take the containers out to the balcony or veranda. Planting of pepper can be done when the height of the plant is 25 ... 30 cm and has 8 ... 10 leaves and the first buds appear.