Peppers and eggplants are considered to be rather capricious crops. They are demanding of warmth and soil fertility, and often suffer from root rot. Therefore, when growing seedlings, you need to try to provide them with the most comfortable conditions and form a strong immunity in the plants.
The timing of sowing seeds for seedlings depends on the region, variety, and also on where the crops will grow: in a greenhouse or in a garden bed. In the middle zone, you can start sowing seeds of mid-season eggplants and peppers in the third ten days of February. Seeds of early ripening varieties intended for growing in open ground and under temporary shelters can be sown until mid-March, approximately 60 days before transplanting to the garden bed.
Step 1. Preparing the soil
In order for the seedlings to start developing well from the first days, it is important to sow the seeds in a loose, light and nutritious substrate, the acidity of which is within 6.5-7 pH. The soil should not contain weed seeds, fungal spores and pest larvae, so it is advisable to disinfect it before use, or give preference to the one that has already been treated by the manufacturer. In addition, there should be no traces of mold on the substrate, and its composition should not contain large pieces of undecomposed organic matter.
If the seedlings are grown without picking or transshipment, then it is worth immediately purchasing more fertile soil, which, in addition to deoxidized peat, includes vermicompost or sapropel. These organic fertilizers can be purchased separately and mixed with the peat substrate, adding the required amount of organic matter according to the instructions.
Step 2. Soaking seeds
To increase seed germination, it is recommended to soak seeds in a solution of organomineral complexes and biofungicides before sowing. To do this, prepare non-chlorinated water at room temperature, add any preparation based on hay bacillus.
Place the seeds on cotton pads or wrap them in small pieces of cotton cloth, pour a small amount of the resulting solution until the material is moistened and leave for at least 6-8 hours. During such treatment, beneficial microorganisms, organic and mineral substances, amino acids penetrate into the seeds, activate the germination process and protect future seedlings from damage by phytopathogens.
After soaking, the seeds can be sown or left in a damp, breathable cloth for germination, placing them in a warm place for 4-6 days. During germination, make sure that the fabric always remains moderately moist, but not excessively wet, since excess moisture makes it difficult for the seeds to breathe and leads to their rotting. Inspect the seeds every day: as soon as they begin to hatch, start sowing.
Step 3. Sowing seeds
Peppers and eggplants do not tolerate transplantation well - therefore, it is advisable to sow the seeds not in a common box, but immediately in separate pots or glasses with a volume of 400-500 ml. At the initial stage of growing seedlings, you can also use cassettes or peat tablets, so that later you can carefully transplant the seedlings into a more spacious container using the transshipment method.
To create a favorable microflora for seedling development, before sowing seeds, pour the cassettes and pots filled with soil with a biofungicide based on hay bacillus or trichoderma. Effective microorganisms will help improve plant nutrition and help protect seedlings from various infections.
Place the seeds in the center of each planting container and cover with soil. The layer thickness should be about 1 cm. If the air in the room is dry, cover the crops with a plastic lid or film, but not tightly, since the seeds need to breathe. Place the containers in a warm place where the air temperature is 24-25 ° C. Carefully monitor the soil moisture: the soil should not dry out, otherwise the seeds will not germinate.
Step 4. Temperature and lighting
After the shoots appear, place the container with seedlings in the brightest place with good air circulation. The optimal temperature for plant growth and development is 22-24°C in sunny weather and 18-21°C in cloudy weather. At night, the air temperature should not fall below 15-16°C.
If the seedlings are on the windowsill, then due to the flow of cold air from the window, the soil can become overcooled, especially at night. And this negatively affects the development of the root system and often leads to the appearance of root rot. Therefore, you need to monitor the air temperature at the level where the containers with seedlings are. The thermometer should be placed in a place protected from the sun right next to the boxes and pots with crops.
When sowing seeds early, as well as in cloudy weather, the seedlings must be illuminated, even if they are on the windowsill. For this, you can use household fluorescent lamps or LED phytolamps. They consume little electricity and emit light in the range that plants need.
The optimal illumination for pepper and eggplant seedlings is 20,000 Lx for 14-15 hours.
Step 5. Transplanting seedlings
If you sowed peppers and eggplants in common containers, small cassettes or "snails", then after the appearance of real leaves, the seedlings must be transplanted into separate pots with a volume of 400-500 ml. Seedlings should be transplanted by transshipment, preserving the earthen lump surrounding the roots.
When transplanting, deepen the seedlings very slightly, to the middle of the hypocotyl knee. At the same time, lightly press the soil at the roots so that there are no voids there. Do not forget that the soil in the root zone should be moderately moist.
After transplanting, the plants should be protected from direct sunlight, monitor the soil moisture and maintain the air temperature within 19-22 ° C. After a week, the seedlings can be moved to a sunny place.
Step 6. Watering and fertilizing
You need to water the pepper and eggplant seedlings as the soil dries with soft, settled water, the temperature of which is several degrees higher than room temperature. It is advisable to combine watering with fertilizing once every two weeks.
Until the seedling opens its cotyledon leaves, it takes all its nutrition from the seed. Then the plant begins to extract nutrients from the soil. Therefore, until the seedlings have real leaves, there is no need to fertilize, especially if you sowed the seeds in fertile soil.
If you grow seedlings with picking, then feed the seedlings a week before transplanting and 10 days after it. For this, you can use Aminosil universal concentrate: 5 ml per 1 liter of water or gel with succinic acid and chlorella: 15 ml per 1 liter of water. In the future, you can alternate root and foliar feeding every two weeks - this will help ensure more effective absorption of nutrients.
Step 7. Hardening off seedlings
Approximately 7-10 days before planting in a permanent place, seedlings need to begin to harden. In sunny weather, you should open the windows and ensure that the temperature in the room where the plants are located does not rise above 23-25 ° C. And as soon as warm weather sets in, peppers and eggplants can be taken outside for a short time.
First, harden the seedlings in the shade at a temperature of 14-16°C, starting with a few hours. Then gradually accustom the plants to bright sunlight. The time spent outdoors should be increased every day, and the night temperature should be lowered by several degrees. 2-3 days before transplanting to the garden bed, the plants can be placed in the sun for 6-8 hours, and those crops that will grow in a greenhouse should be left there overnight.
During hardening outside, it is necessary to reduce watering and protect the plants from strong winds.
Strong, hardened plants that have received adequate nutrition and developed in favorable conditions will easily tolerate planting in a permanent place and will delight you with a good harvest in the summer.
