Content
Soaking the peas before planting is essential for fast and successful germination of the seed. The procedure is quite simple, but certain rules must be followed during its implementation.
Do I need to soak pea seeds before planting
During long-term storage, pea seeds lose moisture and dry out strongly. If you plant them in the ground without preliminary soaking, then germination will be difficult. Dry kernels will accumulate moisture in the soil for a long time and will not sprout immediately.
If you carry out a special soaking even before sowing, the peas will sprout faster and in full. The kernels placed in water will swell properly and release small roots. After that, it remains only to carefully transfer them into the soil and wait just a few days until the greenery appears.
When sowing dry pea seeds, some of them may, in principle, not sprout
How much to soak peas before planting
The time for soaking peas before planting is determined individually. There are several points to take into account:
- features of the pea variety;
- actual condition of dry seeds;
- the type of solution used;
- concentration of the soaking agent.
On average, peas are kept in water for 6-18 hours. When using a special solution, you must study the instructions in advance. In addition, they look at the appearance of the nuclei - they should be removed from the liquid only after they have swollen well.
How to soak pea seeds before planting
Soaking pea seeds is a fairly simple procedure. But it will benefit the seed only if certain rules are followed. In addition, there are different ways to process peas before planting. In general, they are similar to each other and differ mainly in duration.
Simple soaking
The easiest way is to soak the pea kernels in plain clean water at room temperature. The detailed algorithm looks like this:
- The seed is pre-sorted out. Any damaged, too small or darkened kernels must be removed.
- The selected kernels are checked for quality. To do this, stir 15 g of edible salt in 1 liter of water, and then pour the peas into a container. For planting, you need to use those seeds that will sink to the bottom. The emerging kernels are thrown away, since they will not sprout anyway.
- The selected material is poured into a new container with clean water at room temperature and left for an average of 10-12 hours.
- At the end of the procedure, the liquid is drained, and the peas are transferred to a towel to dry.
When processing planting material, it is important to monitor the condition of the kernels and water. If bubbles appear in the bowl, this will indicate the death of the grains due to being in the liquid for too long.
When soaking peas, change the liquid in the bowl every three hours so that it does not sour
Soaking in hot water
Another method suggests using hot water for soaking. The method allows you to significantly accelerate the germination of the culture.The processing scheme looks like this:
- Pea grains are sorted out and all low-quality kernels are thrown away, and then the remaining material is checked with a saline solution.
- Selected seeds are poured into a thermos and filled with water with a temperature of 38-45 ° C.
- Leave the planting material in the liquid under a closed lid for three hours.
- After the expiration of the period, the water is carefully drained and the grains are laid out for drying.
Pea kernels swell faster when in hot liquid. In addition, vital processes are activated in them, and subsequently the material germinates better.
After soaking in hot water, peas rise 2-3 days faster than after processing with a warm solution
The use of preparations for soaking
It is possible to soak peas before sowing not only in water, but also in special biologically active solutions. The addition of such drugs is considered very desirable, since they help to disinfect the planting material and increase its resistance to infections and fungi.
Zircon
The fungicide Zircon is well suited for pre-soaking. The tool not only accelerates germination, but also protects seeds from fungal diseases, as well as increases yields and stimulates the formation of new grains.
To prepare the solution, you must add two drops of the drug to 300 ml of water. It takes 8-18 hours to keep the kernels in liquid, depending on their condition and the variety of peas.
Zircon is suitable for soaking very dry seeds, as it penetrates well through dense shells
Fundazol
A good soaking effect is provided by the Fundazole solution. A fungicidal agent is often used to treat and prevent fungal diseases of plants, but it can also be used before sowing seeds to increase immunity.
To process peas, add 10 g of the drug to 2 liters of water and stir thoroughly. Legume kernels are kept in the prepared steeping solution for 6-18 hours until the shell softens. The procedure is carried out approximately five days before sowing.
Fundazole provides protection from root rot to pea seeds
Epin
The antibacterial agent strengthens the immunity of pea seeds and accelerates the germination of the material. After soaking in the preparation, the culture quickly grows not only roots, but also aerial shoots.
Epin for seed treatment is dissolved in water in a proportion of five drops per 500 ml of liquid. It is necessary to keep the grains in the product for 5-7 hours.
After treatment with Epin, the peas bear fruit more abundantly.
Sodium humate
Sodium humate is intended for pre-sowing treatment of seeds and helps to strengthen their endurance and resistance to fungal infections. After soaking in the working solution, the peas will not only germinate faster in the garden, but also will not suffer from root rot, fusarium and black leg.
To prepare the product, you need to dilute about 500 mg of the active substance in 1 liter of water. The peas in the preparation are kept until the shell swells; it usually takes about six hours to process.
Sodium humate increases crop resistance to drought
Rizotorfin
A natural legume fertilizer can be used before planting peas. Usually, only 1.5 g of the drug is taken per 1 kg of seeds and diluted in warm water at room temperature.
It is recommended to keep the kernels in liquid for no more than an hour; the procedure is carried out directly on the day of planting. If the peas are very dry, they can be pre-softened in plain water, and then immersed in a biologically active solution.
Rizotorfin enhances the immunity of peas to fungal diseases and stimulates the formation of roots
Boric acid
If purchased drugs to protect against fungi and stimulate growth are not at hand, you can use household products.Boric acid has a good effect.
To soak peas, it is necessary to dilute about 2 g of the substance in 10 liters of water, the temperature of the liquid should be 40 degrees. The kernels are immersed in the solution for only five minutes, and then they are removed, dried and sown in the ground.
Boric acid provides planting material with useful substances and serves as the prevention of fungi
Why seeds don't germinate in water
When sown dry, pea seeds often do not sprout abundantly. But sometimes, even when soaked in water, the grains do not germinate, despite the competently carried out processing. If the peas are in the liquid for a long time, and the effect is not observed, the reasons may be as follows:
- kernels are too old and completely dry;
- planting material has deteriorated as a result of improper storage;
- the grains lay in the water and died;
- the soaking liquid was not changed, and as a result, it sour along with the peas.
Seed producers usually monitor the quality of the material carefully. But sometimes you can find defective lots of beans in stores. In such cases, pea kernels do not germinate when soaked, although they look healthy and have a normal shelf life.
How to understand that peas have sprouted enough
It is necessary to soak pea seeds before sowing for a limited time. If you keep the material in water longer than necessary, then the grains will simply die.
You can understand that it is time to extract the seeds from an ordinary liquid or biological solution by the following signs:
- the grains have increased in size and acquired a rounded shape;
- the skin of the kernels smoothed out, and distinct folds and wrinkles disappeared from it;
- the shells of the grains cracked and small white roots appeared.
In the latter case, it is possible to extract the peas from the solution without a doubt. The presence of roots means that the germinated kernels are completely ready for planting in the ground and will sprout as soon as possible.
When sowing, you need to be careful and deepen the peas so as not to break the sprouts that have hatched.
Conclusion
Before planting, peas can be soaked in warm or hot water, as well as in special solutions that increase the endurance of the seeds and their resistance to diseases. It is not recommended to sow dry grains in open ground, since they will germinate for a very long time, and as a result, seedlings will not give all the kernels.
