Content
When growing garden crops through seedlings, the success of the future harvest largely depends on the soil in which the seedlings grew. This is especially important for delicate and capricious eggplants. Of course, high-quality soil, rich in minerals and organic matter, should also be in the garden, but in a permanent place at the roots of plants there are more opportunities to provide the aboveground part of the eggplant bush with nutrients. Particularly stringent requirements are imposed on the soil for eggplant seedlings.
But all seedling soil mixtures have common properties:
- breathability... The structure of the soil should be loose so that the roots are provided with a sufficient amount of oxygen, and light so that the soil does not cake after watering;
- moisture capacity... The soil must absorb water well and retain it. In this regard, peat soil is a very poor choice, since peat no longer absorbs water when it dries. It is worth forgetting about watering once and it will be a whole problem to restore the moisture capacity of the peat substrate;
- fertility... The soil mixture must be able to provide the seedlings grown in it with all the nutrients necessary for successful growth and development;
- balance of components... Seedlings need not only organic matter, but also micro and macro elements. In the soil, all elements must be present in an accessible seedling form. But an overabundance of any element will also negatively affect the development of seedlings;
- acidity... There are very few garden plants that prefer acidic soil. One of them is sorrel. But eggplants are among those plants that grow on soil with neutral acidity. Therefore, the soil pH should not be less than 6.5 and more than 7.0;
- disinfection... The land for seedlings should be cleared of pests, pathogens and weed seeds;
- absence of chemical contamination... The seedling soil mixture should not contain waste from hazardous industries and heavy metals.
Components for soil mixtures are divided into organic and inorganic.
Organic components of soil mixture for seedlings
In fact, this is what the majority understands by the words "earth" and "organic".
Peat
As already mentioned, not a very desirable component of seedling soil mixture, but in relatively small quantities it can be used as a soil loosening agent.
When buying peat, you must remember that it can be high, middle and low. For seedlings of eggplants, only lowland ones are suitable, having an acidity very close to neutral. But even when using low-lying peat, it is necessary to add ash or lime to the soil mixture for eggplant seedlings in order to neutralize excess acid. Horse peat is not suitable for garden crops at all. It's too sour.
Sphagnum
In fact, it is a raw material for peat production. Remnants of other plants may also be present in peat, but rotted remains of sphagnum make up the bulk of the peat.
Sphagnum can be used as an absorbent component in seedling soil mixtures, as it is highly hygroscopic and was once used instead of cotton wool.
Sod land
This is not quite what is often understood by this word, looking at your feet in the meadow. Sod land cannot be simply dug up, it must be prepared.
To do this, in the fall in the meadow, cut into squares the upper part of the soil with intertwined roots and stack the squares in a stack in pairs, face to face. To speed up the process of overheating, fresh cow dung can be laid between the pieces of turf. In the spring, rotted pieces of sod can already be used as sod land in a soil mixture for seedlings.
Compost
In the fall, there are always a lot of plant residues in the garden. You can burn them and get ash for fertilization. Or you can put them in a pit and leave to rot on compost. For a year, the plants will not have time to completely rot. To prepare soil mixture for seedlings, you must use at least two-year-old compost.
Leaf land
This is the same compost, but made exclusively from fallen leaves of trees. The method and time for its preparation are the same as for compost.
Humus
Qualitatively rotted livestock manure. Opinions about its preparation differ among different gardeners. Some people think that it is necessary to use clean manure without bedding. Others are convinced that manure without bedding is forage for the wind. The fact is that during overheating, much more nitrogen will remain in manure mixed with urine-soaked bedding than in pure manure. But here everyone decides for himself.
It is also better to withstand humus for two years to ensure that it does not contain seeds. weeds... Fresh manure in seedling soil mixture cannot be used for two reasons:
- during decomposition, fresh manure emits a lot of heat, and at a soil temperature of more than 30 °, the roots of the seedlings will "burn";
- there are too many weed seeds in the fresh manure. As a result, not seedlings will grow in pots, but weeds.
Another type of soil for seedlings can be produced from humus and compost, which is not very popular due to the complexity of its manufacture.
Biohumus
Waste product of earthworms. The worms feed on decaying organic matter, so they can be offered annual (semi-rotten) compost and humus. But for the production of vermicompost will require significant volumes to store "raw materials" for the next year and, of course, worms. Not everyone has the opportunity to make vermicompost, and some are also afraid of worms.
Nevertheless, you can watch how to make vermicompost in the video
Vermicompost production for the vegetable garden - beginning:
Woody earth
Compost made from sawdust. Sawdust decays very slowly. For high-quality decay, they need at least three years. Moreover, the larger the chips, the slower it will rot. But semi-rotten sawdust can be used as a baking powder in a soil mixture for seedlings or used for the production of vermicompost.
It is undesirable to add fresh sawdust to the soil, even on garden beds. Unless you need to remove excess nitrogen from the soil. Rotting, sawdust absorb nitrogen from the soil.
Eggshell powder
This component can only be used as lime to reduce soil acidity and, to some extent, as a source of calcium.
Plant ash
It is a good tool for maintaining soil fertility, as it contains almost all the elements necessary for plants in an easily assimilated form.It can also be used as a growth stimulant when preparing seeds for planting and as a neutralizer of increased acidity in soil mixture for seedlings.
Inorganic components of soil mixture for seedlings
A soil mixture for seedlings, consisting only of organic matter, is unlikely to meet such requirements for high-quality seedling soils, such as air permeability and water permeability.
Agroperlite
Perlite is a mineral of volcanic origin. After special processing, expanded perlite is obtained, which is also called agroperlite. Agroperlite is used in seedling soil mixtures in order to improve characteristics such as air permeability. Does not allow the seedling soil mixture to cake into a dense clod, contributing to the uniform development of plant roots.
It has good moisture holding capacity. Only 100 g of the mineral can absorb up to 400 ml of water. Gradually giving up water, agroperlite contributes to uniform soil moisture, allowing you to reduce the number of irrigations, and save water and fertilizers that are not washed out of the seedling soil along with excess water. Protects the roots of seedlings from decay, since there is no waterlogging of the soil.
Vermiculite
It belongs to the group of hydromicas and has the ability to absorb moisture even more than that of agroperlite. 100 g of vermiculite can absorb from 400 to 530 ml of water. In seedling soil mixtures, it is used for the same purpose as agroperlite. And also for mulching the beds.
Sand
Usually used, if there are no better quality fillers at hand, to "lighten" the earthen mixture for seedlings. The purpose of the sand is to maintain the air and water permeability of the earthen coma. But sand does not possess the property of agroperlite and vermiculite to retain water and then gradually release it into the soil.
Expanded clay
The varieties "crushed stone" or "gravel" are used as a drainage layer at the bottom of the seedling pots. The "sand" variety can be used in seedling soil mixtures to maintain soil looseness and control moisture evaporation.
It is made from a mixture of fired clay and slate.
Hydrogel
A new component of seedling soil mixtures, contributing to uniform moistening of the earthy clod in the seedling pot and allowing to reduce watering.
Shredded Styrofoam
Does not have any special functions, except for loosening the soil. In addition, many fear that the foam will release harmful substances into the environment, which will be absorbed by the seedlings.
Clay, especially in large quantities, can practically compress an earthen ball in a seedling pot into a single whole. In such a soil, tender seedlings will be very difficult to grow and, most likely, they will die.
Using garden land for growing eggplant seedlings
Disputes on the topic "whether to use garden soil as a component of soil mixture for seedlings" is probably worthy of perpetuating in the annals of history. Someone believes that it is impossible in any case, since the garden land is heavily infected with pathogens and pests. Someone is convinced that when using garden land for growing seedlings, it will be easier for young plants to adapt in a permanent place. Those who prefer to use garden soil for seedlings try to disinfect it in one of four ways.
Disinfection at home
At home, soil for seedlings can be disinfected in one of four ways: calcining, freezing, pickling and steaming.
Annealing the earth
The soil is calcined in the oven at a temperature of 70-90 degrees. A layer of soil 5 cm thick is poured onto a baking sheet, moistened and heated in the oven for 30 minutes. Once cooled, the soil can be used to prepare the seedling mixture. Not everyone likes this method, believing that heating can kill the fertile properties of the earth.
Freezing the earth
If you are going to use this method, the garden soil is collected in bags in the fall. With the onset of frost of at least -15 ° C, bags of earth are taken out into the street for several days. Then the frozen ground is brought into a warm room for several days to awaken the seeds of weeds and pests, and the bags are again sent to the frost. This procedure is carried out several times.
The disadvantage of this method is that severe frosts do not occur everywhere, and where they do, they do not always last long. This method is guaranteed to work in the northern regions.
Steaming the earth
With this method, the soil is not only disinfected, but also moistened. About a liter of water is poured into a bucket, a fine-mesh mesh is put on top (you can use a colander) and put on fire. After 40 minutes, the soil is ready. It is cooled and used for seedling soil mixture.
Soil etching
The easiest way of all. The earth is spilled with a dark pink solution of potassium permanganate.
After all the selected ingredients have been prepared and disinfected, you can start preparing the soil for eggplant seedlings.
Options for self-preparation of soil mixture for eggplant
There are usually two options for preparing soil for eggplant seedlings.
First option
All ingredients are listed in parts from the whole.
2 humus / compost: 1 peat: 0.5 rotted sawdust.
Second option
Ingredients are listed in specific units.
A bucket of garden soil, half a glass of ash, a tablespoon of superphosphate, a teaspoon of urea or potassium sulfate.
All ingredients containing large particles must be sieved through a fine sieve. This is especially true for peat. When picking eggplant seedlings, long peat fibers will certainly damage the sprouts, since the roots of young eggplants will get entangled in long fibers of not rotted sphagnum and break. These fibers can be used later when planting eggplant seedlings in their permanent place.
In addition to these two recipes, experienced gardeners often make their own. How to properly prepare the land for eggplant seedlings can be seen in the video
Land for seedlings of tomatoes, peppers and eggplants:
Conclusion
You can also use commercial soil mixtures for growing nightshade seedlings, also sifting them through a sieve.
With the correct preparation of the soil mixture, eggplant seedlings will not need nutrients and suffer from waterlogging or lack of moisture.
