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How to prepare a sterile plant substrate. How to disinfect the ground before planting seedlings How long to keep the ground in the oven

In the process of transplanting a plant at room conditions or planting a new one, it is recommended to decontaminate the soil mixture before putting it in a pot. You could meet this information from all experienced gardeners - they often mention in passing the need to disinfect the soil or its individual components. Let's take a closer look at what the process of disinfecting the earth for indoor plants implies and what means can be used for this.

How to disinfect the ground for indoor flowers?

Considering the types of soil mixtures, we can safely divide them into purchased and homemade, prepared with our own hands. Purchased soil mixtures are often sold fully prepared for planting, so the grower does not need to decontaminate them, although there are known cases of plant infection with purchased land, so it’s still worth it to play it safe.

In the case of hand-picked homemade earthen mix, decontamination is a necessary factor. Firstly, the grower uses sand (river, garden, purchased) to form a loose mixture. Sand can become an excellent carrier of bacteria, larvae, mold spores, so it must be washed in water, treated with a solution of potassium permanganate, or heated in a pan.

Disinfection of the soil can be carried out with the same weak solution of potassium permanganate, or simply steam it. It is not recommended to use heating - only in the case of sand it is possible - especially with organic components.

Land cultivation for indoor plants can be carried out with hot water. You can also hold the soil mixture in a cloth over hot water - the steam will remove fungi and bacteria.

How not to cultivate land for plants?

It is not recommended to decontaminate the soil mixture with Roundup or herbicides, as they also kill nutrients and tend to accumulate, which will lead to further death of indoor plants, especially tender ones.

The soil is cultivated, which does not contain bugs, insects, worms. The contaminated soil mixture should simply be thrown away. Such living creatures as enchitreus, centipede, nematodes, mealybugs, butterflies and May beetles are difficult to hatch. It is better to purchase uninfected soil and immerse your favorite plant in it.

Do not mix preparations that will acidify the soil with an earthy mixture with a neutral or alkaline reaction - you will create an unacceptable environment for the development of a plant that, for example, needs acidic soil for development. Carefully study the features of planting, as well as what ingredients the mixture should contain, before planting a plant in it and, moreover, in order to carry out various kinds of manipulations.

It is not recommended to take a soil mixture from under weeds or diseased plants, and treatment rarely helps - the smallest organic particles are preserved, which can become a breeding ground for pathogenic microflora for a plant.

We have all heard and read many times that before sowing seeds for seedlings, the soil must be disinfected, and this can be done in several ways. One of them is calcination in.

How to ignite the earth in the oven?

In this matter, you need to choose the right temperature and processing time, since you can overdo it and, in addition to fungi and pests, destroy all beneficial microorganisms, making the soil dead and barren.

So, at what temperature and how much to ignite the earth in the oven: the optimum temperature is 70-90ºС, the time is about half an hour. After that, the soil should be given time to resume the normal balance of beneficial microflora and only then used for planting.

It is also important to know how to ignite the earth in the seedling oven: for this, you first need to sift it, moisten it a little, then pour it on a metal sheet with a layer of about 5 cm and immerse it in a preheated oven.

Soil baking is a slightly modified version of calcination. In this case, the soil is placed in a baking sleeve and then sent to the oven. At the same time, moisture is retained in the soil and the effect of steaming with boiling water additionally appears, since the moisture in the soil heats up to 90-100ºС and, acting on it, additionally cleans and disinfects.

Do I need to calcine the ground for seedlings?

Soil disinfection is almost a key moment in growing seedlings. The health of future seedlings and adult plants directly depends on competent disinfection of the soil. Properly carried out calcination kills pathogenic bacteria, dangerous nematodes, insect eggs and pupae, fungal spores. In addition, this is how we fight in advance with the “black leg” - a dangerous enemy of seedlings.

As you can see, you should not neglect this stage, so that in the future you will not treat with regret and not throw away the lovingly grown seedlings.

Land disinfection is a very important point, the only way to grow healthy and strong seedlings. Tillage before planting seedlings allows you to destroy pathogenic bacteria, insect eggs, fungal spores, nematodes, protects against blackleg (a common disease of young plants).

What is disinfection for?

Every year more and more pathogenic microorganisms accumulate in the earth and its productivity deteriorates. Therefore, it is optimal to carry out a complete soil replacement every year. However, new soil, even purchased from a store, may contain various pests. What to do in this case?

If the earth cannot be changed, it must be cleaned of organic residues and thoroughly disinfected. It is worth noting that disinfection is recommended to be carried out, despite the replacement of the earth. This approach will help to avoid unpleasant surprises in the future.

Folk methods

Folk methods of soil disinfection are more environmentally friendly than chemical ones. However, they take a lot of time and do not always give a positive result. So, there are two ways to disinfect the soil.

Method number 1 - freezing.

Freezing the soil is best done at an air temperature of -15 degrees, you can use the freezer. For best results, the procedure must be repeated 2-3 times. This processing method is not recommended for soil with biohumus. In addition, low temperatures will not get rid of late blight.

Method number 2 - heat treatment.

Most soil pests do not survive high temperatures. Thermally soil can be processed in 2 ways.

Calcination. The earth is poured with boiling water, mixed and laid out on a baking sheet with a layer of 5 cm. Then the oven is heated to 90 degrees and the soil is calcined for half an hour.
Steaming. This is a more gentle disinfection method. A bucket of water is put on fire, a grate with earth is placed on top, which is previously wrapped in a cloth bag. The soil should be steamed for at least 90 minutes.

Heat treatment must be carried out exactly according to the instructions, exceeding the temperature regime or the duration of the procedure will lead to a deterioration in the quality of the soil. In addition, the land treated in this way, immediately before planting seedlings, should be populated with beneficial microflora.

The disadvantage of the method is that it makes the soil completely sterile and unsuitable for cultivation. Requires additional bacterial fertilizer.

To make the earth looser, after processing, scatter it on a paper surface and let it fill with air.

Disinfection with special means

You can also disinfect the earth with the help of chemicals: fungicides, insecticides or ordinary manganese.

Fungicide treatment

This group of drugs consists of beneficial bacterial cultures that suppress diseases and increase plant immunity. Most often, "Fitosporin" is used, for processing 15 ml of the product is diluted in 10 liters of water. You can use other drugs - "Planriz", "Barrier", "Extrasol", "Gliocladin", etc. Before use, you should carefully study the instructions.

Disinfection with insecticides

Popular drugs "Aktara", "Inta-Vir", "Thunder", "Spark". Insecticides have been successfully used to control soil pests. Before disinfection, the earth is loosened and moistened, the dry preparation is mixed with the soil before watering.

Soil treatment before planting seedlings is carried out in advance, no later than a month before the proposed work.

It is important to remember that any chemical treatment requires strict adherence to the instructions, the recommended concentration and consumption must be observed.

Disinfection with potassium permanganate

Manganese does an excellent job of disinfecting a small amount of soil. To process 3–5 g of crystals, 10 liters of water are diluted, and then the soil is watered at the rate of 30–50 ml per 1 square meter.

Disinfect the earth with potassium permanganate should be 2 weeks before planting seedlings.

Potassium permanganate is a strong oxidizing agent, so it is not recommended to treat soddy-podzolic acidic soils. This method is best suited for the disinfection of chernozem and sod-calcareous soil.

An important point: reducing the acidity of the soil

Simultaneously with the disinfection of the soil, it is very important to equalize its acid-base balance. If the soil has an acidic reaction, then, even being sterile, it is susceptible to diseases such as keel and gray leg. To normalize the level of acidity of the earth to the norm of 6.5–7, the following means are used:

dolomite flour;
slaked lime;
ash;
hydrogel;
perlite, vermiculite;
humus tablets.

Do not forget to deacidify the soil before planting seedlings, otherwise diseases can develop very quickly even in sterile soil.

Common mistakes

Despite the disinfection of the soil, plants can get sick, grow poorly and die. What's the matter? Consider the 10 most common mistakes made when growing seedlings.

Poor quality seeds. It is important to choose only high-quality seeds, otherwise they may simply not sprout or the plants will grow weak.
Wrong choice of container. The container may not be suitable for seedlings if it is too cramped, large, poorly drained, or loose.
No seed treatment. A significant part of the diseases is transmitted not only with the soil, but also with the seeds of plants.
Failure to comply with the terms of cultivation. If you neglect the recommended terms for growing seedlings, then the plants will grow weak and simply will not take root during transplantation.
Too deep planting of seeds. With excessive deepening, only a few seeds will germinate. The optimal depth should not exceed 2 seed diameters.
Thickened crop. Seeds must be located at a sufficient distance from each other, otherwise the seedlings will not have enough space for normal development.
Watering after sowing. Watering the soil is necessary before sowing. If you do this after, the seeds will go deeper into the ground and will germinate worse.
Violation of temperature, lighting, watering and other growing conditions. It is important to remember that young seedlings are especially sensitive to temperature changes, excessive dryness of the soil, or excessive watering. It is also important to provide sufficient lighting, otherwise the seedlings will quickly stretch.
Belated pick. In order for the aerial part to develop evenly, the plant must dive as soon as the second true leaf appears.
Overgrown seedling. Such seedlings are more difficult to take root and may break during transplantation.

Land disinfection is not for the lazy. But if you let the cultivation of seedlings take its course and do not take elementary measures, you can ruin all the work. To prevent this from happening, the summer season must be opened in advance, and it should begin with tillage for seedlings.

There are many ways to disinfect the earth, you can steam it, harden it, freeze it or treat it with a chemical agent. However, they all have their own nuances and disadvantages. Therefore, in order to grow strong and healthy seedlings, you need to carefully study all the information and correctly apply it in practice.

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So, at what temperature and how much to ignite the earth in the oven: the optimum temperature is it is 70-90ºС, time is about half an hour. After that, the soil should be given time to resume the normal balance of beneficial microflora and only then used for planting.

It is also important to know how to ignite the earth in the oven for seedlings.: for this, you first need to sift it, moisten it a little, then pour it on a metal sheet with a layer of about 5 cm and immerse it in a preheated oven.

Additionally:

# Steaming in a microwave oven - short-term treatment of wet soil at high temperature. Wet soil is placed in a special dish or in a bag of dense polyethylene (holes must first be made in a sealed bag of purchased soil). The optimal steaming time for 0.5 liters of soil is 5 minutes at maximum mode. Or two runs for 2-3 minutes with soil mixing between treatments.

# Steaming in water. The earth is poured into a metal container, poured with water until evenly moistened, covered with a lid and kept on low heat for 1 hour.

# Steaming in a water bath. The earth is poured into a metal container, covered with a lid, placed in a larger container with water, covering the container with earth by three quarters, kept on fire with a slight boil of water for 1-1.5 hours.

# Steaming in a colander. The colander is lined with gauze in several layers or canvas, covered with earth. A colander is fixed over a container of boiling water, covered from above. Keep on fire with a slight boil of water for 1 hour. In the process of processing, the earth is periodically mixed for uniform heating.

# The earth, poured in a thin layer on a metal pallet, is shed with boiling water with further drying.

# Freeze. The soil is kept in severe frost with complete freezing. The easiest way is to leave small packages of earth for the whole winter on an open balcony. Freezing does not rid the soil of many microorganisms and weeds.

Heat treatment also has a downside - immediately after it, the risk of introducing unwanted microorganisms into the ground and their active development in a sterile environment increases, the natural microflora of the soil is restored for a long time. Calcining the earth without moisture instead of steaming leads to a change in the structure of the soil, turning it into dust. Exceeding the recommended tillage temperature (especially purchased soil with numerous additives) can lead to the formation of undesirable compounds.

It is possible to sterilize only the most dangerous components (turf, leaf, humus, coniferous, heather soil), and then add relatively pure peat.

Sand, expanded clay, pebbles, gravel are washed to clean water, poured into a metal container, poured with water and kept on fire at a low boil for 30-60 minutes.

Bark, fern roots, sphagnum moss, cones are subjected to short-term treatment with boiling water before use.

The risk of introducing pests and diseases is significantly reduced with the transition to substrates that do not contain humus and consist of peat, perlite, vermiculite, coconut fiber, bark.

Chemical treatment allows you to get rid of pests and pathogens. The earth mixture, spread out in a thin layer on a pallet, is spilled with a solution of potassium permanganate (hot solution of potassium permanganate, 0.5-1 g per liter of water) or pesticide (fungicide, insecticide, acaricide). Land treatment with biological preparations containing microorganism-antagonists of soil pathogens is more natural, but less reliable.

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It would seem that potting soil is much easier to improve and disinfect than in a garden bed - the volume is small, you can control literally every centimeter of the earth. It’s just worth a little guessing with the proportions and that’s all, goodbye to the harvest. In the open ground, you can sow green manure, and add smelly manure, and spill it with boiling water, and potassium permanganate - even if you mess up a little, the soil will recover. With potted soil there is no margin for error...

Soil disinfection- it's not for the lazy. But if you do not take at least elementary measures, you can ruin all your work. Where does the earth come from? Often, this is spent soil from greenhouses, sifted and enriched with peat, mineral fertilizer and ballast fillers. Often, unrecognizable herbs sprout from it, but this can be survived ... And this soil is also "enriched" with pathogenic bacteria, mold spores, aphid larvae and other byaka.

Potted soil can be disinfected in a number of ways, which will be discussed in this article.

My grandfather, a winegrower and gardener with 50 years of experience, seedling soil in 3 stages: calcination and adding ash and yeast to the soil. He simply fries the garden soil in a huge frying pan, stirring occasionally and moistening it with a spray bottle. A three-liter jar of soil is mixed with a teaspoon of ash (with a slide), then yeast is added. Here she described in detail what was happening about the use of ordinary yeast for the needs of a vegetable garden on the windowsill. Of course, this takes precious time, but it guarantees the absence of fungi in the soil, and the death of any living creatures. Ash is a fertilizer and an additional sterilizer, and yeast colonizes the soil with its colonies and helps the plant to feed, enrich with nitrogen. This method is not the only one, and not the most convenient.

Another option roasting in the oven(suitable for a small amount of soil): we fall asleep wet earth in a baking sleeve. We bake 40 minutes at 180 degrees. I think the idea is great.

We put a sieve on a pot of boiling water, lay a layer of gauze, pour in the earth and cover with a lid. You can sometimes stir the soil. The procedure lasts from 20 minutes to 1.5 hours, depending on the amount of soil. After steaming, the soil should breathe for a while. In warm soil, add yeast or any available bacterial fertilizer. Effectively steam the earth in several passes in small portions.

The most popular biological fungicides: Fitosporin, Barrier, Barrier, Fitop, Integral, Bactofit, Agate, Planzir, Alirin B, Trichodermin. All of them non-chemically affect fungi and pathogenic bacteria - the "right" bacteria. For the first time, I used the Ukrainian analogue of Fitosporin - Phytocide M. I planted seeds of mini-tomatoes in the soil treated by him. In general, biological fungicides are praised by flower growers. The main thing is to strictly follow the instructions. It is written on the package that the diluted Phytocide should be stored for no more than a day, but I got a three-liter jar and for the second week I have been watering all my plants with this solution. Watercress is delighted with such watering, I have never had such lush harvests!

watercress after treatment with Phytocide

Chemical fungicides should be written about, but not used. At least for our gardens on the windowsill. I will write only about those drugs that have a hazard class 4 (low-hazard substance).

Albite. The composition contains terpene acids, an extract from soil bacteria and trace elements. Available in the form of a paste. Does not allow root rot, powdery mildew, brown rot, and other dirty tricks to develop. It is considered a biological fungicide with a chemical action.

Potassium permanganate(potassium permanganate). A long-known, but ineffective way of disinfecting the soil. It also becomes a potash fertilizer.

There are a great many such drugs, but they hardly suit us.

copper sulfate, iron sulfate. Disinfect and at the same time inhibit the growth of plants. We don't fit.

And about the last remedy for today - mustard powder! Effective against fungi, bacteria, viruses, thrips, nematodes. Loosens the soil, stimulates plant growth. Apply to the soil as follows: for 5 liters of soil, a tablespoon of mustard powder. Combine with nitrogen fertilizer.

Update 11/29/2016

Since writing this article, I have become much more attentive to the sources of information on the basis of which I make the material. Despite the fact that the disinfection of potted soil is traditional for the post-Soviet countries, this is not practiced anywhere else. The introduction of biofertilizers with effective microorganisms (Baikal, Fitosporin, etc.) does not have a proven effectiveness in the field, although there is a result from my own experience (biased). According to some data, described in the article about EO preparations, home-made infusions with effective microorganisms are better than industrial mixtures (infusions with banana peel, sauerkraut juice, yeast).

Good day!
Question: if you disinfect the soil using an oven or microwave, do you need to add ash and other fertilizers to it later?

Hello! Everything is needed! After the microwave, it is advisable to populate some good flora, such as fitoverma. Just do not forget that the soil must cool completely.

Hello! Thanks a lot for the article!
I am a beginner, in the truest sense of the word. I would be very grateful if you could give me some advice.
I live in China, so all the products of manufacturers of fertilizers and plant preparations that are sold in the CIS countries are not here. There are a lot of their products, but I do not understand it at all.
Yesterday I bought some plants (decorative roses, a Japanese maple tree, strawberries), planted dill seeds, and recently planted a one and a half meter cherry tree seedling. My climate is subtropical, so everything can grow on the balcony. In appearance, all plants are healthy: the leaves do not fall off, they are in the flowering period. I did not disinfect the soil before planting / transplanting and now I am very afraid if there were pests (nematodes, or something else). I did not even imagine that store soil could pose some kind of threat.
Tell me, what can be done for prevention, when the plants are already planted / transplanted, to make sure that the plants will grow healthy and strong? And also, how to improve the immunity of plants with improvised means.
I have a 4-storey greenhouse cabinet, phytolamps, all kinds of top dressing. I can easily buy mustard powder, potassium permanganate.
Thanks in advance for your attention!

Hello! I would like my answer to be as detailed as your comment))). I confess, I had to "google" what are the methods of prevention after planting. In addition to the biological products that I mentioned in the article, there are recommendations with vitriol and manganese, but you should not use copper for your soil volumes, and you can try manganese, but only after all the plants have faded. And try the ashes! https://g.janecraft.net/udobryaem-zoloj-domashnij-ogorod/ it also has manganese, and if you don’t overdo it with concentration, it won’t hurt in any way, but it works great as a pickle.
Strawberries get sick if there is a specific mite in the soil, and I think this does not threaten you. Maple should not get sick, as long as it has enough space for the root system and good drainage. Fruit trees are already a separate conversation, but I am not competent in these matters, unfortunately. You will look at the situation. If something suspicious appears - write, we will try to figure it out together!

Thank you very much for your answer! I'll try to find the ashes, although I don't know if I'll succeed. By the way, today, after a very detailed examination of strawberries, I noticed a population of small black (dark green) insects, mainly on inflorescences and where there is a stinginess of leaves on the stem. What do you think it is and how to deal with it? I really don't want to use chemicals.
Tell me about mustard powder, please.

Here's what I know about mustard: 10 grams (half a tablespoon) of mustard powder are insisted for two days in a liter of water, in a tightly sealed container. Then filtered. For spraying, they take a glass of this infusion and dilute 800 ml of water, well, so that a liter eventually turns out. Spray with this solution. I didn’t use it myself, but people more experienced in gardening say that it helps well against pests visible to the naked eye, but I have doubts that at least something helps against plant viruses - here “experts” are cunning))). I should edit the article in this regard ...
It's most likely aphids on strawberries. I periodically have scabies on flowers, I prefer to “chop off” them manually for a long and tedious time, I also don’t really want to water them with chemistry (although in my case it’s more like laziness, since I won’t eat my flowers later). And yet, I recommend that you inspect strawberries more often and collect insects, not only process them (well, I’m just in case, you will probably do this).
And more about the ashes. You can rarely find it in Poltava on sale, so in the spring I burn a pre-purchased coconut coir at the next “kebabs” (this hair is from a nut, we sell it as an additive to the soil, like a baking powder), or you can use straw, dry grass, sunflower badylya, in general, everything that is smaller than trees))). That's all burned out, and you can take this ashes and insist))). Only from the ash nitrogen is very quickly eroded, so it is better to store it in a jar with a lid. Ash did not let me down, especially a cool way to protect seedlings. Only it is better not to report than to shift it, otherwise you can harm the roots.
Write!

So you are also from Ukraine! ^_^
Thanks a lot for your advice! Already today I will go to burn the pressed straw that I have left from the rabbit (his death will not be forgotten).

Hello. For the first time I decided to start growing seedlings of flowers. The earth was disinfected in this way: first it was spilled with hot water, not boiling water, approximately 70-80 degrees, then with a solution of potassium permanganate. But in some pots, the earth still began to grow moldy. Is it possible to do something with this mold, to water it with something?

Hello. I have never dealt with mold myself. Remove the top infected layer of soil, let it dry well. Apparently, the spores settled from high humidity. If you have not sowed yet, then wait until the earth is well shaken, and if the seeds are already in pots, try not to flood. I wouldn't do anything right now.

Good afternoon! It so happened that I did not disinfect the soil for growing plants ... what can be done now? They are still quite small. Phytosporin? Ash? Mustard? All together?)))

It is difficult to ignite at home in a frying pan or in the oven - the smell and interaction with the dishes 🙁 Is it effective to spill with boiling water?

If possible, stop at phytosporin, but even if you don’t do anything now and just give moderate watering and protect plants from temperature extremes, everything will be fine. I myself only recently learned that plants have a real cellular immunity, which works great if we properly care for the plant.
Just in case, keep this article in mind
Spilling with boiling water is considered effective even in the field, but after drying it will be necessary to populate the soil with the same phytosporin, since the sterile earth will very quickly be populated by fungi in the absence of natural enemies (bacteria in phytosporin). Unfortunately, I am not entirely competent with these bacteriological things, so I simply believe the manufacturer and the labels on the packaging of drugs of this kind.

Thank you. I’ll take care of the melts) I also heard about the need for phytosporin in sterile soil (in fact, everything is like people do - children even have the so-called “cleanliness disease” due to the constant disinfection of the apartment, because there are not enough necessary bacteria, everything is here exactly the same). It’s just that sometimes you process and nothing sprouts, and sometimes you accidentally threw a seed, forgot - a plant)
Interestingly, is immunity higher in spices grown from seeds, or in rooted cuttings? The plucked mint from the dacha did not go into tea, but into water, now it has given roots, for the sake of interest I want to try to do the same with thyme and rosemary, though from the store, although soon, I hope, the seeds should sprout). It will be interesting to observe both those and others in the same conditions.

I am sure that cuttings are much healthier than crops))). The only problem is to get a fresh cutting of rosemary or lavender, for example))). We have to sow!

Hello! I didn’t quite understand: biological disinfection is instead of calcination?

Good afternoon! I brought soil from the garden and planted indoor flowers. Soon I noticed a running nematode on the surface of the earth around the flowers. What can be done? SOS!

This article https://g.janecraft.net/perekis-vodoroda-dlya-rastenijj/ has a recommendation for pest and disease prevention with a peroxide solution.

Hello. Please tell me what to do if transparent worms appear in the ground with cuttings that eat roots?

Good afternoon! And how much dry yeast should be added to warm soil after steaming? Thank you!

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We have all heard and read many times that before sowing seeds for seedlings, the soil must be disinfected, and this can be done in several ways. One of them is baking in the oven.

As you can see, you should not neglect this stage, so that in the future you will not treat with regret and not throw away the lovingly grown seedlings.

The world around 3 class

What is soil

The top fertile layer of the earth - the soil.
The main property of soil is fertility.

Practical work "Composition of the soil"
Perform experiments. Record the results in a table.

Experience 1. Let's throw a lump of dry soil into the water. We will see that air bubbles come out of the soil. So there is air in the soil.
Experience 2. Let's heat some fresh soil on fire. Let's hold cold glass over the soil. The glass will soon become wet. This experience shows that there is water in the soil.
Experience 3. We will continue to heat the soil. Soon we will see smoke, we will feel an unpleasant smell. This burns the humus of the soil, which was formed from the remains of plants and animals. The humus gives the soil a dark color.
Experience 4. Calcined soil, in which all the humus has already burned out (it is gray), pour into a glass of water and stir. After some time, sand will settle to the bottom of the glass, and clay will settle on top of the sand.
Experience 5. We filter the water in which the soil has been for a long time. Put a few drops on the glass. Let's keep it on fire. The water evaporates quickly, leaving a white coating on the glass. These are mineral salts. This means that the soil contains mineral salts that dissolve in water.

Soil contains… air 2 water 3 humus 4 sand, clay 5 mineral salts

So, the composition of the soil includes air, water, humus, sand, clay, mineral salts.
The roots of plants breathe the air contained in the soil. They suck up water from the soil. Together with water, plants absorb dissolved mineral salts. Salts are nutrients without which plants cannot live..

List what plants get from the soil.
Plants receive from the soil: air, water, mineral salts.

Guess the crossword "Soil:

1. The top layer of the earth on which plants grow. Answer: soil
2.

A substance found in soil that makes plants grow better. Answer: humus
3. The main property of the soil. Answer: fertility
4.

One of the constituent parts of the soil. Answer: sand

open the blank crossword "Soil">>

There are few salts in the soil. Plants could use them up quickly, but they don't. The stock of salts in the soil is constantly replenished due to humus.
Humus under the action of bacteria that live in the soil, slowly, gradually turns into salts. The more humus in the soil, the more fertile it is.
Animals living in the soil make passages in it, where water and air easily penetrate, mix the soil, and crush the remains of plants. So animals increase the fertility of the soil.

What animals live in the soil?
Answer: Medvedka, beetle larva, cricket, mole, centipede, toad, wood mouse, earthworm.

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Before planting seedlings, you need to carefully prepare the soil, disinfect and feed the land. What is the best way to do this? Treat with a solution of potassium permanganate, phytosporin? Bake in the oven or in the microwave? Let's discuss all the known methods and find out why this or that method is good.

The healthier the soil, the stronger the seedlings that have risen on it, this is an axiom. But not everyone has the opportunity to buy ready-made soil for seedlings every year. So practitioners think how to disinfect last year's or garden soil.

Competent disinfection acts on various bacteria, on nematodes, eggs and insect pupae, on fungal spores. And protects against black leg, a common disease of young seedlings.

And it is even better to carry out the processing so that the earth is also protected from pathogenic bacteria and does not harm beneficial microorganisms.

All methods can be divided into two groups. In the first, folk methods, in the second - disinfection using various purchased products. Let's start with folk methods.

The easiest processing method is freezing.

Attention! After any type of disinfection, it is necessary to fill the soil in sterile containers wiped with bleach.

This method also has a drawback. Negative temperature negatively affects not only pathogenic, but also beneficial microflora. Therefore, freezing is not recommended for soils containing vermicompost.

Another disadvantage is that low temperatures will not cope with carriers of diseases such as late blight. Only heat treatment will affect them.

It turns out that you can fry, steam and stew ... the earth. Various pests do not survive in heat-treated soil.

to calcinate the earth in the oven, you need to pour the soil into a large basin and pour it with a small amount of boiling water;
when the mixture cools down a little, mix it thoroughly;
pour the wet mass on a baking sheet with a layer of no more than 5 cm and place in the oven;
bake for half an hour at a temperature of 70-90 degrees.

It is believed that steam treatment is a more gentle method than calcination on fire. But at the same time, quite reliable.

Tip: after any heat treatment, the cooled soil should be scattered over paper or polyethylene with a layer of up to 10 cm and leveled. So it will be filled with air and become more loose.

it is necessary to prepare a large container, for example, a tank;
lay bricks or an iron grate at the bottom;
pour water below the level of the bricks;
put earth on a grate or bricks in a canvas bag or fabric bag;
cover the tank with a lid, put on fire and steam the earth in a water bath for about two hours.

cover the colander with a cloth;
fill a large pot with water and wait until it boils;
reduce the heat and hang a colander filled with soil over the pot. Or install it from above so that the water does not touch the ground;
warm up for half an hour. Steam penetrating the soil sterilizes it.

By the same principle, gardeners advise frying the earth in a pan, calcining it in a microwave oven, stewing it in foil or in a sleeve. When processing the last two methods, the water contained in the ground is heated and additionally cleans the soil. You can also pour the earth in a shallow container with boiling water, and cover with a film.

There is one caveat, during heat treatment, both pests and beneficial microflora die. This means that the above procedures must be done in advance in order to have time to restore the soil before planting.

Some practitioners advise cultivating not only garden, but also purchased soil. To do this, a closed bag with a ready-made soil mixture must be placed in a bucket. Pour boiling water down the side of the bucket and close the lid tightly. Remove the bag only after it has completely cooled down.

You can also disinfect the soil chemically:

Simultaneously with disinfection, it is necessary to equalize the acid-base balance of the soil. After all, even in disinfected soil, which has an acidic reaction, the sulfur leg and keel develop perfectly.

Peat soil and garden soil have an acidic reaction. For alkalization, slaked lime or dolomite flour is added to the soil. Moreover, different cultures have their own proportions.

Folk disinfection methods such as calcination, steaming and freezing are more environmentally friendly. But they do not destroy 100% of pathogens. In addition, you need 2-3 free months to use them. It is necessary to start disinfection by such methods even in winter.

The use of various purchased drugs is highly effective and does not require a long period of time. So, each method has its pros and cons, given which, you can prepare the soil as much as possible for planting seedlings.

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What, when and how to do in the country

Soil disinfection for seedlings is one of the key points in the production of seedlings. Often, not only the future harvest, but also the life of plants itself depends on how well the disinfection of seedling soil is carried out. You can disinfect the soil in any way convenient for you. Amateur gardeners have invented a great variety of them.

Do not ignore safety measures - proper disinfection kills pathogenic bacteria, fungal spores, dangerous nematodes, insect eggs and pupae. In addition, it is a good prevention against the defeat of seedlings with a black leg (every gardener and flower grower has ever encountered a terrible picture of this disease).

So, amateur gardening tips

Seedling soil for disinfection can be:
- freeze
- steam,
- bake in the oven
- pour boiling water (in small portions),
- shed 1% solution of potassium permanganate (etching in potassium permanganate),
- warm up in the microwave
- fry in a frying pan
- bake in foil
- bake in a baking sleeve,
- spill the earth with Aktara's solution,
- shed with a fungicide, for example, foundationazole,
- add phytosporin to the soil,
- disinfect with boiling water and frost
- repeatedly freeze and thaw the soil.
As you can see, there is no limit to fantasy.

Repeated freezing of the soil

A bag of soil is kept outdoors in winter, then brought into a warm room for 7-10 days. During this time, weed seeds will begin to germinate, pests will awaken. The revived soil is sharply frozen again (it would be nice if the temperature outside was 15-20 degrees below zero), after a while the soil is brought back into the room and frozen again.

This is a good simple method, but you should be aware that, unfortunately, it is not able to protect plants from serious diseases such as late blight or clubroot. To cope with the spores of these diseases, heat treatment of the soil is needed.

Soil steaming

It is convenient to steam the soil in a colander lined with a cloth. It is hung over a pot of boiling water, covered with a lid, and after boiling the water is heated over low heat for 20-30 minutes. Steam passing through the soil sterilizes it. Soil pests and their eggs, spores of pathogenic fungi and bacteria die. True and useful too.

Calcining the soil in the oven

Wet earth is poured onto a metal sheet with a layer of no more than 5 cm and kept in an oven preheated to 70-90 degrees for half an hour.

Important! A higher temperature is dangerous for the soil: nitrogen is mineralized, beneficial microorganisms die, and the soil becomes barren.

Soil baking

Baking soil in foil or in a baking sleeve (folk method) has its own rational grain: moisture is retained in the soil. In addition, with this treatment, the effect of steaming and the effect of treatment with boiling water are additionally present, since the soil water, warming up to a temperature of 90-100 degrees, acts on the soil, cleaning it.

When the earth cools down a little after heat treatment, it is poured onto paper or film and leveled with a layer of about 10 cm to saturate with air. You can thoroughly mix the soil directly in the bags. The earth enriched with air will acquire a good structure, become looser.

Disinfection of soil for seedlings loses all meaning if it is then poured into used and non-sterile containers for seedlings. They can be sterilized by treatment in a dilute bleach solution. Otherwise, the soil can be re-infected with pathogens.

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To make high-quality soil for seedlings, both organic and inorganic components are used in various proportions.

sod land (harvested in the fall, so now, if it is not there, you can take the land from the garden);

leaf ground (rotted leaf litter of any tree species, except for oak and willow - there are a lot of tannins in their foliage);

humus;

peat;

sphagnum moss;
sunflower husks and husks;
wood ash (birch ash is especially valued);
raw eggshell (dried and crushed).

washed river sand (you need to rinse until the impurities are completely removed, until the water is clear). The lighter the sand, the better. It is believed that the more intense its color, the more impurities of iron and manganese it contains, and their excess is harmful to plants. Sand is an excellent baking powder. In addition, it promotes the formation and growth of the skeletal parts of plants;

perlite is an environmentally friendly material, pH neutral, free of heavy metals. Perlite does not decompose and does not rot, it has a high (up to 400% of its weight!) absorbing capacity. It is used to increase the looseness and breathability of the soil, to prevent its compaction and the formation of a crust on the surface. It maintains optimal soil moisture - absorbing moisture, gradually gives it to the plant, thereby preventing root rot;

Vermiculite is a highly porous environmentally friendly material. It has the same properties as perlite, but additionally contains potassium, calcium and magnesium (in small quantities). Perlite and vermiculite in its pure form are used for growing seedlings by the hydroponic method on nutrient solutions;

hydrogel is an inert sterile polymer with a high moisture capacity. Allows you to reduce the number of irrigations (it is even called alternative drip irrigation), maintains a constant level of soil moisture;
expanded clay;
polystyrene (crushed);
fluffy lime (reduces soil acidity).

Wow, there are so many that it's impossible to list them all. The main thing here is to focus on the requirements of crops that will grow in this soil.

For peppers, tomatoes, eggplants, cabbage, the following compositions are optimal:

earth (turf or leaf), peat (humus) and sand (perlite, vermiculite) in a ratio of 1:1:1;
sod land, leaf land, humus and sand (perlite, vermiculite) - 3:3:3:1.

For peppers, tomatoes, cabbage, celery, onions and eggplants, you can use the following composition:

humus, soddy soil and sand - 1:2:1. Add 2 cups of wood ash to a bucket of the mixture, and another 1 cup of fluffy lime under the cabbage.

To grow seedlings of pumpkin and cucumber, mix:

humus and soddy soil (1: 1) and a glass of wood ash is added to a bucket of the mixture.

I, like any gardener, have my own preferences, my favorite compositions. For growing seedlings of peppers, tomatoes, eggplants, I use a single composition: land from the garden, purchased soil for seedlings (universal) and sand - 1:1:1. To all this I add a handful of perlite. The seedlings turn out to be solid, strong, so I'm not going to change the composition yet.

The earth and sand must be sifted before mixing to remove debris, worms and large insect larvae. Experts strongly recommend disinfecting the soil from pathogens, small larvae and eggs of pests. The most commonly used methods are:

Steaming: a month before use, the soil is steamed in a water bath for 2-3 hours. The container lid must be closed.
Ignition: 30 minutes in an oven preheated to +40 °C.
Freezing: since autumn, leave the prepared land on the street, covering it from precipitation. About a month before use, it is brought into the house, warmed up, mixed with the rest of the components and taken out again in the cold.

Each of these methods has followers and opponents, which one you will (or will not) use depends only on your choice.
All the subtleties and nuances of proper soil preparation for seedlings are described in detail in this video:

What seedling mix do you use? Is there a "signature" composition for any culture?

A good harvest is always several components. All of them are important: the quality of the seeds, their proper preparation for sowing, the choice of variety, conditions and care. But there is one parameter whose influence is most important. This is the qualitative composition of the soil in which seedlings are grown. The yield of all seedling crops (and in our climate most vegetables are grown through seedlings) depends to a large extent on properly composed seedling soil.

Preparing the land for seedlings

There is no one universal soil that meets the needs of all plants. Each garden crop requires an individual approach. Any plant makes its own demands on the soil mixture. But there are general rules that allow you to create a base soil, so that you can then optimize it for one or another crop with minimal effort.

Each plant has its own soil requirements.

Depending on the type of plants that are grown by seedlings, the soil mixture can be composed of different components mixed in various proportions. But in all cases, it is necessary to comply with the initial requirements for seedling substrates.

Land for seedlings should be nutritious

Looseness. The soil is made loose and light so that the amount of air they need penetrates to the roots of the seedlings.

Moisture capacity. This indicator means that the soil is able to absorb and retain moisture well.

Acidity. The pH index, that is, the acidity of the soil, is very different for different plants, but for the seedling soil in which the seeds germinate, it should be from 6.5 to 7.0, that is, with a neutral reaction.

Decontamination. No, we are not talking about complete sterility. Of course, bacteria and microorganisms should live in the soil, but not pathogenic or fungal spores that can instantly kill young shoots or prevent seeds from germinating.

Purity. This indicator means the presence of only the necessary components, without the presence of metal particles, production waste and other third-party impurities.

The components used must be free of foreign impurities

In the land intended for sowing seeds, components of organic and inorganic origin must be present.

Soil for growing seedlings

soil - soddy, leafy, garden;
vegetable compost;
decayed cattle manure;
peat - lowland and highland;
sphagnum, coconut fiber, seed husks, bark, sawdust;
wood ash.

Peat is one of the most popular components of seedling soil mixtures.

It is not necessary that absolutely all the components from the list be present in the soil, but most - yes. It is better to mix the soil from three different soils: garden, which can be taken directly from the ridge (unless, of course, diseased or insect-affected plants did not grow there); leafy (from leaves that have rotted with the ground); turf (which is obtained by cutting turf). The soil is the basic element of the seedling substrate.

Compost - rotted plants - is necessarily mixed with rotted manure, which is called humus. This is the supplier of the necessary substances.

Advice! Do not sow the seeds of vegetables, greens in humus, compost or lowland peat. Too much organic matter will cause the seedlings to overgrow leaf mass at the expense of rooting. As a result, seedlings will not take root well when planted on a garden bed or in greenhouse soil.

Do-it-yourself soil for seedlings

Peat is required, it is he who makes the soil fertile. The lowland contains about 70% of organic matter, the horse, consisting of sphagnum, makes the soil structure loose.

Peat is found in most potting mixes for seedlings. It is mined from swamps. This is not to say that it is a non-renewable resource. From decaying organic components under the influence of natural processes, it is formed in swamps, but very slowly - over thousands of years. In addition, peat is part of the natural ecosystem - if you completely remove it from the swamps, or at least create a serious deficit, the ecological balance will be disturbed.

That is why scientists over the past decades have been trying to find a replacement for peat. And finally found. More and more potting mix manufacturers are now switching to coco fiber.

Benefits of coconut fiber

It is 100% organic with no chemical additives.
They are able to absorb and retain water, working like a sponge, retaining moisture for plants and not removing nutrients from the soil.
A layer of earth in a pot or container with a substrate that includes coconut fiber remains dry, which prevents soil fungi.
Coconut fiber has a pH level of about 6, so it normalizes the overall acidity of the entire substrate.
The fiber contains phosphorus, potassium, as well as other substances necessary for plants in significant quantities.

Also, sunflower seed husks, tree bark, rotted sawdust, dry moss and other rippers are used to loosen the soil. Wood ash is added to normalize soil acidity.

Soil for seedlings should be loose

Advice! Do not add nutrients to the soil more than the norm - an abundance of dressings is appropriate during the growing season, the seeds, inside which the plant embryo, have a sufficient supply of substances to form and release a full-fledged sprout. Enhanced nutrition of the seed is not required.

river (in extreme cases, quarry) sand;
perlite;
vermiculite;
expanded clay;
hydrogel;
mineral supplements.

Advice! Do not grind the components of the soil mixture too much and do not sift the mixture through a sieve with small cells - the fine-grained substrate will turn sour and “float” after each watering.

Perlite is an excellent component of seedling potting soil. This substance has a number of significant advantages.

Sterility - spores of fungal diseases and pathogens of infectious diseases do not settle in perlite.
The absence of insects - they simply do not start in the substance.
The absence of weed seeds - they do not take root in the soil mixture with perlite and do not germinate.
Preservation in its original state for a long time - perlite does not rot.
Light weight – perlite is very light.

Vermiculite is a porous, environmentally friendly material that contains a record amount of magnesium, potassium and calcium necessary for sprouts already at the initial stages of life.

Expanded clay drains the soil, acting as an organic leavening agent and helping to improve the structure and moisture capacity of the soil.

Hydrogel is a polymer compound, which, due to its properties, also serves to maintain high moisture capacity in the soil.

Advice! To simplify the irrigation procedure and maintain the required moisture, add a hydrogel to the prepared soil before sowing.

In addition to the required components, the following elements are also included in the soil mixture:

ash;
urea;
potassium sulfate;
chloride and potassium sulfate;
ammonium nitrate;
superphosphate.

This small but important point is often overlooked. Amateur gardeners neglect it, as a result, all efforts to compile the right soil are wasted.

The following components should not enter the soil mixture:

clay;
fresh manure;
not rotted plant residues;
tea leaves, coffee grounds and other similar waste;
salty sea sand.

Clay cannot be used

Clay will make the soil heavy, impermeable to moisture and air, dense. Unrotted organics and coffee / tea will cause rotting processes - they can begin to decompose, raising the temperature of the substrate, which will be detrimental to many seeds and seedlings. Also, the decomposition of organic matter will entail the release of nitrogen, which will evaporate, depleting the substrate.

Fresh manure should also be discarded.

The table below shows the composition of the soil for each of the most commonly grown vegetable crops.

Table. The composition of the soil mixture for common vegetable crops.

culture	Soil components and their proportions
	About 2 kg of garden soil, 1 - humus, ½ kg of sawdust (rotted), fine-grained wood bark or coconut fiber. For 6 kg of finished substrate - 40 g of ash, 20 g of superphosphate, 10 g of urea.
White and red cabbage	5 kg of soddy soil, 5 kg of high-moor peat, 2.5 kg of sand, 2 kg of humus, 1/4 kg of lime, 1/2 kg of ash or dolomite flour.
Broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts	6 kg of peat or 3 kg of leaf earth and coconut fiber, 2 kg of soddy soil, 1 kg of humus, 1 kg of sand, ¼ kg of lime.
	4 kg of peat, 2 kg of soddy soil, 1 kg of rotted sawdust or coconut fiber, 1 kg of humus.
	2 kg of peat, 2 kg of soddy soil, 2 kg of humus, 1 kg of coconut fiber or rotted sawdust, 1 kg of sand. For 6 liters of the mixture - 40 g of ash and 15 g of potassium sulfate and superphosphate.
	8 kg of peat, 2 kg of sod land, 1 kg of river sand, mullein or humus, or 2 kg of vegetable compost, 1 kg of sawdust or coconut substrate. For 6 kg of the mixture - 10 g of ammonium nitrate and potassium chloride, 20 g of superphosphate and 45 g of ash.
	2 kg of sheet soil, 2 kg of humus, 2 kg of peat or coconut substrate, 1 kg of sand. For 6 kg of the mixture - 50 g of ash, 15 g of potassium sulfate, 20 g of superphosphate.

Do-it-yourself soil preparation for seedlings

In the process of preparing the soil for sowing seedlings, it is recommended to follow the instructions and follow the step-by-step recommendations. It is necessary to start harvesting components in the fall. Also in the fall they are mixed. Then the finished soil is sent for freezing, which will serve as additional sterilization.

It is advisable to prepare the soil in the fall

Important! At the stage of mixing the soil components, do not add nutritious mineral additives. Nutrient additives are introduced into the soil in the spring, after the main sterilization, before planting seeds, in the form of solutions.

Step 1. Prepare all the necessary components that you plan to add to the substrate. They must be dry and in different containers.

Soil components for seedlings

Step 2. Spread an oilcloth or other suitable bedding on the floor in the utility room, or take a large container (basin, trough, bath, pallet) in which you will mix the soil components.

Step 3. Take a measuring container (glass, mug, etc.) or prepare the scales. Prepare tools - a spatula, small rakes - and put on gloves.

Step 4. Measure the required amount of the necessary components, place in a container or pour on an oilcloth, mix thoroughly.

All ingredients must be mixed

Step 5 Pour the finished substrate into small bags (ideally no more than 20 liters). If the bags are plastic, make a few small holes at the top so that the soil “breathes”.

Step 6 Install bags of soil in a barn, utility room, where sub-zero temperatures will be kept in winter.

When to plant watermelons for seedlings

If we talk about the middle lane, then watermelons here (as well as some other crops - for example, melon) are preferable to grow through seedlings. In fact, there is nothing complicated in this process, the main thing is to know when to plant watermelons for seedlings and how to do it.

Harmful microorganisms contained in garden, leafy, soddy soil, peat, sand, humus and other essential components of the seedling substrate can harm the seeds, introducing an infection and reducing their germination. To prevent this from happening, the substrate must be disinfected. This is a very important procedure that should not be neglected if you want to get strong, healthy seedlings and productive plants.

Soil for seedlings must be disinfected

There are four ways to disinfect a substrate:

freezing;
steaming;
calcination;
pickling.

You can limit yourself to one method, but it is better to combine any of the first three with subsequent etching.

Important! Freezing is carried out during the winter. All other methods begin to be used in January - February, when it is time to prepare the soil for sowing.

The method of disinfection by freezing consists in the fact that a bag of soil is left in a room where sub-zero temperatures are maintained in winter. If there is no such room, closer to spring, the soil is taken out to frost and left for a week at a temperature of about -10 ° C ... 15 ° C. Then the frozen soil is returned to heat and allowed to thaw for a week. During this time, all the germs of weeds and pests that were not destroyed by the first freezing will “wake up” in it. After that, the soil is again sent to frost. And so two or three times.

Freezing is considered the most effective method of disinfection. The most favorable for the soil is steaming. During this procedure, not only disinfection is carried out, but also the soil mixture is saturated with moisture. For steaming, the soil is poured into a sieve with a fine mesh (so that it does not spill out) and, while stirring, is kept over a container of boiling water for 8 minutes.

When calcined, the soil is subjected to heat treatment at a temperature of + 70 ° С ... 90 ° С. It makes no sense to set the temperature lower - not all microbes will die. Above - it is impossible in any case, the structure of the soil will be disturbed and the fertile layer will be destroyed.

It is best to use an oven or microwave for calcination (if the volume of soil is small). The soil should be scattered on a tray (baking tray) with a layer of 5 centimeters. Then be sure to moisturize. Despite the fact that the method is called calcination, the soil is heated not dry, but slightly moistened. The oven must be preheated to the desired temperature. The soil warms up for about 30 minutes.

This method can be used for insurance after any of the above. He is the simplest. If before this calcination or steaming was carried out, the solution can be made with cold water. If freezing - with hot (about + 40 ° C). The solution is bright pink. The soil is placed in a sieve or fine-mesh colander and spilled through.

Advice! Seeds sown in a properly prepared substrate should be watered only with settled or filtered water. Tap water contains chlorine, which neutralizes the action of compounds that activate the vital activity of beneficial bacteria.

The disinfected soil is placed in a suitable container and watered with a solution of minerals that are necessary for a particular culture. Then the moistened substrate is laid out in containers, cups or individual pots. Now he is ready to sow seeds.

There are a lot of recipes for preparing nutrient compositions for growing seedlings, but the basic requirements for all soil mixtures are the same:

fertility and balance of all nutrients;
lightness, porosity and breathability;
moisture capacity;
acceptable level of acidity (6.5–7 pH);
sterility;
cleanliness and environmental friendliness.

Any soil for seedlings should be light, nutritious and moisture-intensive.

Standard, or universal, soil, acceptable for all crops, is prepared from:

peat, sod land, coarse washed sand (1:1:1);
forest land, river sand, mature humus (1:1:2);
well-rotted manure, turf, peat (1:1:1).

potassium sulfate - 5–10 g;
superphosphate - 10–15 g;
carbamide - 15–20 g;
ash - 100 g.

Universal and any other seedling soil is prepared from several components

Before use, all soil mixtures must be disinfected by calcination, freezing, steaming or dressing.

Solanaceous seedling mixture is prepared from:

Soddy (garden) soil, well-rotted sawdust, peat and humus (1:1:1:1), add to a bucket of soil:
- ash - 110–125 g;
- superphosphate (can be double) - 55–60g;
- urea - 20–25 g;
- potassium - 15–20 g.
Lowland peat, humus (vegetable compost), sand, coconut substrate or sawdust and soddy soil (8:1:1:1:2), 10 liters of soil fertilize:
- ammonium nitrate - 10 g;
- potassium chloride - 10 g;
- superphosphate - 20–25 g;
- ash - 45–50 g.

Tomatoes love nitrogen-rich soil.

For bell pepper, a composition of sod garden soil, coarse sand, lowland peat (1: 1: 2) is suitable, use on a bucket of soil:

ammonium nitrate - 25-30g;
double superphosphate - 20–25 g;
potassium sulfate - 35–40 g.

Bulgarian pepper is demanding on soil fertility

Cabbage seedlings prefer soil mixture from:

Garden (turf) soil, sand, ash and lime, without mineral additives (20:5:1:1).
Land from the garden, last year's rotted compost, sand, peat (2: 1: 1: 1) with mineralization per 10 liters of soil substrate:
- potassium sulfate - 10 g;
- superphosphate - 20–25 g;
- chalk - 25 g;
- urea - 15–20 g.

The soil for cabbage seedlings can not be additionally fertilized with mineral components.

It is better to use a mixture of: garden or forest soil, ready-made compost, rotted sawdust and black peat (4: 4: 1: 2), poured into a bucket:

urea - 8–10 g;
superphosphate - 50–55 g;
potassium - 20 g.

For eggplant, you can use the same soil formulations as for tomatoes.

Before sowing cucumbers, a soil mixture is prepared from:

Humus, black peat and sawdust (2:2:1), enriching it with mineral additives (per 10 l):
- potassium sulfate - 15–20 g;
- superphosphate - 20–25 g;
- ash - 100 g;
- carbamide - 20–25 g.
Humus and garden soil in equal proportions with the addition of:
- ammonium nitrate - 8–10 g;
- dolomite flour - 10–12 g;
- potassium sulfate - 10 g;
- superphosphate - 10–15 g.

The composition of the soil for cucumber seedlings necessarily includes plant and mineral components.

I plant only tomatoes for seedlings, I prepare a seedling mixture for them from ordinary garden soil and ready-made compost. I take them in approximately the same quantities, be sure to add a little peat and clean sand. Otherwise, the soil will be heavy, and a hard crust will form on its surface.

Ready-made soil mixes are sold in stores, but there is no guarantee that they are of the appropriate quality. With a little effort and some time, you can prepare exactly the composition that a particular culture needs.

I write with pleasure and about many things.

For the successful growth and development of seedlings, and hence a good harvest in the future, certain conditions are needed, first of all, high-quality soil. Some prepare the soil mixture on their own, others use ready-made substrates. Whose way "works" better?

The first option requires much more time and effort: first you need to select the components (peat, soddy soil, sand or sawdust, mineral fertilizers, etc.) in the appropriate proportions. Then the soil must be disinfected by steaming or freezing. The next item is the mandatory control of the level of acidity and its adjustment with the help of deoxidizers.

All these time-consuming steps can be avoided by purchasing ready-to-use soil in which everything is balanced.

Fertilizer with trace elements Substratdünger or PGmix is a complex, fully water-soluble fertilizer with prolonged action with trace elements in a chelated form. Provides uniform soil fertility.

When buying soil for seedlings, you need to take into account the main factors, without which the soil mixture cannot be considered ideal in all respects.

First of all, pay attention to the composition and level of acidity of the soil. The optimal indicator is pH 6-7. In soil with such a reaction, the root system of most plants develops most successfully. The addition of limestone or dolomite flour to the soil helps to achieve this pH level.

Peat is the main component of soil suitable for growing seedlings. It increases soil fertility, makes it more porous and nutritious.
Ideally, the soil mixture contains high-moor or a mixture of high-moor and lowland peat. High-moor peat gives the soil friability, improves its structure, air and water permeability. Lowland peat saturates the soil with organic components.

The proportion of the main macronutrients (nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium) that make up the soil is usually indicated on the packaging. It should provide the needs of seedlings within 1-2 weeks from the moment of sowing the seeds. Higher doses affect the rapid growth of seedlings, but do not at all guarantee them strong immunity and further productivity. Small doses do not provide seedlings with good nutrition, so they will need earlier and rich additional feeding.

The fertilizers included in the soil should be in a chelated form. Otherwise, young plants simply will not be able to absorb them.

Primers of the trade mark "Fasco" are developed in compliance with all the necessary parameters. Depending on the name of the soil mixture, the nutrients in their composition are selected in the right proportions, taking into account the needs of specific crops.

The range of soils offered by the company is designed for growing the most popular vegetable crops: nightshade, pumpkin, as well as flowers and houseplants.

Fasco soils are offered in loose and pressed form, so that each gardener can choose the most convenient option for himself. For example, the pressed Krepysh soil in fluffed form will be similar in volume to 25 liters of packaged soil, but at the same time its weight will be almost 2 times less, which greatly facilitates delivery from the store to the house.

The Krepysh series includes universal soils for seedlings of vegetable crops (tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, zucchini, cabbage, eggplants, physalis, etc.) and flowers. These peat-based substrates are completely ready for use and contain a complete set of nutrients (macro- and microelements) necessary for the full growth and development of plants. There is also a pressed version of the soil with increased porosity and high moisture capacity.

for growing seedlings of all vegetable crops;
for picking seedlings into separate pots and open ground;
for growing a "winter garden" on the windowsill (green onions, lettuce and other spicy greens);
for growing indoor flowers.

For seedlings of F1 hybrid seeds, a special bio-soil with a unique composition is intended. Its components are selected and balanced in such a way that the plants do not need additional feeding within 6 weeks from the moment of planting.

The soil of the "Malyshok" series is intended for growing high-quality and healthy seedlings of nightshade crops: tomatoes, peppers, eggplants. The substrate contains a full range of nutrients, increases the germination of seeds, increases the subsequent yield.

Soil "Rodnichok" is intended for seedlings of pumpkin crops: cucumbers, squash, zucchini, pumpkins. Soil components stimulate the growth of the root system and contribute to the formation of ovaries, and, consequently, increase yields.

Do not forget also that during the entire period of growth (from the emergence of seedlings to planting in a permanent place), seedlings need additional feeding. For young and fragile plants, only liquid fertilizers are used that do not burn the roots.

Liquid organomineral fertilizers "Fasco" stimulate growth due to the content of humates in them, which are natural stimulants.
Water-soluble mineral fertilizers "Fasco" strengthen the immune system and increase the stress resistance of plants. Fertilizers are in chelated form, do not contain chlorine and are packaged in a convenient package (1 sachet (50 g) = 50 liters of ready-made solution).

The Fasco assortment also includes the necessary equipment for seedlings: peat pots, Jiffy Krepysh peat tablets, peat briquettes, greenhouses with peat tablets.

Modern technology has stepped so far that for the successful cultivation of seedlings at home there is no need to dig the ground in the garden. Special soils of balanced composition will provide your plants with good nutrition for growth and development. And you will only have to surround them with care and care.

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Before planting seedlings, we still have time, so let's look at how to disinfect the soil. Not all summer residents every year, growing seedlings, buy new soil. It is clear that the healthier the soil, the stronger and stronger the seedlings themselves will be. And this means that the land from the garden is not a source of infections for plants, it must be disinfected before use.

At home, disinfection is carried out in the following ways:

freezing,
calcination,
steaming,
pickling.

We will analyze each method and note the advantages and disadvantages.

Prepare the soil in the fall by filling a bag with it. During severe frosts (15-20ºС), take the bag of earth outside or onto the balcony for several days. After the ground freezes, bring it into a warm room for about a week. This is done in order to wake up wintering pests and weed seeds in a warm environment. The temperature contrast of the soil is arranged 2-3 times.

But this method has drawbacks.

Frost has a negative effect not only on pathogenic microorganisms, but also on beneficial microflora. This means that this method is not suitable for soil, which contains vermicompost.
No low temperatures will destroy late blight pathogens. They should be destroyed only by heat treatment.

The soil is scattered on a metal tray with a layer of no more than 5 cm, and then the soil is spilled with boiling water and placed in an oven heated to 70-90ºС. The temperature should not be higher than indicated, otherwise a higher temperature will lead to nitrogen mineralization and deterioration of soil quality.

The advantage of this method is the death of all microorganisms, they simply do not survive.

Despite the fact that the method is more gentle than calcination, it is also quite reliable. Its advantage lies in the fact that in addition to disinfection, it also saturates the soil with moisture.

The earth is poured into a colander and, gradually stirring, is kept over a pot of boiling water for 10 minutes. In this case, the colander is placed above the pan so that the bottom of the colander does not touch the water. Some gardeners combine both temperature methods, that is, they first steam the soil, and then take it out into the cold.

With such heat treatment, not only pathogenic, but also beneficial microflora dies. Therefore, the steaming procedure is carried out in advance to restore the soil before planting.

The easiest way to disinfect the soil. The idea of etching is to water the soil with a pink solution of potassium permanganate, diluted at the rate of 3 g per 10 liters of water. But remember that the solution processes only the surface layer of the earth and does not affect the bulk of pathogens.

Therefore, antifungal drugs (fungicides) are used for more thorough processing:

The meaning of the treatment is to suppress the pathogenic flora with beneficial bacteria that are contained in these preparations, actively developing. The process takes 2-3 weeks, therefore, the processing is carried out in advance.

The essence of the method lies in the fact that the prepared soil for seedlings is abundantly shed with a pink solution of potassium permanganate, and then put in the microwave for 3 minutes at high power. How to do it watch the video.

In conclusion, I will add. Remember that immediately after disinfection, the soil is sterile. But after a couple of weeks, the microflora in it is restored, and not the fact that it is only useful. Therefore, after disinfection, if you do not immediately use the soil, transfer it to a clean (sterile bag). And just before planting, add biohumus (1 liter per bucket of earth) or supercompost (1-2 cups per bucket of soil).

The soil in the greenhouse must be processed twice: in the fall, after harvesting, preparing it for winter, and in the spring before planting seedlings. Treat the soil with the following preparations.

How to prepare a solution for use, I described in detail in an article about phytosporin. It is better to buy it in the form of a paste. After dissolving a 100-gram package in 0.5 liters of water, you will get a dark brown liquid. The concentrated solution is diluted to prepare a working solution no earlier than a day later. This is necessary so that the living bacteria that were in the product are activated.

Immediately before tillage 1 tbsp. l. a concentrated solution is diluted in 10 liters of water and already with such a solution, the soil in the greenhouse is abundantly shed from the watering can. The greenhouse is closed for 14-20 days for the bacteria to do their job. After that, the greenhouse is opened and you can start planting seedlings.

The unused concentrated solution is removed in a dark place and stored there until the next use.

Disinfection with a solution of potassium permanganate is the easiest way to cultivate the soil in a greenhouse. The essence of the method is to induce a pink solution of potassium permanganate and abundant watering of the soil. To bring such a solution, it is enough to dip a raw toothpick in potassium permanganate crystals, and then dissolve what is left on the toothpick in 1 liter of water. The soil is poured abundantly with the prepared pink solution, left for several hours.

Another very simple and affordable way to disinfect the soil in a greenhouse is to spill it with boiling water. It is enough to pour boiling water over the earth, and then cover it with plastic wrap. Under the influence of high temperature, all harmful microbes will also die.

And there is another point that needs to be taken into account. Even after disinfecting the soil for seedlings, pathogens can be introduced with seeds. This means that before planting, the seeds should also be processed and then your seedlings will be strong and healthy.

Dear readers! Thank you for visiting me! I would be glad if you share your experience in growing vegetables, methods of combating diseases and plant pests in the comments. If you liked the article, share this information with your friends. Please click on the social buttons. networks that are to the left of the article. I will be very grateful to you.

I really hope that we will communicate for a long time, there will be many more interesting articles on the blog. In order not to miss them, subscribe to blog news. Have a good harvest!

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From early spring, gardeners and summer residents begin their hectic activity associated with sowing and germinating seedlings. It is not so easy to get healthy and strong shoots that are easily adapted in the open field and will further please with a good harvest. The main condition for their growth, and therefore the basis of the future harvest, is a properly selected or self-prepared land.

Before you start taking action, you need to responsibly approach the question of how to prepare the land for seedlings with your own hands.

It is necessary to start preparing the soil not in the spring, but from August-September. Garden soil in its pure form will not work, but it can become the basis for a nutrient soil mixture into which seeds will be sown. Do not ignore such a stage of preparation as disinfecting the soil for seedlings, if you take it from the garden or from the garden.

The second drawback of garden or garden land is the presence of a large number of small pests that can destroy seeds and weak roots of young shoots.

Selecting and combining the components of the soil mixture, you need to follow certain rules. Primary requirements:

Porous (air) structure. Clay, which clogs pores and leads to clumps, should be minimized.
The presence of a sufficient amount of useful components (organic and mineral fertilizers). But in this case, one should not cross the line. Excessive content of mineral fertilizers slows down the process of seed germination and can lead to diseases of seedlings.
Absence of pests, larvae, eggs of insects. The soil must be disinfected, but not completely sterile. In any soil mixture, the presence of beneficial microflora is mandatory.

For the destruction and prevention of pests, it is necessary to study the question of how to disinfect the land for seedlings, and take the necessary measures to disinfect the soil. But its structure and composition directly depend on the correct selection of components and their proportions.

The most popular universal soil composition for seedlings is prepared on the basis of garden soil (2 parts), peat (1 part), humus (1 part). The baking powder can be clean coarse river sand or sawdust. Mineral fertilizer will serve as ash or charcoal. All these components are carefully sieved and combined. Even a beginner who previously did not know how to properly prepare the soil will cope with such a task. Soil for seedlings made in this way can also be suitable for indoor plants.

What is our next step? What do we do after we have prepared the land? We disinfect the land for seedlings, this will avoid all the troubles associated with diseases and pests of young shoots.

Even the most correct soil composition for seedlings can be useless if it has not undergone a disinfection procedure. In this case, pathogenic flora, eggs and larvae of pests, spores of weeds and molds may be in the soil. All of the above begins to develop rapidly and manifest itself as soon as a favorable environment for the germination of seedlings is created. This can cause irreversible damage to seedlings. To avoid such problems, you need to know how to disinfect the land for seedlings.

There is an erroneous opinion that the earth from the bags does not need disinfection and is completely ready for use. In fact, it can contain exactly the same number of dangers as in the garden, since, in fact, it is waste soil from greenhouses and greenhouses, mechanically cleaned and enriched.

How to disinfect the land for seedlings? This is a simple question, because there are a great many ways to sterilize the soil. Experienced gardeners sometimes invent new methods or improve existing ones.

Soil calcination is one of the most popular soil disinfection methods. It is based on heat treatment. It can be produced in different ways.

Firstly, the soil can be fried in the oven by spreading it on a brazier. The temperature should be 180 ° C, and the time should be about 40 minutes. The method is very affordable and simple, but not suitable for a large amount of land.

Secondly, you can ignite the soil in the microwave. In this case, the wet substrate is placed in a glass dish and left in the microwave for 10 minutes at maximum power.

Thirdly, a water bath is suitable for heat treatment of the soil. The method is effective, but, as in previous cases, it is designed for small volumes.

If you have prepared the soil for seedlings since autumn, you can disinfect a large amount of soil without much effort, simply by leaving it in an unheated room or on a balcony during frost. Winter cold will help you destroy almost all harmful microorganisms in the soil.

The whole point of biological disinfection is to populate the soil for seedlings with beneficial microorganisms that will displace harmful ones.

The most popular biological agents today are Fitosporin, Fitop, Zaslon, Barrier, Trichodermin. When using biological preparations for disinfection, it is important to carefully follow the instructions, strictly observe the dosage and shelf life.

With the correct use of biological preparations, they not only destroy the pathogenic flora, but also accelerate the growth of seedlings.

Chemical disinfection of the soil for seedlings is best used only in exceptional cases. As with biologics, it is important to follow the instructions here. Some of these drugs not only destroy pathogenic flora, pathogenic bacteria and fungi, but also inhibit plant growth.

Potassium permanganate is considered the most harmless, but also ineffective method of chemical disinfection. It eventually turns into potash fertilizer.

By disinfecting the soil for seedlings by mechanical or chemical methods, we deprive it not only of pathogenic flora, but also of beneficial bacteria. They can be restored by adding bacterial fertilizer to the soil ("Risotorfin", "Azotobacterin", "Phosphorobacterin"). Some gardeners use ordinary yeast for this purpose.

It is worth noting that all of the above procedures for preparing and disinfecting the land for seedlings are not suitable for "lazy" gardeners. Self-preparation of the substrate takes time and effort. It is much easier and faster to buy a ready-made composition for sowing seedlings. Those who choose this option should be aware of the existing pitfalls.

Unfortunately, manufacturers do not always conscientiously write true information on the packaging. It happens that, choosing a package with the best composition, you get poor peat-based soil. When planting seeds in such a composition, there is a high risk of being disappointed with the result. Seedlings will either not sprout at all, or even if shoots appear, they are unlikely to meet expectations. Therefore, you should not be overly economical in this matter, but choose products from well-known companies.

Even if you have such a poor-quality peat-based mixture, try to fix the situation yourself. To do this, you need to mix it with garden soil, previously disinfected. How to disinfect the land for seedlings, we considered earlier in our article. Next, be sure to check the resulting substrate for acidity, and if it is above the norm, we correct this problem. The acidity of the soil is reduced by adding chalk or dolomite flour. Since such a soil mixture does not have enough of its own nutrients, additional mineral fertilizers must be applied.

It is necessary to approach the issue of preparing the land for seedlings very seriously and scrupulously. Experienced gardeners know that the correct composition of the soil is 80% of success in growing seedlings.

At home, disinfection is carried out in the following ways:

freezing,
calcination,
steaming,
pickling.

We will analyze each method and note the advantages and disadvantages.

freezing

But this method has drawbacks.

Frost has a negative effect not only on pathogenic microorganisms, but also on beneficial microflora. This means that this method is not suitable for soil, which contains vermicompost.
No low temperatures will destroy late blight pathogens. They should be destroyed only by heat treatment.

Calcination

The soil is scattered on a metal tray with a layer of no more than 5 cm, and then the soil is spilled with boiling water and placed in an oven heated to 70-90ºС for 30 minutes. The temperature should not be higher than indicated, otherwise a higher temperature will lead to nitrogen mineralization and deterioration of soil quality.

The advantage of this method is the death of all microorganisms, they simply do not survive.

Steaming in a water bath

Despite the fact that the method is more gentle than calcination, it is also quite reliable. Its advantage lies in the fact that in addition to disinfection, it also saturates the soil with moisture.

With such heat treatment, not only pathogenic, but also beneficial microflora dies. Therefore, the steaming procedure is carried out in advance to restore the soil before planting.

Etching

Therefore, antifungal drugs (fungicides) are used for more thorough processing:

Zamair,
Renaissance.

Soil disinfection in the microwave

Tillage in a greenhouse

The soil in the greenhouse must be processed twice: in the fall, after harvesting, and in the spring before planting seedlings. Treat the soil with the following preparations.

Phytosporin treatment

The unused concentrated solution is removed in a dark place and stored there until the next use.

Disinfection with potassium permanganate solution

Disinfection is the easiest way to cultivate soil in a greenhouse. The essence of the method is to induce a pink solution of potassium permanganate and abundant watering of the soil. To bring such a solution, it is enough to dip a raw toothpick in potassium permanganate crystals, and then dissolve what is left on the toothpick in 1 liter of water. The soil is poured abundantly with the prepared pink solution, left for several hours.

Boiling water treatment

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How to prepare a sterile plant substrate. How to disinfect the ground before planting seedlings How long to keep the ground in the oven

How to ignite the earth in the oven?

Do I need to calcine the ground for seedlings?

What is disinfection for?

Folk methods

Disinfection with special means

An important point: reducing the acidity of the soil

Common mistakes

freezing

Calcination

Steaming in a water bath

Etching

Soil disinfection in the microwave

Tillage in a greenhouse

Phytosporin treatment

Disinfection with potassium permanganate solution

Boiling water treatment

What else to read

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