Rules for soaking carrot seeds before planting
To get a good harvest of carrots, it is imperative to plant it according to the rules of agricultural technology, adhering to the planting dates, properly preparing the beds and the seeds themselves. The quality and volume of the crop largely depend on the variety and preparation of the planting material, so you need to know whether it is worth soaking carrot seeds before planting and how to do it.
Rules for soaking carrot seeds before planting
Features of seed soaking
It is important to soak carrot seeds before planting, because this process speeds up germination several times. Preparing seeds before sowing in open ground is a must, as it helps to select high-quality material, improve it and prepare it for rapid growth. For this, the seeds go through several stages:
- calibration;
- disinfection;
- stratification;
- soak;
- processing with mixtures.
Before soaking carrot seeds, they are put in a warm place for a while: next to a radiator or on a windowsill, where the sun's rays directly fall. The room temperature must be at least 20 ° C. Warmed seeds have much better germination.
Calibration
Not all seed material grows large and high-quality root crops. Seeds have an expiration date, so those purchased at least a year ago are no longer suitable for sowing. Only new seed is required to soak carrot seeds. Before starting germination, the seeds are sorted out, small and defective seeds are removed.
There is an effective and quick way of sampling: add 40 g of salt to 1 liter of plain water and carefully place until it is completely dissolved, then the water is drained to get rid of the sediment. All seeds are poured with filtered salt water. Within an hour, natural selection will take place: high-quality seeds will sink to the bottom of a container with water, and empty ones, not suitable for sowing, will float to the surface. The defective material is thrown away, and the good one is washed with clean water. Then they begin to soak the planting material.
Soak
Carrots should be soaked for 48 hours before planting. To do this, fill the entire seed with water at room temperature. Do not pour boiling water over the seeds: if they stay in hot water for a long time, they will become limp or deformed. Some varieties of carrots require soaking for 1-1.5 days. The timing of their preparation before sowing is indicated on the package.
It is safer to soak carrot seeds in gauze bags or filter paper. Planting material is wrapped in them, the fabric is placed in water for several minutes, then taken out and squeezed well. The seeds will soak in the remaining moisture. It is important that the gauze or paper is constantly damp. A little drying of the seeds will lead to their death, therefore, periodically, cloth or paper is watered or sprayed.
Carrot seeds should be soaked in the spring, just before sowing.If, for some reason, it was not possible to sow the material immediately after soaking, the seeds are wrapped in a damp cloth or thin cloth, placed in a plastic bag and stored in the refrigerator as needed.
Disinfection
During the calibration process, not only expired, but also contaminated material is selected. If you plant diseased seeds, the harvest will be poor and of poor quality, diseases will spread to adult plants. Before soaking, the carrot seeds are disinfected.
Seeds are disinfected before planting.
The simplest and fastest way of disinfection is to warm up the carrots in hot water (the temperature should not be higher than 50 ° C). The seed is wrapped in a cloth and for 20 minutes. placed in a container with water. It is important that the water does not cool down - if necessary, it is heated. After that, the seeds are soaked in cold water for 3 minutes. So they are not only disinfected, but also tempered, which contributes to their rapid germination in the open field.
Stratification
In order for the carrots to grow quickly, there is another option for accelerating seed germination - stratification - their long-term exposure at a certain temperature, as an option - freezing in the refrigerator. This is usually done before soaking. For this, the planting material is wrapped in a damp napkin or cloth and placed in a freezer, where the temperature is set in the range of -1-3 ° C.
The seeds are hardened for 3 days, after which they can be planted in open ground. For better germination, immediately after stratification, they resort to soaking.
Seed treatment
It is recommended to soak carrot seeds before planting in spring in nutrient mixtures using potassium permanganate, hydrogen peroxide or growth regulators. This is necessary to kill infections and stimulate better growth.
To prepare a solution of potassium permanganate in 5 liters of water, dissolve 1 g of potassium permanganate. This substance disinfects the seed well, but at the same time slows down its development. Better to use special mixtures.
In specialized stores, growth regulators are sold, from which, according to the instructions, solutions are made for processing seeds. These drugs include "Zircon", "Albit" and "Energen". Instead of potassium permanganate, it is permissible to soak carrot seeds in a solution of 5 g of soda and 1 liter of water. Also suitable for processing are aloe juice, extracts of chamomile, oak bark or valerian.
Processing with a solution of wood ash is also effective. To make the carrot grow quickly, it is soaked for 4-6 hours in a solution of 5 liters of water and 10 g of ash. Before soaking, the solution is allowed to brew for 2 days. After the procedure, the seeds swell. If they have not increased, they are placed in warm water for 1-2 hours.
Seed soaking methods
It is recommended to soak carrots before planting in different ways using different components, such as peat, humus, mullein, wood ash, liquid fertilizers, etc. If you sow dry seeds, seedlings will appear only after 15-20 days.
Bubbling
Bubbling involves treating the seed with oxygen or air in water. Aeration is provided by special devices that saturate the seeds with air throughout the day. To do this, they are placed in a container with water at a temperature of at least 25 ° C. After the procedure, they are wrapped in cloth and left in the refrigerator for 5 days.
After the allotted time, the planting material is taken out and completely dried so that it becomes free-flowing. The bubbling process contributes to the rapid germination of seeds.
Pelleting
Seeds can be saturated with nutrients
Pellet coating is used to cover the seed with useful substances. This method not only simplifies the sowing process, but also reduces the required number of seeds for planting by 1 sq. m. To prepare the solution you will need:
- 250 g liquid mullein;
- 250 g of powdered peat;
- 250 g of humus or manure.
Take a 1-liter jar, pour 1-2 tsp into it.dry carrot seeds and add 1-2 tbsp on top. l. peat and humus and 1 tbsp. l. mullein. The jar is tightly closed with a lid and shaken well for 3 minutes. After that, the same portions of the components are added to the mixture and shaken again. The same action is repeated a third time, pouring out the remaining portions of the substances.
The planting material will be covered with a shell, after which it is poured onto paper and completely dried. The process takes some time but is very efficient. The pelleting procedure is carried out 4 days before planting.
Soaking in nutrient solution
The components of the nutrient solutions determine how long it will take to soak the carrots before planting. The most effective drugs are liquid fertilizers "Sodium humate", "Potassium humate" and "Effekton-O", which accelerate the process of seed germination. To prepare solutions, 1 tsp is diluted in 1 liter of warm water. any of these liquid fertilizers or 1 tbsp. l. wood ash.
The planting material is wrapped in cloth or folded into a bag and placed in solution for a day. After taking it out, be sure to rinse it with clean water, put it in a damp cloth or cloth and leave it to harden in the refrigerator for 3-5 days. Before sowing, the seeds are taken out and dried to a free-flowing state.
Biostimulation
Biostimulation is carried out simultaneously with soaking. For this purpose, special complex fertilizers are added to the water, the most effective of which are "Epin" and "Sodium humate". They help the planting material to emerge at the same time, protect it from diseases and adverse conditions. To soak seeds using the "Sodium humate" preparation, a 0.01% solution is required. The duration of the soaking process is on average 11 hours.
To prepare a solution from "Epin" you will need 4 drops of the substance per 1 tbsp. water with a temperature of 30 ° C. The soaking period is on average 11 hours. It is necessary to use the material for sowing immediately after the procedure, but before that it is dried to flowability.
Conclusion
The quantity and quality of the carrot crop largely depends on the process of preparing the seeds for sowing. Soaking them in water not only accelerates germination, but also prepares the material for environmental conditions. Using different methods of soaking with the use of liquid fertilizers or nutrients, it is really possible to select the best seed, harden it and disinfect it.