How to plant cucumbers in boiling water

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Heat-loving vegetables are capricious to planting conditions and require increased attention. Sowing cucumbers with boiling water removes the etheric coat of the seed and contributes to a multiple increase in germination, which guarantees a rich yield of greens.

Planting cucumbers in boiling water

Method advantages

The agricultural technique of planting various types of seeds using boiling water is considered one of the newest techniques, but in fact it has been used in agriculture for many years.

The advantages of this method include:

1. Versatility. It is used when sowing all vegetables and many types of flowers (especially for those whose seeds are distinguished by an increased thickness of the peel).
2. Simplicity. The seeds do not require soaking and processing before sowing; ordinary dry seed is suitable for use.
3. Time saving compared to traditional growing methods. The time for preliminary preparation of materials is reduced.
4. Saving special drugs. The method does not involve the use of biostimulants, potassium permanganate or phytosporin.
5. Disinfection. Treatment of soil and seed with boiling water helps to destroy harmful microorganisms, which reduces the risk of developing diseases and increases the resistance of the crop to pests.

Landing technique

The technique of using boiling water is used both for preliminary cultivation of seedlings and for direct sowing in open ground. Each of these methods has its own characteristics, due to the characteristics of the germination environment.

Seedling in boiling water

Sowing seeds begins with choosing the right container. When using boiling water, the container heats up strongly, so it is better not to use ordinary cans and wooden boxes. The most suitable containers are short (about 40 cm in height) made of plastic. The length and width of the optimal container range from 15 to 25 cm.

Landing in boiling water has many advantages.

Next, perform the following actions:

1. The container is filled with crumbly soil (it is better to use a store-bought soil or pre-disinfect the soil from the garden) and tamp it with your fingers.
2. The surface is poured with boiling water. For convenience, it is better to use a teapot.
3. Dry seeds are laid out on steamed soil, pressed a little and sprinkled with a small amount of earth.
4. The containers are closed with a lid or dark film, secured with an elastic band.
5. Closed containers are placed on a battery or in another warm place (30 ° C-40 ° C) for 45-60 minutes.
6. After that, the containers with seeds are moved to a warm room (23 ° C-27 ° C). The cover must not be removed at this stage: condensation should appear on it. If there is no condensation, the soil is gradually moistened.

If the step-by-step instructions are followed correctly, friendly shoots should appear in 1-2 days. At this stage, cucumbers need high humidity, so you still cannot remove the lid from them. The soil should be constantly moist, but not wet.

The easiest way to maintain optimal moisture is to use coconut substrate (compressed shredded coconut shell fibers). Excess moisture will collect at the bottom of the container, and the cucumber seeds will receive the required amount of water. If there is no substrate in the bottom of the container, you will need to make several drainage holes to drain moisture.

After opening the cotyledon leaves on the sprouts, the container without a lid is rearranged into a place with good access to light. Ideally, daylight hours should be at least 10 hours, therefore, with a shortage of sunlight, cucumbers need artificial additional lighting.

Sowing in boiling water in the garden

To plant cucumber seeds in open ground, the garden bed is pre-watered (at least 2 hours before sowing), fed with fertilizers and ash.

The sowing process in boiling water in unprotected soil conditions consists of the following steps:

1. Creation of grooves in the garden.
2. Watering the earth with boiling water from a watering can or kettle.
3. Sowing dry seeds, sprinkling with a small amount of soil.
4. Covering the plantings with a dark film until the emergence of shoots.

Germination is required to be checked starting from the second day after sowing cucumbers. After the first shoots appear, the protective film must be removed. This will provide plants with full access to sunlight.

If the correct planting technology is followed, after 36 hours the seed germinates a root the size of a match.

Conclusion

Using hot water to germinate vegetables helps to quickly and efficiently remove the etheric coat of seeds that impedes the natural germination process. Cucumbers in boiling water give almost 100% germination and guarantee abundant fruiting of healthy seedlings. The obtained greens can be eaten fresh, used for making salads, fermented and consumed in lightly salted form.