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Growing tomato seedlings begins in January - February. It is at this time that it is customary to sow seeds in containers or a greenhouse. Sowing dates depend on the place where the seedlings will grow. How to properly grow and water tomato seedlings at home, you can learn from this article.
Tomatoes
Tomatoes are rich in vitamins and minerals. They are eaten with pleasure by both adults and children. According to research, this vegetable has a positive effect on the human body. Useful properties include:
- Beneficial effect on the digestive system, because, due to their structure, tomatoes quickly break down and over-pick. In addition, the acid content helps balance the acidity in the stomach. With gastritis, tomatoes exhibit healing functions.
- Pickled vegetables support the intestinal microflora.
The most important effect of tomatoes on the human body is their ability to counteract the formation of cancerous tumors. The vegetable contains three free radicals, which resist the attack. The most potent of these is lycopene. What is most interesting is that processed products contain much more of this substance than fresh tomatoes. That is why experts recommend eating ketchup, sauce or pasta.
A crop is a plant that has a well-developed root system. The roots are able to grow and develop rapidly. With a seedless method of growing a culture, the root system can go one meter deep. In diameter, the roots can grow one and a half or two and a half meters.
The stem, depending on the variety, can grow from thirty centimeters to two meters in height. The leaves look somewhat like potato leaves. The plant blooms in yellow, while the flowers are very small, collected in inflorescences. The culture is self-pollinating, since there are both male and female organs in one flower.
Fruits are multi-nested berries that have different shapes and sizes. The fruits are colored pink, red, yellow, crimson and white. There are three types of bushes:
- non-standard,
- standard,
- potato.
How to water seedlings on a windowsill
When growing a crop, watering tomato seedlings at home is important. It is necessary to correctly calculate the intervals, favorable time, water temperature. If the apartment is heated with central heating, the air dries quickly. Therefore, for the normal growth of seedlings, it must be periodically moistened.
If there are no humidifiers in the room, then for this you can use wide containers that can be installed near the seedlings. Water evaporates and humidifies the air. The container with germinated seed can be placed in a flat container with water, which will cool the roots and also live them with moisture.
Knowing the indoor microclimate, you can set the amount of watering for young seedlings in such a way as not to harm it.
How to maintain moisture
Water is the most basic thing a seed needs to germinate. At the same time, it is important to choose the right composition so that the sprouts grow healthy. The main attention should be paid to:
- The absence of substances in the liquid that act as a disinfectant. Such substances include chlorine, which is added to tap water. To get rid of it, leave a container of water open for twenty-four hours.
- Water at room temperature or much colder.
- Melt or collected rain.
For watering, it is best to use a spray bottle with a fine spray. Otherwise, the sprouts can be severely damaged. In addition, the water should not be allowed to stagnate, otherwise the root system will fester. Many people wonder how often to water tomato seedlings on the windowsill.
The gardener needs to determine for himself how to water the seedlings, so that the seedlings are one hundred percent, the shoots are strong. There are many products on the market that are used to stimulate plant growth. The range of such solutions is very large, which allows the gardener to choose the most optimal option for himself.
There is a debate about when it is best to water the tomatoes, in the morning or in the evening. In this regard, we can only say that everything depends on the biorhythms of the gardener himself, as well as on his established daily routine. People who call themselves larks are able to rise very early. It is for this reason that it is completely normal for them to water tomato seedlings in the morning. For owls, watering the plant in the morning is inconvenient, so they water the tomatoes in the evening.
Planting tomatoes
Fully strengthened tomato stems, which have two or three true leaves, are subject to picking. To do this, use boxes or cardboard boxes, which can later be used as mulch. You can plant seedlings in greenhouses, for which polycarbonate is used. Peat pots or plastic cups can also be used for planting.
Peat pots tend to get wet, therefore, how often to water tomato seedlings directly depends on how the base is saturated with moisture. One irrigation every few days will be sufficient. Due to the porous structure of the material, water evaporates from the soil much more slowly. Watering the plants frequently can cause the material to become completely wet and the roots can grow through crates or peat pots.
For planting a tomato, it is best to use a mixture of peat, sand and small stones. Thus, the soil will be saturated with oxygen. In addition, watering the seedlings very often should not be done, since the liquid can stagnate and the root system will rot.
How to maintain optimal plant growth
If the seedlings began to grow and develop rapidly, and the stem actively rises up, this means that the culture is being watered incorrectly. To change the situation, you need to radically change the irrigation regime. In order for the seedlings to stop rampaging, it is best to use root watering. Tomatoes don't like wet leaves. Since tomatoes are a crop that belongs to the south, it is easier for them to tolerate drought than heavy rains.
Fertilizing tomato seedlings
The plant will bloom profusely and delight the gardener with a high yield of large, juicy fruits, if the seedlings are watered with drugs that stimulate the growth of the culture. For this, liquid fertilizers are used.
The most popular products for growing nightshades and peppers are:
- Eco-gel;
- Zircon;
- Ribav extra;
- Epin-extra;
- Kornevin;
- Guamat.
These preparations contain almost the same composition of minerals required for healthy plant growth. Each drug has an instruction for the use of the substance, which indicates how much it needs to be used for a certain area of planted seedlings. With the wrong dosage of the drug or its frequent use, you can harm the root system. The roots begin to fester, from this the stem dries, the leaves turn yellow and fall off. If you adhere to all proportions, then buds will form on the tomatoes.
When introducing liquid fertilizers into the soil, you need to make sure that they do not get on the leaves or stems of the plant. Otherwise, the plant will burn.
For feeding seedlings, many gardeners use folk remedies. Among them are the following:
- Infusion of onion peels. This drug kills pathogenic microflora, gives strength to the plant.
- A solution made with baking soda makes the fruit grow juicy and sweet.
- If iodine is used, it will act similarly to nitrogen fertilizers.
- Gardeners get mineral fertilizers and nitrogen from nettle.
- A prepared preparation of finely chopped garlic and diluted with water in a ratio of one to fifty allows you to get rid of white bloom in the area of the root system.
Watering a crop is very important to growing it. Lack of moisture causes the tomatoes to dry out. Excess - kills the root system. In addition, you need to know how to properly feed the plant. Subject to all standards, the plant grows healthy and strong.