Eggplant. Seedling, cultivation, care

Today we will focus on growing eggplant. Let us touch on these points: when to plant seedlings, in what ways to plant seeds, how to take care of seedlings before transplanting them to a permanent residence, recommended varieties. From seed to seedling, we will go hand in hand so that the fruits come out beautiful, healthy, so that the yield indicator is powerful.

Growing eggplant: when to plant eggplant seedlings in 2019

Eggplant takes a long time to grow, develop and bear fruit. This is a must-know if you are going to grow eggplants.

Siberia and the middle latitudes of the Russian Federation: we plant varieties of medium ripeness in the first days of February, varieties of late ripeness in the last days of January.

Before you start planting eggplants, make sure that you can provide the seedlings with good lighting - up to 15 hours a day. Window light will not be enough for seedlings because the day ends quickly in winter. The seedlings will not get enough light, they will stretch, they will have unstable immunity. Do not expect a generous harvest if it goes like this.

Supplement the plants with fluorescent lamps or special ones.

If there is nothing to highlight, take boldly varieties of early ripeness and start growing seedlings in March (beginning / middle). Daylight hours will just be longer.

Early maturing varieties: "Alekseevsky"," Behemoth F1 "," Bibo F1 ", "Valentina F1", "King of the North", "Killer Whale", "Quartet", "Maxik F1", "Gardener's Dream", "Lilac Mist", "Solaris", "Purple Miracle F1", "Black handsome"," F1 Nutcracker ".

Medium ripeness varieties: "Diamond"," Swan "," Matrosik "," Striped flight ".

Planting seedlings according to the lunar calendar 2019

Good days for planting, picking, pinching eggplants in 2019.

January: 20, 21, 25, 26, 29, 30.

February: 18, 21, 22, 25, 26.

March: 1, 21, 22, 24, 25, 26, 29, 30.

April: 18, 21, 22, 25, 26, 29.

May: 18, 19, 22, 23, 27, 28.

Growing eggplant: traditional planting of seedlings

Now you will be presented with the "old-fashioned" type of planting eggplant seedlings. This method is time-tested, effective, and the simplest.

Make grooves in the soil 0.5-1 cm deep. Place the seeds along the entire furrow, the interval between seeds is 1 cm or more. Sprinkle soil over the furrows and spray it with a spray bottle. The seeds will not be washed out and will not go into the depths of the soil. When the soil becomes well moistened, cover the container with film or glass. Place in a warm place. Good temperature conditions for germination are 20-25 degrees. When shoots appear, remove the glass, accustom the seedlings to open air.

Growing eggplant: snail seedlings

The second famous type of eggplant planting, saving energy and space.

A snail is a soil twisted into a substrate, seeds are planted in it.

Step by step plan.

First you need to make the base of the snail. You can take a laminate backing or insulation. Cut the material into strips, their thickness is 13-16 cm. The length depends on the number of planted seeds. Then we prepare the soil for seedlings. You need to pour it on top of the strip and tamp it slightly. The soil layer is 1.5-2 cm thick. So you need to lay the soil, then twist it into a roll so that the soil is from the inside.As a result, the "eggplant snail" should come out. Then you need to tie the roll with an elastic band. Slightly crush the soil from above so that the sides are more noticeable (you can press down with your fingers). Then the soil can be watered with a solution of 3 drops of "Epin" / 0.5 ml. Wait for the soil to absorb water well. Then you need to make shallow holes in the ground (0.5-1 cm) with an interval of 4 cm. Put a seed in each hole. Sprinkle with soil on top, do not tamp. The second variation of this method: we do not make holes, but you need to put the seeds on top and press them down 1 cm deep. These varieties of "snails" work similarly to each other, the choice is yours. Next, the "snail" must be placed in the pallet. Do not water again until germination. Then cover the seedlings with a film or bag, thus creating a greenhouse environment. Place the seedlings in a warm place. When the first-born seedlings appear, it is necessary to provide them with good illumination.

You can install backlighting or put seedlings on the light side (south window), provided that there are no drafts and cold air penetration. Greenhouse conditions are not removed immediately, gradually, when there will be shoots of all the seeds, and they will more or less become strong.

Growing eggplant: sowing seeds in boiling water

A quick way to get quick germination. Sowing in hot water promotes accelerated seed germination. You need a greenhouse made of plastic, soil, seeds, cool boiling water. Put the earth in the greenhouse and level it. The thickness of the layer should be 4 cm. Scatter seeds all over the ground or, if you are a perfectionist, put the seeds in even rows. The choice is yours. Then pour boiling water over the whole thing, but not too much. We do not need the swamp to develop, it is important for us that the soil is moistened. The seeds remain at the top, no need to deepen them. Next, close the greenhouse, place it where it is warm and light. Seedlings will show themselves on the third or fourth day. This is 100%, but if you purchased the seeds fresh and of high quality.

Eggplants in peat tablets without picking

It is comfortable and easy to put in peat tablets. A pick is not needed, this is a guarantee of preserving the root system. The plant grows without "depression, neurosis", it is healthy and strong. This is also very good because eggplants do not like picking. This method is not suitable for those who want to plant a lot of seedlings.

Before planting, you will need: a set of peat tablets in a tray with a lid, 0.5 liters of water, eggplant seeds. By the way, as a preventive measure, you can add the drug "Fitosporin" to the water for irrigation, following the recipe. In advance, the side shell, if any, is removed from the tablets. Next, you need to pour water into each tablet and leave it for a while so that the tablets are soaked and they swell. Place the seed in each tablet. Deepen the seeds by almost 1 cm and sprinkle with soil from the tablets. Do not seal strongly. And finally, cover the box with a lid or a bag, if there is no lid. Place the greenhouse in a warm place and wait for the seedlings to appear.

Growing eggplant: eggplant picking time.

Well, we planted eggplants in any way, saw the first-born seedlings, but now a serious question arises: when to dive and should we?

If the plants are planted in the "snail" way or in peat tablets, I will reassure you - there is no need to dive. Eggplants can sit in the "snail" for a long time and grow to a large size. Then they are planted in separate containers. The situation is similar with peat tablets, seedlings grow and form a strong root system. Then the seedlings, together with the tablets, are transplanted into a larger container by the transshipment method.

You need to dive if the sowing activities were carried out in a crowded manner: traditionally or in boiling water. In general, when a large number of seeds are located in a small area, and they interfere with each other.

A pick should be done during the period when two true leaves appear in the seedlings.For picking each greenery, it is necessary to prepare a separate container.

It is good to plant in peat pots, then it is all very easy to plant in the soil.

When diving plants, do not damage the root system. For this reason, if it is possible to dig a lump of earth along with an eggplant and get it out without disturbing the roots, this business should be done. We do everything very carefully. If the roots are harmed, the plant slows down for a long time and can get sick.

For picking, it is necessary to place the seedlings in containers, deepen to the cotyledon leaves, and pour with lukewarm water. The first three to four days after the plants dived, you need to protect them from direct sunlight, make a shade.

Eggplant seedling care

How to competently support the growth and development of eggplants? Let's talk about this.

Illumination. Plants need a lot of light for up to 15 hours a day. For backlighting, fluorescent or LED lamps are used. At times, you need to turn the containers so that the plants do not shrink into the light and grow even.

Temperature conditions. The normal adequate temperature for eggplant seedlings is 20-25 degrees. Therefore, it is necessary to fence off the plants from drafts.

Watering. Eggplants, although they do not like aridity, do not need to breed rivers-lakes either. It is for this reason that we water the soil after we have taken the earth for a sample with our finger. If the surface is dry, then it is time to water. Small seedlings are watered a little, large ones more. The water temperature is 22 degrees, not less, because because of the cold water, the roots will develop and absorb nutrients poorly.

Personal life boundaries. Moving the containers away from each other depends on the growth of the plants. It is necessary to move the cups apart so that the leaves do not touch. If everything is in a heap, then the eggplants will stretch.

Preventive measures

Good healthy seedlings, which were grown under optimal conditions, have developed a strong immunity to diseases and viruses. To hedge against the fungus and enemies, it is necessary to use the preparations "Fitosporin", "Fitoverm", according to the recipe.

Growing eggplant: feeding seedlings

Top dressing must be started when 2-4 true leaves have appeared, this is if the eggplants are planted without picking. If you made a pick, then you need to feed the plants 10 days after it was carried out. The first feeding must be diluted with a large volume in order to avoid scalding of the plant root system. Top dressing can be done with the following complex mixtures: Fertika Lux, Gumi Kuznetsova, Agricola. Strictly follow the recipe specified in the instructions.

Gardeners recommend the "Athlete" feeding complex, because it is a good helper for green mass collection of stems and leaves. If prepared soil was bought for seedlings in the store, already saturated with useful substances, then feeding may not be required.

Here you need to look at the appearance of the plant: if it grows as it should, it has a strong stem, green leaves, then it is not necessary to feed.

Top dressing that you can do yourself.

Mineral fertilizer for the first feeding: 1 g of potassium, 1 teaspoon of wood ash, 0.5 teaspoon of saltpeter, 4 g of superphosphate to dissolve in 1 liter of water.

The second dressing is applied 10 days after the first time. This time we fertilize with organic fertilizer. Solution: bird droppings, water in a ratio of 1:15. Withstand 1-3 days and water.

7 days before planting the plants in the soil, it is fed with superphosphate. Plus, it is recommended to start hardening 7 days before planting. You can temper periodically: for 5, 10, 15 minutes, the seedlings are taken out into the open air.

Experienced Tips for Great Eggplant Seedlings

When planting plants, do not compact the soil, it must be moist, loose, air must penetrate into it.

Adequate temperature conditions for seeds to germinate are 25-30 degrees.

While the seeds are in the greenhouse, they do not need to be watered.

Younger seedlings tolerate picking better.

Temperature conditions below 15 degrees are prohibited - eggplants do not tolerate cold.

Eggplants, ready for planting, already have ten or more true leaves (the age of seedlings is from 65 days).

Before planting in a permanent place, you need to make foliar top dressing with Epin-Extra.

Here is all the information about eggplant seedlings. Use it, and you will be assured of a rich harvest.