The productivity of pepper depends on several factors: the quality and biological capabilities of the variety, the correct preparation of seeds for germination and compliance with agricultural technology for growing crops. In this article we will consider only one aspect - the effect of soaking on germination and yield.
Pepper seeds Opinions differ among vegetable growers. Some say that you can easily do without soaking, while others insist on carrying out this preparatory operation. Which one is right? Oddly enough, both sides are right, but only if certain conditions are met. If you live in warm regions of our country, then the date of planting the pepper is open ground is not critical; there is plenty of time for the fruit to ripen. Soaking seeds speeds up the emergence of seedlings; this is important only for regions with cold climatic conditions.
Timing for sowing seeds for seedlings Experienced gardeners advise not to be lazy and soak the seeds in all cases. It takes little time, but the effect is very positive. It is recommended to soak the seeds of both sweet and hot peppers.
When and why you need to soak seeds
The process can be done without preparation, but in this case the effect of such actions is significantly reduced. The quantitative and qualitative indicator of the pepper harvest depends on the careful adherence to the recommended technology. Despite the fact that the process consists of several operations, preparation cannot be called troublesome.
Soaking seeds correctly
Practical advice. Seeds of hot and sweet peppers quickly reduce their germination rate; after just a year, this figure can drop by about half. Conclusion - never take them “in reserve” and use the services of only trusted stores.Responsible sellers carry out pre-sale preparation, treat seeds with antifungal drugs, provide microelements, growth stimulants, etc. There should be information about this on the packaging; such seeds do not require additional training before soaking. But this does not apply to seeds collected independently from ripened fruits. Such material may be contaminated with spores of pathogenic fungi and various bacteria; their germination rates are unclear. As a result, the pepper harvest obtained at the end of the season will bring disappointment instead of joy.
Fitosporin-M (antifungal drug)
This question interests many vegetable growers. It seems that it will be clear which seeds have sprouted and which have not. But not everything is so simple, with the help of soaking you can:
Seed preparation
After preparation, seedlings will grow much faster
Checking seed germination before soaking
First, you should check the germination of the seeds; this is done in the old proven way. You need to dissolve 30–40 grams in a liter of water. salt. Throw all the pepper seeds into this solution and wait about 5-7 minutes. Those seeds that have sunk to the bottom of the container have a normal embryo and can be used for further sowing. Everything that floats on the surface should be thrown away without regret. Quality seeds should be washed in warm running water. Imported seeds and hybrid varieties are not tested using this method.
We discard the floating seeds. At the same time as checking germination, the seeds need to be calibrated. The smallest and largest ones need to be removed; medium-sized seeds are left for sowing. During calibration, it won’t hurt to once again pay attention to their fullness; hollow ones are unsuitable for sowing.
Preparing seeds for soaking
During preparation you need to perform several operations.Etching
Seeds should be treated with any disinfectant solution. It is best to use a 1% solution of potassium permanganate, but currently finding this drug is quite problematic.
Potassium permangantsovka
- Firstly, it is sold only with a doctor’s prescription. Secondly, not all pharmacies sell it.
Seed disinfectionAnother way is to treat the seeds with phytosporin. It is sold in specialized stores without restrictions; you need to prepare a solution at the rate of four drops per 200 ml of water. Fitosporin – effective drug from natural bacteria Bacillus subtilis, destroys pathogenic fungi and pathogens. It is completely harmless to people. Pepper seeds with such preparation before soaking give healthy shoots, they are collected big harvests. It must be borne in mind that after disinfection, the seeds should be soaked no later than a day later.
Treatment with microelements
Ash as a stimulant when preparing seeds for planting. Due to this, seed germination increases, sprouts have important elements for development, which allows them to grow in favorable conditions. It is best to sprinkle pepper with ordinary wood ash, it contains more than 30 essential microelements.
Treatment with growth stimulants
It is advisable to treat the seeds with growth stimulants. There is a sufficient selection of them in stores, you can buy any, they all do their job perfectly. Seed treatment should be done according to the instructions recommended by the manufacturer.
Biological product "Phytospectr"
Phytospectrum - dissolve 10 drops in a glass of water and hold the seeds for 30 minutes
Practical advice. Most drugs for disinfection or growth stimulation must be diluted in water to achieve the required concentration. As a rule, the number of drops per 100 ml of water is indicated. It is better to measure with a pipette. If it is not there, then you can use a syringe without a needle.Once the seeds are completely prepared, you can start soaking them.
Soaking the seeds
For soaking you need to prepare water. The city water supply should be left for at least a day, during which time the chlorine will be removed from it. But to increase the effect of soaking seeds, it is better to use melt water. You can prepare it in two ways.
Collecting snow
We purify the water and freeze it
Saucer with water Step 2. Soak a small piece of cloth in water, it is better if it is natural material. If the cloth could not absorb all the water, then the excess should be drained. The plate must be empty.
Wet the gauze Step 3. Place the pepper seeds on a damp cloth and use a match or toothpick to adjust their position. Seeds should only be placed separately, and not in “two layers”. If you have several varieties of pepper, then you need to cook for each separate place soaking. Should not be placed on one plate various varieties, your tags may get lost over time and it will become impossible to understand which variety is which.
Place the seeds on cheesecloth Step 4. Cover the seeds with the edges of a cloth, place it in a plate and stretch the film. If there is no film, then the plate can be placed in plastic bag suitable size.
The container with seeds is covered with film Step 5. Place the plate with the seeds in a warm place.
Important. To speed up germination, the temperature should not be lower than +25°C. Maximum +30°C. At low temperatures, the germination time increases significantly, and if the temperature is below +18°C, the seeds may rot and not germinate at all. Practical advice. Instead of plates, you can use plastic glasses. Glue paper construction tape to them; it is easy to write the name of the pepper varieties on it.After about a day you need to check the seeds. As soon as the sprouts appear, the peppers are transplanted into the soil for growing seedlings or immediately transferred to the garden bed.
The hatched seeds are ready for planting. Before transferring them to the garden bed, the seedlings need to be hardened off. To do this, place them in the refrigerator; the temperature in the chamber should be within +5°C.
Hardening of seeds Transplant the sprouts into a nutrient mixture, do not forget to feed once a week. It is better to use sapropel, vermicompost, and other natural nutrients for these purposes. Preparing seeds for sowing
Aloe juice as a growth stimulator
The photo shows planting pepper seeds in peat tablets. Crops should be placed where there is enough light, preference is given to diffused light. To achieve this effect, you can install aluminum foil and use additional artificial lighting. Pepper does not tolerate picking well; it must be planted immediately in separate containers. After picking, development may slow down for two to three weeks.
Pickled pepper Experienced gardeners claim that peppers grown from soaked seeds get sick less often, are more resistant to weather fluctuations and produce maximum yields. For each seedling bush, you need to prepare a pot with a volume of at least one liter. It's not true that good seedlings can be obtained in small plastic cups, in such conditions the root system will be underdeveloped. And this will definitely have a negative impact on adult plants. And one last thing. The soaking time is selected individually. The main thing is that the seedlings are planted in open ground in a timely manner. Planting too early or too late does not benefit the pepper.
Video - Soaking pepper seeds before sowing
Provides fast, strong and uniform shoots.
Let's figure out how to prepare pepper seeds for planting seedlings step by step.
Checking pepper seeds for germination
Branded pepper seeds have germination within a strict standard: about 80% for first-class seeds and about 60% for second-class seeds. That is, out of 100 pieces, only 60-80 will be viable. This should be taken into account when purchasing seed.
6-6.7 grams contain about 1000 seeds of this crop. Pepper seeds remain viable for two to three years. But I advise you to sow pepper only with fresh seeds.
Many companies carry out seed treatment themselves - disinfect, cover with nutritional and containment. Such seeds should not be subjected to any preparation. Otherwise, you will remove from the skin all the substances designed to protect young plants from diseases and pests.
Therefore, before you begin processing, carefully study the annotations on the bags. If the seeds are already prepared, sow them dry.
Disinfection of pepper seeds
The first stage of working with the seeds of this vegetable is. It is carried out in several ways, but the simplest and most accessible is disinfection in a solution of potassium permanganate.
To do this, dissolve a level teaspoon of this substance in 600 milliliters of hot water. You will receive a 1% solution of potassium permanganate of a deep burgundy, almost black color. The seeds are placed in it for a period of 25 to 30 minutes. Then they are immediately and thoroughly washed under running water.
And don’t be alarmed if the seeds turn black after this treatment - this will not affect their quality in any way!
Pepper seeds also love hot water baths. It’s easier to arrange it - easy.
- Pour water at a temperature of 50-60 degrees into a wide mug.
- Add the seeds, cover the container with a lid and wait 15-20 minutes.
- Good, full-bodied seeds will sink to the bottom of the cup, and hollow, unusable specimens will remain floating on the surface of the water.
This way, you will kill two birds with one stone - you will disinfect the seeds and carry out the research.
You can also steam the seeds in a low soup thermos. Then they are packed in canvas bags and poured into a thermos hot water. The seeds are immersed in a thermos for 20-25 minutes, then dipped in a bowl of cold water for 2-3 minutes.
How to prepare pepper seeds for sowing - soaking
Soaking pepper seeds has three purposes: it helps early awakening, allows you to get healthier and more powerful sprouts, and increases the quantity and quality of fruits in such plants.
- A liter of lukewarm water, 0.5-1 tablespoon, ½ teaspoon of nitrophoska; holding time - 5-6 hours.
- 100 milliliters of water, 10-20 milligrams of potassium humate or 2 milligrams of potassium oxyhumate or 4-6 milligrams succinic acid; holding time - 6 hours.
- A liter of melt or magnetic water, ½ teaspoon of boric acid, a teaspoon of nitrophoska, ½ teaspoon of boric acid; holding time - 8-10 hours.
- 500 milliliters of water, ½ teaspoon of soda or honey; holding time - 8 hours.
- Juice of leaves kept in the refrigerator for 5-7 days; holding time - 7-8 hours.
More more options look for nutrient solutions with my comments about their effectiveness.
And a few more important notes regarding soaking seed:
- place the bowls with seeds in a place where the temperature does not drop below +22 degrees (ideally + 25...28 degrees);
- pour water twice as much as the volume of seeds, but the layer of water above the seeds should not exceed 0.5 centimeters;
- stir the seeds in a saucer every 2-3 hours - this stimulates the flow fresh air and facilitates the removal of metabolic products formed during seed respiration.
How to properly germinate pepper seeds
After processing nutrient solutions Pepper seeds are soaked to swell. After this, you can immediately begin sowing or continue working with seed material.
So, the swollen pepper seeds:
- hardened and sown;
- hardened and germinated;
- or just germinate.
Let's look at how to germinate pepper seeds.
After you have rinsed them of any remaining growing medium, transfer them to damp cotton or linen napkins. Roll the fabric into loose rolls. Place the rolls on a kitchen tray with plastic bags on both sides. Place the tray close to hot battery- it is optimal if the temperature in this place is from +25 to +28 degrees.
This way, enough air will flow to the seeds, but they will lose almost no moisture.
At the optimum temperature, it takes only 12-14 hours for pepper seeds to swell, and sprouts appear in 10-20% of seeds within 3-7 days.
Seeds are sown in pots when 80-90% have acquired white roots.
Do not forget to regularly, at least once a day, rinse the wipes with clean water. This is done so that the seeds do not sour and germinate more easily.
Hardening of pepper seeds
If you harden off pepper seeds, you need to harden off the seedlings themselves!
Watch the video to see how my mother and I grow pepper seedlings from seed treatment to planting under film.
The productivity of pepper depends on several factors: the quality and biological capabilities of the variety, the correct preparation of seeds for germination and compliance with agricultural technology for growing crops. In this article we will consider only one aspect - the effect of soaking on germination and yield.
Opinions differ among vegetable growers. Some say that you can easily do without soaking, while others insist on carrying out this preparatory operation. Which one is right? Oddly enough, both sides are right, but only if certain conditions are met.
If you live in warm regions of our country, then the date of planting peppers in open ground is not critical; there is plenty of time for the fruits to ripen. Soaking seeds speeds up the emergence of seedlings; this is important only for regions with cold climatic conditions.
Experienced gardeners advise not to be lazy and soak the seeds in all cases. It takes little time, but the effect is very positive. It is recommended to soak the seeds of both sweet and hot peppers.
When and why you need to soak seeds
The process can be done without preparation, but in this case the effect of such actions is significantly reduced. The quantitative and qualitative indicator of the pepper harvest depends on the careful adherence to the recommended technology. Despite the fact that the process consists of several operations, preparation cannot be called troublesome.
Practical advice. Seeds of hot and sweet peppers quickly reduce their germination rate; after just a year, this figure can drop by about half. Conclusion - never take them “in reserve” and use the services of only trusted stores.
Responsible sellers carry out pre-sale preparation, treat the seeds with antifungal drugs, provide microelements, growth stimulants, etc. There should be information about this on the packaging; such seeds do not require additional preparation before soaking. But this does not apply to seeds collected independently from ripened fruits. Such material may be contaminated with spores of pathogenic fungi and various bacteria; their germination rates are unclear. As a result, the pepper harvest obtained at the end of the season will bring disappointment instead of joy.
This question interests many vegetable growers. It seems that it will be clear which seeds have sprouted and which have not. But not everything is so simple, with the help of soaking you can:
In addition, as a result of soaking, the most favorable conditions for germination are created for seeds - the process of growing seedlings is accelerated.
Checking seed germination before soaking
First, you should check the germination of the seeds; this is done in the old proven way. You need to dissolve 30–40 grams in a liter of water. salt. Throw all the pepper seeds into this solution and wait about 5-7 minutes. Those seeds that have sunk to the bottom of the container have a normal embryo and can be used for further sowing. Everything that floats on the surface should be thrown away without regret. High-quality seeds should be washed in warm running water. Imported seeds and hybrid varieties are not tested using this method.
At the same time as checking germination, you need to calibrate the seeds. The smallest and largest ones need to be removed; medium-sized seeds are left for sowing. During calibration, it won’t hurt to once again pay attention to their fullness; hollow ones are unsuitable for sowing.
Preparing seeds for soaking
During preparation you need to perform several operations.
Etching
Seeds should be treated with any disinfectant solution. It is best to use a 1% solution of potassium permanganate, but currently finding this drug is quite problematic.
- Firstly, it is sold only by prescription.
- Secondly, not all pharmacies sell it.
No potassium permanganate is not a problem; you can use hydrogen peroxide or boric acid. The seeds are kept in a 2–3% solution of hydrogen peroxide for no more than seven minutes, removed and washed. The boric acid solution should contain a teaspoon of concentrate per 200 ml of water, the pickling duration should not exceed three hours.
Another way is to treat the seeds with phytosporin. It is sold in specialized stores without restrictions; you need to prepare a solution at the rate of four drops per 200 ml of water. Fitosporin is an effective preparation made from natural bacteria Bacillus subtilis that destroys pathogenic fungi and pathogens. It is completely harmless to people. Pepper seeds prepared in this way before soaking produce healthy seedlings and large yields are harvested from them. It must be borne in mind that after disinfection, the seeds should be soaked no later than a day later.
Treatment with microelements
Due to this, the germination of seeds increases, the sprouts have important elements for development, which allows them to grow in favorable conditions. It is best to sprinkle pepper with ordinary wood ash; it contains more than 30 essential microelements.
Treatment with growth stimulants
It is advisable to treat the seeds with growth stimulants. There is a sufficient selection of them in stores, you can buy any, they all do their job perfectly. Seed treatment should be done according to the instructions recommended by the manufacturer.
Biological product "Phytospectr" 
Practical advice. Most drugs for disinfection or growth stimulation must be diluted in water to achieve the required concentration. As a rule, the number of drops per 100 ml of water is indicated. It is better to measure with a pipette. If it is not there, then you can use a syringe without a needle.
Once the seeds are completely prepared, you can start soaking them.
Soaking the seeds
For soaking you need to prepare water. The city water supply should be left for at least a day, during which time the chlorine will be removed from it. But to increase the effect of soaking seeds, it is better to use melt water. You can prepare it in two ways.
It is believed that such water has a beneficial effect on seeds. It is from melt water that they begin to awaken in nature.
Step 1. Pour water into a shallow plate or other container. The size of the plate should correspond to the number of seeds. If you have several varieties of peppers, you will have to prepare a separate plate for each.
Step 2. Soak a small piece of cloth in water, preferably a natural material. If the cloth could not absorb all the water, then the excess should be drained. The plate must be empty.
Step 3. Place the pepper seeds on a damp cloth and use a match or toothpick to adjust their position. Seeds should only be placed separately, and not in “two layers”. If you have several varieties of pepper, then you need to prepare a separate soaking area for each. You should not place different varieties on one plate; your labels may get lost over time and it will become impossible to understand which variety is which.
Step 4. Cover the seeds with the edges of a cloth, place it in a plate and stretch the film. If there is no film, then the plate can be placed in a plastic bag of a suitable size.
The container with seeds is covered with film
Step 5. Place the plate with the seeds in a warm place.
Important. To speed up germination, the temperature should not be lower than +25°C. Maximum +30°C. At low temperatures, the germination time increases significantly, and if the temperature is below +18°C, the seeds may rot and not germinate at all.
Practical advice. Instead of plates, you can use plastic glasses. Glue paper construction tape to them; it is easy to write the name of the pepper varieties on it.
After about a day you need to check the seeds. As soon as the sprouts appear, the peppers are transplanted into the soil for growing seedlings or immediately transferred to the garden bed.
Before transferring to the garden bed, the seedlings need to be hardened off. To do this, place them in the refrigerator; the temperature in the chamber should be within +5°C.
Transplant the sprouts into a nutrient mixture, do not forget to feed once a week. It is better to use sapropel, vermicompost, and other natural nutrients for these purposes.
Very important. The first shoots do not like drafts very much. You need to control the soaking process indoors when closed windows, eliminate the possibility of drafts.
Experienced plant growers advise using one of the following soaking schemes.
The soaking process lasts quite a long time; depending on the variety, you will have to wait up to 25 days for the emergence of seedlings. A lot depends on soaking, but not everything. What should you do next to make the future harvest happy?
Seeds are transplanted as soon as sprouts appear; it is better to use peat tablets; if they are not available, then use ready-made soil mixtures.
Crops should be placed where there is enough light, preference is given to diffused light. To achieve this effect, you can install aluminum foil and use additional artificial lighting. Pepper does not tolerate picking well; it must be planted immediately in separate containers. After picking, development may slow down for two to three weeks.
Experienced gardeners claim that peppers grown from soaked seeds get sick less often, are more resistant to weather fluctuations and produce maximum yields. For each seedling bush, you need to prepare a pot with a volume of at least one liter. It is not true that good seedlings can be obtained in small plastic cups; in such conditions the root system will be underdeveloped. And this will definitely have a negative impact on adult plants.
And one last thing. The soaking time is selected individually. The main thing is that the seedlings are planted in open ground in a timely manner. Planting too early or too late does not benefit the pepper.
Video - Soaking pepper seeds before sowing
The qualitative and quantitative indicator of the yield of any agricultural crop depends on how carefully the seeds are prepared for the upcoming sowing. This process is quite troublesome, as it can include many stages: calibration, disinfection, heating, panning, germination, hardening, bubbling and stratification. The list is quite extensive, but we will consider only the process of soaking the seeds of the most common crop -.
Why are pepper seeds soaked?
Many people wonder what is the purpose of soaking seeds? This is done in order to:
- from the entire mass, select those suitable for sowing: if the seed has sprouted, it means it is suitable for planting;
- choose the strongest and largest sprouts among the sprouted seeds, which will have a good effect on the future;
- future seedlings were less susceptible to disease.
Soaking the seeds of any crop, including pepper, before planting provides more favorable conditions for their germination.
Imported seeds and hybrids, which are designated F1 on the packaging, are not subject to this procedure.
As a rule, such seeds are treated with a special gel containing pesticides. Despite this, some gardeners still soak the seeds of hybrid peppers, and the pepper grows beautifully. Therefore, do as your instinct tells you. If you decide to experiment, try it, what if your efforts lead to a good result? Just keep in mind that you cannot sow seeds of varieties and hybrids in one container: seeds of varietal peppers germinate much faster than hybrid ones.
The germination process should begin at the end of February or at the very beginning of March. If there is still snow, collect it in some container and melt it.
It is best to germinate seeds in melt water, as it has a special “living” structure. Melt water promotes activation biological processes occurring in the seed and stimulates its growth.
Now let’s do some steps that will help significantly speed up the process of sprouting.
Preparing pepper seeds for soaking
Experienced gardeners advise treating the seeds with a solution of potassium permanganate before germination. It will help you get rid of harmful microorganisms and some diseases that accumulate in seeds and begin to appear during plant growth.
To do this, dilute 1 gram of potassium permanganate in a glass of water and dip the seeds into the resulting solution (it should be slightly pink). After 20-22 minutes, carefully drain the water, covering the glass with gauze to retain the seeds in the glass. After this, the seeds should be rinsed and laid out on paper to dry.
Only “homemade” seeds, those collected with one’s own hands, should be subjected to this procedure. Purchased seed material usually goes on sale already processed. chemicals and you just need to soak it in water.
After the seeds have been disinfected, they need to be warmed up by placing them on the windowsill in sunny place or placing it in water heated to 40 degrees. Some gardeners keep seeds in a thermos with warm water. Under the influence of more than high temperatures Pepper seeds begin to activate their ability to grow, which significantly increases germination.
Preparations are over, let's start germination
Carefully place the seeds on the surface of a napkin or gauze folded in several layers and cover the top. Moisten the surface well with water, press lightly and place in some container with a lid. Place this container in a warm place.
Every day, while the seeds are sprouting, open the lid for ventilation. The seed germination process will take a long time, so you should be patient. Different kinds peppers sprout in different terms, some even require at least 22-25 days.
Keep containers with seeds in a warm room where the temperature does not drop below +24 degrees. On heating device It should not be placed, as the top soil layer dries out quickly and the delicate root system of the pepper may be damaged. It is better to keep the crops on the windowsill on the south side.
As soon as the seeds have sprouted, they need to be replanted. To do this, use peat tablets or regular plant pots. Be sure to plant sprouted seeds on time, otherwise they will grow into gauze or a cotton pad and then are easily injured when replanting.
Plant sprouted seeds in pre-prepared soil. Take small containers or pots, fill them with soil and carefully plant the sprouted seeds at some distance so that they do not interfere with each other as they grow. Containers with crops should be placed in a place where there is diffused light. Seedlings should be watered periodically, not allowing the top layer of soil to dry out.
Experienced gardeners note that it is much easier for those grown from soaked seeds. Plants are less susceptible to disease, grow better and produce a good harvest.
Nature has endowed seeds with a powerful thirst for life, but the strength of their germination does not always ensure smooth, beautiful shoots. Pepper embryos can and should be helped to hatch before planting using the soaking procedure. Find out from the article and the photos attached to it how to do this correctly and in what time frame to provide yourself with strong seedlings.
Why do you need to soak seeds?
Unlike crops whose seeds germinate on their own and very quickly: wheat, barley, pepper does not have high germination energy. Its seeds will hatch unevenly and not all of them. As a result, the vegetable grower will receive uneven seedlings of different ages, which are inconvenient to work with. Some seedlings, in addition, will almost certainly be affected by fungal and bacterial diseases. Therefore, there are three reasons and, accordingly, technologies for pre-soaking pepper seeds:
- in disinfecting solutions for disinfection;
- in growth stimulants to accelerate awakening;
- in water to reject weak ones and save individual seedling containers.
Attention! Pepper has a negative attitude towards damaging root system picks, so for hatched seedlings it is advisable to prepare peat cups or tablets.
Soaking seeds for disinfection
The drug for freeing pepper seed shells from bacteria and fungal spores is selected based on price and availability. More often than others, they use ordinary potassium permanganate (a pale, slightly pink solution) and the microbiological preparation “Fitosporin”, which perfectly suppresses the growth of fungi.
It is convenient to soak in disposable plastic cups. Preliminarily on outer wall Each cup is glued to a piece masking tape, on which the name of the variety is written. Comparing the name on the package and on the glass, pour the seeds onto the bottoms and completely fill them with the Fitosporin working solution, which is prepared according to the instructions on the package.
Pepper seeds are kept in disinfectant solution about an hour, after which it is washed. To do this, pour the solution from each glass through a strainer, add a small amount of water, shake and drain again.
Attention! Seed purchased in a store has already been treated by the manufacturer, so the disinfection step can be skipped.
Treatment of seeds with growth stimulants
“Fitosporin” itself has a certain stimulating effect, however, to complete the effect, it is advisable to use one of the following drugs:
- "Zircon";
- "Energen";
- "Epin-extra";
- "NV-101".
Pepper seeds are poured with the prepared solution in the same cups in which they were disinfected. The exposure time depends on the chosen drug: for example, for Zircon it is 3-4 hours. After this time, the liquid is drained again through a strainer, but the seeds are not washed.
Many gardeners speak well of aloe juice as a growth stimulant. The juice must be prepared in advance. To do this, cut and wash several leaves of the plant, wrap them in paper and put them in the refrigerator for two weeks. The juice extracted from the cold-treated leaves is squeezed, diluted in half with water and poured over the seeds for a day.
The final stage is soaking the seeds in water
The most important thing when soaking pepper seeds in water is not to let them rot, since they will take several days to germinate. It is important to follow the rule: there should be no puddles in the germination container.
The most convenient equipment for pre-soaking is cotton pads and a plastic cake container. The discs are soaked in water and lightly squeezed. Seeds are placed on one disk, distributed evenly and covered with a second disk. The resulting “sandwich” is lightly pressed down so that the damp cotton wool comes into contact with the seeds, and placed on the bottom of the container.
The filled container is placed in a T-shirt bag, tied and hung in the bathroom near the heated towel rail, which will provide warmth and humidity. Every day the structure is opened and ventilated for 5-10 minutes.
Attention! The seedlings need to be transplanted into peat tablets as soon as roots appear. Otherwise, they will grow into the cotton fibers.
Soaking the seeds is a desirable procedure when growing peppers. It allows you to get an early and strong harvest with minimum consumption individual seedling containers.
Preparing pepper seeds for seedlings: video