Growing beets in seedlings is the most recommended way to cultivate this crop. It allows you to bring the harvest closer by 20-30 days, to increase the quality and taste characteristics of the root crop. The entire growing process is not difficult, but requires attention and responsibility. How to grow seedlings and get a rich harvest will be described in the article below.
Selection and preparation of seeds
The end result of growing beets depends on the very initial stage - the choice of planting material and competent preparation, so take this seriously.
Determine a variety that is suitable for cultivation in your area of residence. To do this, study the information on the packaging about zoning. If you make a mistake with the variety, then unfavorable natural conditions will not allow the beets to ripen, and the roots will be unsuitable for human consumption.
In Siberia and the Urals, grow "Cold-resistant", "Merchant", "Ordinary miracle", in the Central region - "Mulatka", "Bordeaux", "Cylinder", etc. The southern district allows you to cultivate almost any variety.
Seeds, especially if they were sold in bulk, received independently or shared by a neighbor, need to be prepared for sowing. To do this, carry out the following activities:
- Calibration.Sort out the planting material, leaving the largest and intact specimens. To check the suitability, pour them into a container of water and leave for 5-10 minutes. Feel free to throw out the seeds that float to the surface - there will be no sense from them, there is no embryo inside, or it is badly damaged.
- Disinfection. Soak the seeds in a slightly pink manganese solution for 15-20 minutes. This is enough time to cope with the infection, but at the same time do not burn the seed. Don't make the solution too saturated - chemical exposure will spoil the seeds. After standing, drain the solution, replacing it with clean warm water. Keep the fruit in it for 4-5 hours.
Instead of manganese, you can use a solution of "Fitosporin", "Maxim", "Vitaros". - Stimulation. Soak beet planting material in any growth stimulator for 4-6 hours. For such a procedure, choose drugs that have several properties: anti-stress, immunomodulating, stimulating. These effects are inherent in "EcoGel", "Epin-extra", "Zircon", "Novosil" and others.
Factory-packed beet seeds do not need preparation. Most often, they have already been calibrated and processed with special disinfecting and stimulating compounds. You can immediately start germination or sowing.
After completing the key preparatory measures, dry the seedlings until the flowability property is restored. Beet seeds can be germinated to shorten germination times. For this:
- Line the saucer with cotton cloth or gauze in several layers.
- Wet the material and spread the seeds over the surface.
- Cover the top with a layer of material and moisten it well by spraying water with a spray bottle.
- Place the container in a warm place (20-22 degrees) and make sure that the fabric does not dry out.
- When the seeds hatch, you can plant them in glasses.
Landing dates
The timing of sowing seeds depends on the growing region. The further south the area, the earlier you can start sowing. To determine the day for sowing, from the planned date of planting seedlings in open ground, count 21-25 days ago.
Do not rush to sow. If the spring is cold, then it will be rash to move the seedlings to a permanent place. From the impact of possible frosts, beets do not grow, but in color. And it is impossible to keep overgrown seedlings in containers for more than 1.5 months.
On average, it is recommended to start sowing beets for seedlings not earlier than April in order to transfer them to open ground with the arrival of May heat.
Soil requirements
Loose, non-acidic soils are preferred for beets. For sowing, purchase a special planting soil or prepare it yourself. It is undesirable to simply take land from the garden - for seedlings you need a healthy, safe and rich soil. The soil from the garden contains weed seeds, possible bacteria and viruses. Its composition and acidity are questionable.
For self-preparation of soil for sowing beets, mix the following ingredients:
- peat - 2 parts;
- humus or compost - 1 part;
- turf - 1 part;
- river sand - 0.5 parts;
- wood ash - 1 part.
Mix the planting mixture well and sift through a sieve to remove coarse fractions. Disinfect the resulting soil using one of the following methods:
- Heat the ground in the oven for 20 minutes at 200 ° C.
- Steam the soil in the double boiler system for an hour.
- Pour boiling water over, allowing time for the water to drain and dry the soil.
- Pour the mixture with a weak solution of potassium permanganate or a solution based on "Fitosporin".
All these actions are aimed at destroying fungal spores, pathogenic microorganisms and pest larvae, making weed seeds unusable.
The choice of container for seedlings
For growing beet seedlings, plastic cups from yogurt, sour cream, cottage cheese, cut PET containers, peat tablets and pots are suitable. It is better not to use wooden troughs due to complex disinfection, which means an increased risk of infection with mycosis or other fungal diseases.
Tanks for planting must have a wall height of at least 10 cm and a drainage hole. Wash the container and treat it with a manganese solution, then dry it thoroughly.
Growing methods
Each gardener has his own ways of cultivating beet seedlings - time-tested, reliable. Let's consider the most popular ones.
Warm bed
This method involves growing seedlings in the open air or in an unheated greenhouse. First, organize a warm garden bed:
- Dig a pit according to the planned size and depth - 30-35 cm.
- Cover it with manure, straw, rotted vegetation (compost) halfway.
- Pour a layer of soil on top of the organic matter so that the height of the garden bed is 35-40 cm. To preserve its shape, make a fence from a board, "picket fence" from plastic bottles and other materials.
Overheating of the lower layer will occur with the release of heat, which in turn will warm the soil layer. The height of the bed will protect the planting from the cold of the earth.
Sowing seeds:
- Make rows for the seeds. If the soil is dense, heavy, then go deeper by 15-20 mm, for light soil, the depth of the grooves should be 30-40 mm. Observe a distance of 25 cm between rows.
- Spread the seeds 10-12 cm apart.
- Backfill the rows by tamping down lightly.
- Water the planting.
At first, to avoid freezing of seedlings, cover the planting with a film. On warm days, leave the edge ajar to allow the young plants to be ventilated and tempered. When the air temperature reaches 18-20 ° C, and at night it is above 7-10 ° C, you can plant the beets in the main place.
In cups
Experienced summer residents prefer to grow beet seedlings in individual containers. This facilitates planting maintenance and less injuries to young plants during transplantation. Cultivation in peat pots or tablets is especially effective. The transfer of seedlings is carried out together with the container. Peat nutrients reach the crop root system even after transplanting into open ground.
Sowing works are reduced to the following points:
- Fill the glasses with soil, not reaching the surface of 1 cm.
- Spill the soil with thawed or settled water at room temperature.
- Make a hole in the middle 2.5-4 cm deep.
- Place 2-3 seedlings in the hole and cover them with earth.
- Moisten the soil using a sprayer.
In "snails"
The "snail" method of growing seedlings is gaining popularity. It is especially relevant when you need to save space and soil. The disadvantage of this method is the impossibility of cultivating young plants before transplanting into the ground. Seedlings must be dived.
Sowing seeds:
- Cut strips of polyethylene or other dense material 1 m long and 10-12 cm wide.
- Spread the bases on a flat surface, and sprinkling the earth on top, roll the tapes into a roll. Tie them with rope to keep their shape.
- Place the snails upright on a tray and sprinkle them gently with warm water.
- Add soil to the rows as needed.
- Spread the beet seeds along the earthen spiral grooves, deepening them into the soil. Leave a distance of 4-6 cm between copies.
The "snail" method can be used without the use of soil. Instead, toilet paper folded in several layers and moistened is suitable. At the same time, the seeds are laid out on it immediately, until the base folds into a spiral.
Growing conditions
To get healthy seedlings of beets, you need to look after them, keeping conditions at optimal levels. Simple agro-technical measures, performed on time, will allow young plants to strengthen their immunity, which means they quickly gain strength and grow during transplantation.
Illumination
Seedlings need sunlight for proper vegetation. Place the container with crops on the windowsill on the south side of the house. Daylight hours should not be shorter than 12-14 hours. In a long cloudy period, supplement the illumination of young crops using phytolamps or fluorescent lamps.
Humidity
Drought is stressful for beet seedlings, so do not let the soil dry out. Moisten the soil in time, while avoiding excess moisture. It causes rotting of the root system, stops the growth and development of young plants.
Use room temperature melt or well water for irrigation. Chlorinated water can only be used after settling.
Temperature
The optimum temperature for germination of beet seeds is 18-21 ° C. After emergence of solid shoots, reduce the temperature to 15-17 ° C.
Hardening
Hardening increases the immunity of seedlings to the effects of environmental conditions (temperature changes, sun, wind, etc.), preparing them for planting in open ground. You need to start activities no earlier than 2 weeks before disembarking in the garden. Perform the procedure gradually:
- On the first day, lower the room temperature by 2-3 degrees.
- For the next couple of days, leave the window ajar during the day, closing it at night.
- For 4-5 days, leave the room for airing and at night. You can take seedlings to a closed balcony.
- A week after the start of hardening, take the container with young beets outside, if warm weather permits.
- From day 10, you can no longer bring the seedlings, but leave them on an open balcony or outside.
Take your time when quenching. Do not change the conditions too abruptly - this can lead to plant death.
Top dressing
The amount of beet dressing and their concentrated composition depend on the initial quality of the soil. The more valuable and richer the planting mixture, the less additional nutrition the seedlings need.
The first feeding is applied not earlier than the formation of the first two leaves. At this stage, water the culture with an infusion of chicken manure or apply any complex fertilizer.
The second feeding is carried out after the pick. Use complex formulations of fertilizers containing additional elements - boron, copper, molybdenum. A good effect is given by spilling the surface of the soil with ash or dusting the plants with it.
A simple option for feeding will be watering plants with liquid fertilizers (Fertika, Sotka, Krepysh, etc.). Use them strictly according to the instructions. Remember that micronutrient surpluses are just as negative for seedlings as deficiencies.
When to dive seedlings?
Diving is the transfer of seedlings from a common container to separate containers or transplanting plants into a greenhouse. Planting planting material on a bed is not considered a pick. Such works are carried out at the stage of cotyledon leaves formation. Diving allows:
- to develop optimally for each instance of beet seedlings;
- prevent tangling of plant roots;
- make care for seedlings individual;
- discard weak plants.
When diving beets, you do not need to shorten the root! It is enough to thin out the planting, leaving a distance of 7 cm between the specimens. If you plan to transplant the plucked plants, then remove them after watering, gently helping with a wooden stick.
Growing seedlings in a greenhouse
Growing seedling beet plants, like their cultivation at home, requires:
- Garden and soil preparation. Most often, warm beds are used in greenhouses. The soil in them is gradually enriched with nutrients, but every 4-5 years the organic pillow needs to be changed. The quality of the soil before planting should be close to that necessary for beets: looseness, low acidity, rich composition.
- Seed preparation. Selection of the best specimens, disinfection and soaking in stimulating compounds.
- Sowing. Follow the scheme: the distance between the seedlings is 5 cm, the row spacing is 12-15 cm.
- Thinning. Since several plants grow from the seed, you need to leave the strongest and healthiest, and remove or transplant the rest.
- Agrotechnical measures and maintaining optimal conditions for growth and development.This includes loosening and weeding, watering beets, feeding, providing light and temperature conditions.
When the seedlings reach a height of 30-35 cm, and two pairs of true leaves are formed, it can be transplanted into open ground or left in a greenhouse until fully ripe. The greenhouse method does not require diving.
Transplanting beet seedlings into open ground
You can transplant seedlings to a permanent place as soon as 3-4 true leaves have formed on the plants and weather conditions allow. Follow these tips:
- Choose the right place - it should be a sunny bed located on the plain. Dig up the earth on it in advance, apply fertilizers and alkalizing compounds.
- Planting seedlings in cloudy weather or in light rain. Otherwise, postpone work until the evening so that the sun's rays do not cause additional stress.
- Make the holes so deep that the spine fits completely into it, and the stem does not need to be bent.
- Cover the beet bed with non-woven fabric before rooting, loosen the soil and moisten the ground.
What difficulties may arise?
Growing seedlings is straightforward. But without proper care, some difficulties can arise. Let's analyze them in more detail.
Seedlings stretched out
Pulling seedlings occurs when there is a lack of light. To fix this, thinning the planting in the general box will help. If young plants are planted in individual containers, then as they grow, you need to move the glasses away from each other so that there is no shading of the seedlings. Rotate the container periodically on the windowsill to avoid curvature of the stem and one-sided development of the seedling.
Pests have started
Pests appear under favorable conditions for them: waterlogging, thickened plantings, weeds, dense soil. If you follow agricultural techniques, then infection of seedlings has a minimal likelihood. When attacking pests, it is necessary to treat the plantings with special means as soon as possible.
Insignificant pest infestation can be overcome with folk methods:
- soap-ash solution;
- infusion of onion peel;
- tobacco dust, etc.
If the pest attack is large-scale, then use chemicals so as not to waste time.
Growing beets in seedlings allows you to bring the ripening period closer and improve the quality of the crop. You can grow seedlings in several ways. Agricultural technology for each of them is identical, with the difference in the need for a dive. So the plants will be strong and healthy, and the harvest from them will be plentiful and tasty.