Sweet and juicy carrots are rightfully considered the queen of autumn. This tasty and healthy root vegetable is enjoyed by many growers and consumers. The yield and quality of the grown vegetable directly depends on the quality of the seeds. How to prepare seeds for planting? What carrot seeds to choose and how to prepare them for planting?
It does not matter in which region it is planned to plant in the ground - the Moscow region or in the Urals, proper seed treatment is very important so that they can sprout well and be stored correctly, as well as to increase yields.
How to choose the right carrot variety
To get a high yield of excellent fruits, it is necessary to carefully approach the issue of the choice of seed. In order not to get lost in the huge variety of seed choices, you should first prioritize, find out which varieties for harvesting you need: early, mid-season or late.
For growing on carrots on your site, you should choose zoned varieties.
After all, varieties that in certain climatic conditions will give high yields and sweet fruits of excellent quality, in an unsuitable climate will look and bear fruit completely differently, may not be productive. Both the picture on the package and the promises on the other side of the pack will differ significantly from the result, which will be deplorable.
So early varieties of carrots are suitable for growing in central Russia and in the southern regions, but early varieties are categorically not suitable for growing in Siberia.
Early
To the best early varieties include: Alenka, Boltex, Mango, Tushen, Artek, Shantane.
Varieties for planting in the Urals
For growing in the Urals suitable varieties: Anastasia, Blues, Queen of Autumn, Tenderness, Samson, Namur.
In the Siberian District
And here for Siberia it is better to pick up late-ripening carrot varieties. The best zoned varieties for Siberia are: Vita Longa, Sentyabrina, Canada, Cascade, Topaz, Khrusta.
Expiry date of seeds
Seeds of all vegetable varieties have their own expiration dates. For carrots, these periods are average. Carrot seeds retain their germination within 3-4 years.
When buying seed, it is necessary to carefully monitor the timing of their packaging, because quite often not sold seeds go on sale from year to year, and as a result, the buyer can plant a vegetable in spring, but never wait for the shoots.
If you collect them yourself, so as not to forget about the timing, you can simply sign the package with the seed. The storage conditions of seeds are also of great importance. It's best to keep them in foil bagswhich should be carefully sealed.
The crop that was stored incorrectly can lose its properties, even without waiting for the end of the germination period. To protect yourself from the risks of sowing worthless seeds, you need to consider them well. If the seeds are wrinkled, dry and warm and unsightly gray in color, then they are unlikely to germinate.
To test the seeds for germination, you should also soak them with water, unusable empty seeds will float up.
How to soak seeds before planting outdoors
Once you are convinced that the seeds are suitable for planting and the material is suitable, the next step is to soak them.
This procedure is necessary in order to to improve seed quality, to make them stronger, disinfected and to accelerate the germination process. Indeed, the nuclei contain a large amount of essential oils, which significantly inhibit germination.
Immediately before soaking the kernel, you need disinfect... To do this, they are dipped for 15 minutes in a fairly strong solution of potassium permanganate.
You can do without manganese: for this you need to pour boiling water into a thermos and lower the kernels there in gauze bags, leave them in the thermos for 30 minutes, after which the seeds are immediately cooled in cool water.
Seed processing in vodka
The technology of vodka soaking of carrot seeds before planting them is very popular among many summer residents and gardeners. Vodka is a good solvent for essential oils, which significantly accelerates the germination process.
To use this method, you just need to put the kernels in gauze bags and soak them in vodka for 15 minutes. After that, they are thoroughly washed in clean water several times. After that, you can safely proceed to planting in open ground.
Soaking in biologically active solutions and growth stimulants
Biologically active solutions will greatly accelerate germination and the harvest can be obtained much earlier.
Such solutions can be prepared independently:
- Solution wood ash... Two tablespoons of the sol are dissolved in 1 liter of water, and let it brew for a day, then the seeds are lowered there in gauze bags for three hours.
- Solution aloe juice... Cut off the two lower leaves of an adult aloe plant, wrap them in a dark dry cloth and leave them in the refrigerator for two days. Then the leaves are crushed and poured with 1 liter of cooled boiling water, this solution is kept for a day and then gauze bags with kernels are placed in it and left for a day. Then they are dried to a crumbly state.
- Solution mullein as a biostimulant can be used if you are not afraid of the aesthetic side of the issue. In the solution of the fermented mullein, bags with inoculum are lowered for a day.
- You can buy ready-made biologically active solutions in any specialized store. These include solution Epin, it can not only increase germination, but also prepare seeds for extreme weather conditions. Zircon also proved to be highly effective, it contains echinacea extract. Solution Humate also no less effective, it consists of potassium and sodium salts of humic acid.
- You can use a complex fertilizer (nitrophosphate). To do this, dissolve one tablespoon of fertilizer in one liter of water and soak the seeds.
- Solution boric acid also used to process seed.
Pelleting
The pelleting process is immersion of seeds in a protective shell... As a dragee mixture, you can use flour, gelatin solution, brewed starch.
To create a protective film on the seeds, you need to immerse the swollen kernels in the selected mixture and shake them thoroughly, stir for 10 hours. Then the pelleted kernels are sprinkled with wood ash.
After such a procedure, the seeds enveloped in a film and increase in size... After the procedure, the kernels should be thoroughly dried and made sure that they do not stick together.
Such seed is much more convenient to use, in view of their larger size
.
What to soak for fast germination
Bubbling
Sparging is also very effective and fast. To accomplish it, you need to soak the seeds in water through which oxygen is passed. It is necessary to carry out bubbling for carrot seed at least 18-24 hours.
As a bubbler, you can successfully use aquarium compressor... Bubbling can be done in ordinary water, or potassium salts can be added to the water. Potassium nitrate and potassium phosphate will not only speed up the process of seed growth, but also add energy and cold resistance to the seedlings.
Folk remedies
People's centuries-old experience recommends, in addition to wood ash and aloe juice, to use for soaking seeds melt water... Such water is completely different from its usual structure, it has a huge positive energy, which it will pass on to future fruits.
You can also use a solution baking soda... It will also speed up the germination processes, and additionally disinfect the seed.
For soaking and germinating seeds, use only purified water, or spring water, but in no case should you use untreated tap water.
Common mistakes during preparation and seeding
When preparing seeds, vegetable growers and gardeners often make mistakes:
- The pelleted seeds are left for sowing for several years. This is prohibited, the seeds in the shell retain their germination capacity only for one year.
- Seeds are poorly dried after soaking.
- Overexpose seeds in solutionsthan contribute to their too rapid germination, even before the period of planting in the soil.
- Do not check expiration dates seeds for planting.
- Harvested seeds are stored improperly.
- They do not pay attention to the appearance of the seeds. If the seed is wrinkled, of a dirty dull color, then no amount of germination, growth stimulation, pelleting and barbating will bring such seed back to life.
- Do not check seeds against zoning guidelines. They are trying to grow a crop in the wrong climatic zone.
- Do not comply rules for soaking and germinating seeds.
- Sow the finished seed in unsuitable soil.
Carrots are a very unpretentious crop, the cultivation of which does not require much trouble and effort. The only important point: pre-sowing seed germination. If you follow all the rules and recommendations, you will get an excellent larger yield of juicy, crispy and sweet carrots.