To obtain a good harvest of onions, many gardeners use sets grown from seeds as planting material. Simple preparation and processing before planting will help to get friendly shoots and create protection for the crop from pests or diseases. The measures taken will also affect the growing season and head formation.
Before planting and sowing in open ground, onion seeds must be prepared in a special way - disinfect or pickle, trim the top, treat with phytosporin against fungus or to reduce shooting.
Do I need to cook onion seeds before planting in open ground
Seasoned gardeners remember the times when there was no talk of preparing onions for planting. It was believed that onions are a plant enough unpretentious, not requiring special attention... They managed only with a bulkhead to remove damaged bulbs.
With the current ecology and vagaries of the climate in different regions, it is not worth dreaming that culture will grow by itself.
In addition, each stage of the preparatory process endows the planting material with advantageous qualities:
- stimulating growth;
- destruction of harmful bacteria by disinfection;
- strengthening immunity (resistance to a number of diseases and pests);
- prevention of turnip rotting;
- increased resistance to weather disasters.
Harvesting a bountiful onion crop depends on more than just proper grooming. The lion's share of success depends on the quality of preparation of the seed for planting.
How to pre-sowing seedlings in the spring
You can strengthen the immunity of the sevka to resist pests and diseases by soaking... There are quite a lot of recipes for solutions for the pre-sowing procedure; you can easily make and choose a convenient option.
Popular components include:
- salt;
- potassium permanganate;
- copper sulfate;
- baking soda;
- ammonia;
- Birch tar.
The main enemy of the bow is onion fly... Treatment of the seedlings with saline will help prevent its invasion of the beds. The same way will save the culture from thrips and ticks.
And in the fight against fungal spores, it has proven itself well potassium permanganate... Soaking in a weak solution will help destroy microorganisms on the planting material, the main thing is to drain the solution in time.
To obtain fast shoots, various growth stimulants are used. Pre-planting treatment accelerates the germination of shoots by 3-6 days. Among the effective means - solutions of zircon and humate, "Energen".
Correct processing
Planting material begins to prepare for the planting season in the fall.
During its storage, the temperature regime should be observed and the humidity in the room should not be increased. Good ventilation or regular ventilation prevent spoilage of the set. In the spring, just before planting, the onions undergo a comprehensive processing.
From pests and diseases
Sevok for planting is purchased or used its own, grown from nigella seeds. It is impossible to visually determine the presence or absence of fungal spores and other harmful bacteria in it, therefore it is recommended to carry out disinfection procedure.
There are a lot of drugs and different means that can cope with this task. Each of them has its own advantages and disadvantages, which must be taken into account before using.
Many gardeners use the old proven method of processing planting material - soak it in a weak solution of potassium permanganate for 20-25 minutes... Another method involves the use of saltpeter (2-3 grams), which is diluted in a bucket of warm water.
To improve immunity and get rid of harmful bacteria, the usual salt... 5-6 tablespoons of salt are diluted in a bucket of water, after which the set is immersed for 4-5 hours. A little less concentrated salt water is poured over the soil under the beds for the purpose of disinfection.
Do not overuse the amount of salt or frequent use. This will help protect plants from diseases, but it will spoil the soil for a long time. It is recommended to carry out one-time procedures.
Onion will protect against fungal infections by treatment with the drug Fitosporin... Dilute 35 grams in a bucket of water. Fitosporin and the prepared heads are immersed in liquid for 20-30 minutes.
To stimulate growth
In order for the seed to grow quickly and give a good harvest, it is recommended to treat it with growth stimulants before planting. The most accessible and popular way is to use wood ashrich in potassium and natural antiseptics.
Procedure in addition to accelerating growth prevents decay material in the ground. You will need to dilute 250 gr in 5 liters of water. ash, then immerse the onions in the solution for 10 minutes. Next, dry them for 2-3 hours.
The drug effectively copes with the task Epin-Extra... Add 1 capsule to heated water up to 50 degrees. The heads soak time is 10-15 minutes. You can also use other means: Biostim, Silk... The solution is prepared in the proportions indicated in the instructions.
When planting onions before winter with growth stimulants, the material is not processed.
To reduce arrowing
Warming up necessary to prevent early formation of arrows. Some gardeners carry out the procedure under the sun (at a temperature of at least 20 degrees).
Others send the seed (in a cardboard box) to a battery, where, under the influence of heat no more than 40 degrees, the planting material is kept for about 10 hours. It is important not to overexpose or overheat the onion.
If there is no time to warm up, and the planting time has already come, you can pour the senchik onions with hot water (about 50 degrees) for 15 minutes, after which be sure to water it with cold. Such express processing will not completely eliminate the issue of arrows, but will significantly postpone the time of their formation.
When carrying out soaking, it is recommended to immerse the onion in the solution in the grid... On top of it, you need to lay out a small weighting agent so that the sevok does not float. It is impossible to use too heavy objects, as they will damage the integrity of the heads, which will ruin the planting material.
Preparation before processing
The preparatory process consists of the following stages:
- sorting of planting material;
- drying;
- warming up;
- soaking and disinfection;
- drying.
When sorting, it is important not only to remove damaged bulbs, but also to sort out the material suitable for planting. by size.
Large turnips are planted first in the beds, after them the medium ones are sent into the soil, and the smallest ones germinate faster than others, so their turn is the last.
By planting seedlings of approximately the same diameter on the beds, uniform seedling development and feather distillation... In turn, the root crops will form about the same size, which is convenient for subsequent storage.
After the soaking procedures, it is important to rinse the seedlings in clean water, changing it 2-3 times. Few people mention this fact, and inexperienced gardeners miss this stage.
Do I need to trim the top of the onion set before planting
If planting is planned in a small area, then it is rational to supplement the process with cutting the bulbs.
For large plantations, this is difficult to cut due to the large volumes. Removing the top of the head accelerates the germination of the shoot and creates favorable conditions for good vegetation.
In addition, correct pruning makes the soaking procedure more effective; it is much easier for the solution to penetrate between the head scales. Thorough preparation virtually eliminates unpleasant surprises when growing a bulbous crop.
When trimming, do not remove too large a portion of the top. This will provoke decay of the planting material or prevent the onion from releasing greens.
Methods for preplanting onion pruning
When growing onions on a feather from large heads cut off 1/3 of the top... This makes it possible to easily extract the greens when they reach the desired height. If the goal of agricultural technology is to obtain a root crop, then only the tail should be cut off without affecting the white skin.
Some varieties (like Msergey) are pruned on both sides: both top and bottom... This is done to accelerate growth and rapid formation of the root system. Such manipulation gives the result literally the next day, when the process of shoot growth has already begun. On the dry bottom, the roots are formed much later.
According to the reviews of experienced gardeners, in any case, there is a reason to remove the woven part of the top. It is quite difficult for feathers to break through a dense barrier, this is a factor inhibiting vegetation.
Having weighed all the pros and cons of preparing the sevka for planting, we can state with confidence the fact of the need for these procedures... The cost of time and money will be minimal, and the quality of the bulbs and the entire crop increases significantly.
In addition, there is an opportunity to develop your own recipes for processing planting material, share them and the results of their application with all gardeners. If the purpose of growing is to obtain feathers (greens), then preparation is often limited to only sorting.