Germination of tomato seeds for seedlings

You can sow tomato seeds for seedlings dry or germinated. Additionally, the grains are pickled, hardened, soaked in a growth stimulator, and someone does without it. There are many planting options. It’s easier, of course, to place the seeds immediately from the pack in the ground, and forget about them. However, in order to achieve good seedlings, it is better to subject the seed material to all stages of processing before germinating tomato seedlings.

What you need to know about choosing seeds

To get a good harvest, tomato seeds must be selected correctly. To do this, several main factors are taken into account:

• All grains will germinate at room conditions, but it is necessary to take into account the region where future tomatoes are grown. For areas with a cold climate, it is optimal to buy seeds of tomato varieties adapted to such conditions.
• Even before buying tomato seeds, you need to decide on the place where the crop is grown. In the southern regions, it is customary to grow tomatoes on open ground, and for cold regions, only a greenhouse can be a place for growing a crop. Most of the bred varieties of tomatoes are universal, that is, they can grow in closed and open beds. But there are tomatoes designed for certain growing conditions. It is unacceptable to plant greenhouse varieties in the garden, and tomatoes intended for open ground in the greenhouse. This threatens with a decrease in yield, poor taste of fruits, and even death of plants.
• When choosing tomato seeds, you need to read on the package what type of bush is inherent in this variety. Tall bushes are called indeterminate. Such tomatoes are better suited for greenhouses. Plants require more care associated with the formation of a bush, fixing the stems to the trellis, etc. Medium and low-growing tomatoes are called semi-determinant and determinant, respectively. These crops require less care and are most often grown outdoors.

The remaining criteria for choosing seed material depend on the preferences of the vegetable grower. It takes into account the future size of tomatoes, their purpose, shape, color of the pulp, taste.

Hobby bags are small and usually contain up to 10 grains. Occasionally you can find packaging with 15-20 seeds. Professional packages are large. Inside there can be from 500 to 100 thousand tomato seeds.

What soil is needed for tomato seedlings

The soil must be taken care of even before the germination of tomato seeds has begun. After all, sprouted grains must be sown immediately, otherwise the hatched embryos will die. The easiest way to buy soil in the store. It already contains the whole complex of trace elements.

With self-preparation of the soil, they take the ground from the garden as a basis, add peat and humus. If the soil is very dense, sawdust or river sand is also added for looseness. Wood ash is used as top dressing of the soil. Additional top dressing with mineral fertilizers is desirable:

• a solution of potassium sulfate is prepared from 10 l of water and 20 g of dry matter;
• carbamide solution is diluted with water in a ratio of 10 g per 10 l;
• superphosphate solution consists of 10 liters of water and 30 g of dry fertilizer.

All components can usually be purchased at the same outlets where the seeds are sold.

Preparing tomato seeds for sprouting

There are many ways to prepare tomato seeds for germination. We will consider the simplest and most common:

• For disinfection, tomato seeds are immersed for 24 hours in a container with a solution of 0,8% vinegar. Then 20 minutes incubated in a 1% solution of manganese and washed with warm water.
• Starting the growth of the embryo will help immersion of the seeds in hot water with a temperature of 60^оFrom for half an hour.
• The next process involves soaking tomato seeds. They are placed for 24 hours in warm water at a temperature of 25^оC.
• The last stage consists of hardening. Tomato seeds are scattered on a saucer, and put in the refrigerator for a day. Some vegetable growers increase the hardening time to 48 hours, which is also allowed.

Each vegetable grower has a different attitude to the process of preparing seeds. Some prefer to do without it, and immediately sow from the bag into the ground, others do not soak only the grains of hybrids.

How long does it take for a tomato seed to germinate

For beginner vegetable growers, the question often arises: “How quickly do tomato seeds germinate? After how many days will the seeds hatch from the ground if they are not soaked? and others … Indeed, such questions are important, since the determination of the time of sowing in the ground and the receipt of ready-made seedlings depend on this.

How quickly a tomato seed sprouts depends on its storage conditions and prescription. When buying seeds, you need to pay attention to the production time. For example, you need to take the same variety of tomato. Grain harvested 3 years ago will germinate in about 7 days, and last year’s seed may hatch in 4 days.

In order for tomato seedlings to grow to the desired parameters by the time they are planted in a permanent place in the ground, you need to know how many days the first shoots should sprout. It should be noted right away that tomato seeds of any variety do not differ in terms of germination. It all depends on the method of sowing. If the grains are placed in the ground immediately from the pack dry, then the sprouts will sprout on the tenth day. A pre-soaked and hatched seed will show a sprout already in 5 or 7 days.

The germination time depends on the depth of backfilling with soil, which should not exceed 10–15 mm. It is important to maintain room temperature 18-20^оC. Failure to comply with these parameters can significantly increase the timing of tomato seedlings.

Germination of tomato seeds

So, let’s say that tomato seeds have been pre-treated, and we are starting to germinate them. For this process, you will need cotton fabric or ordinary medical gauze. The cloth is moistened with warm water, spread on a plate or any tray. Scatter tomato seeds in one layer on top, and cover them with the same damp cloth. Further, a plate with tomato seeds is placed in a warm place with an air temperature of 25 to 30^оC, and wait for them to hatch.

However, a large amount of water is unacceptable. Floating tomato seeds will just get wet.

Often, vegetable growers stock up on melted or rainwater to soak seeds. Growth stimulants added to the water help speed up the hatching process. It can be store-bought preparations or juice from the leaves of an aloe flower.

You need to know that tomato seeds hatch unevenly, and you need to monitor them. By this time, the planting soil should be ready. Grains with embryos that have appeared are immediately carefully sown, and the rest are waiting for their turn until they hatch.

We choose containers for seedlings of tomatoes

There should be no problems with choosing a container for sowing tomato seeds for seedlings. Specialized stores offer a huge number of plastic, peat and paper containers of various shapes. There are collapsible cups with a removable bottom and cassettes. Such products are inexpensive and affordable for any vegetable grower. In extreme cases, you can take any disposable cups or make pots from PET bottles.

It is desirable to lay drainage at the bottom of each glass. It can be small pebbles or crushed shells.

Planting time for tomato seedlings

Tomato seedlings that have reached 60 days of age at the time of planting are considered the strongest. The timing of sowing grains is determined individually, depending on the climatic conditions of the region. For example, in the middle lane, early tomatoes for seedlings are sown from mid to late February. Greenhouse varieties of tomatoes are sown in the first decade of March. If the tomatoes are intended for open cultivation, sowing seedlings is preferable by the end of March.

Sowing tomato seeds in the ground

You can sow tomatoes for seedlings in separate cups or in a common box. Each grower chooses a convenient way for him. But the process of sowing seeds in the ground is the same:

• A drainage layer is placed in the prepared container. Prepared soil 60 mm thick is poured on top. The soil is first rammed a little, watered, and then loosened.
• If tomato seedlings will be grown in a box, it is necessary to make grooves on the ground with dimensions of approximately 15 mm. Grooves can be squeezed out by running your finger across the ground. It is important to maintain a distance of about 50 mm between the grooves.
• If the sowing of grains is carried out in cups, 3 holes are made in the soil with a depth of 15 mm. In the future, the strongest tomato is selected from the three sprouted sprouts, and the remaining two are removed.
• Prepared recesses are moistened with water at a temperature of 50^оWith or nutrient solution. Seeds are spread along the grooves in 30 mm increments. One grain of tomato is placed in the holes in the soil of the cups.
• When all the seeds are placed in their place, the pits are covered with loose soil, after which they are slightly moistened from the sprayer. The soil with sown tomatoes is covered with a transparent film, and the containers themselves are placed in a warm place with room temperature 25^оFrom seedlings to germination.

The film is removed only after the emergence of shoots. During this period, the ambient temperature should not be allowed to drop, plus you need to take care of good lighting.

Watering germinating seedlings

The first watering after sowing the grains in the ground is performed on the tenth day. By this time, tomato sprouts have already hatched massively from the soil. They do not need much moisture, so a teaspoon of water is poured under each plant.

The frequency of all subsequent waterings until the first full-fledged leaves grow on the plant is 6 days. The soil under the plants should be slightly damp. A large amount of water will lead to siltation of the soil. From this, the tomato root system will receive less oxygen and begin to rot. The last watering of seedlings is carried out 2 days before picking. At the same time, you can feed the tomatoes with mineral fertilizers.

The video shows the entire process of growing tomato seedlings from germination to picking:

That, in principle, is all the secrets of germinating tomato seeds for seedlings. Further, before planting in the ground with plants, there is still a lot of work to be done. This includes picking, top dressing, plus adult seedlings must be hardened. But for these works, culture will thank the gardener with delicious tomato fruits.