Planting corn seedlings

Planting corn for seedlings is a profitable and interesting activity. It is especially pleasant when the result pleases with the early collection of juicy, young cobs. Before the formation of milk heads from the seeds of hybrid varieties, two and a half months are enough. And early laying the seeds in the cells will make it possible to enjoy the taste of boiled corn a month earlier.

Planting dates for corn seedlings

Growing corn in seedlings is practiced if they want to harvest an early harvest. Compared to seed planting, seedling planting shortens the time until the first ears are harvested.

In specially selected containers, seedlings are sown in the last decade of April. It is worth noting that properly prepared seeds give good germination. Planting seedlings of corn in the ground begins when the temperature stabilizes and in a thickness of 10 cm it will be at least +12 ^oC.

Sowing seeds in greenhouses under a film without additional heating is carried out in early April: the grains are planted 3 cm deep. You can speed up the harvest by soaking the seeds before planting.

Soil preparation and selection

The choice of soil must be taken seriously. In order for the plant to fully grow and develop, seeds should be planted in a mixture of turf and humus.

Before planting corn, it is important to carefully consider the place of sowing the seeds so that the transfer to a stationary place is not detrimental to seedlings. When choosing a soil, acidity does not play a decisive role: the emphasis is on the looseness of the soil. You can improve the quality of the land yourself.

Humus is used as a baking powder. To ensure air circulation and an unhindered flow of water to the root system, it is recommended to add peat and coconut chips to the earthen mixture.

Capacity selection

To plant corn seedlings, special-purpose containers with many sections are used.

Damage to the root does not have the best effect on the further growth of the plant, so the grains are planted in peat cups or humus-earth bags. Thus, a non-dive, non-traumatic method of planting seedlings is used.

It is important not to disturb the corn root, so it is recommended to plant in the most convenient containers. These can be small containers divided into cells, cut plastic bottles, cardboard milk cartons, plastic glasses.

Preparing corn seeds for planting

Before you start growing corn at home from seeds, you should pay attention to their caliber. To get an excellent harvest, large, ripe, whole grains are selected for sowing. If you plan to plant large plantations, the seed can be soaked in salt water. Such a test allows you to discard useless grains that have floated to the surface.

Care must also be taken to ensure that the plant is not exposed to a fungal infection. Before planting the seeds in the ground, pre-treatment with a saturated solution of manganese will be required, which will protect the seedlings (a quarter of an hour is enough).

The tested corn seeds are wrapped in burlap or fabric that allows air and moisture to pass through. If the volumes are small, then a layer of cotton wool or cosmetic cotton pads is quite suitable. In order for the seeds to swell, it is enough to keep them in a humid environment for up to 12 hours. You can improve the taste of cobs by soaking corn in a solution of ash (2 tablespoons per 1 liter).

It is worth noting that sowing corn for seedlings after heating the grain for a couple of days in the sun guarantees good germination.

Planting corn for seedlings in various ways

The choice of how to plant is made, depending on the volume and preferences.

By trial and error, the farmers came to the conclusion that the cultivation of corn seedlings should be carried out using one of the methods proposed in the video and in the descriptions:

In nutrient soil

In order to plant sprouts in nutrient soil, follow the steps:

1. Germinated corn grains (3 pieces) are placed in one pot, to a depth of 4 cm.
2. The surface of the earth is leveled.
3. The soil is irrigated with a sprayer.
4. It is recommended to thin out seedlings with the appearance of three true leaves.

In sawdust

If you plant seeds in the second way, it is recommended to use a wide tray. Sawdust soaked in water is placed in it.

Algorithm of actions, how to plant and grow corn:

1. Indentations are made in the tyrsa and seeds are laid to a depth of 3–4 cm.
2. When the first shoots appear, a layer of loose, saturated soil should be added.
3. Move to a lighted room, where the temperature is maintained 18 – 20 ^o
4. To maintain sufficient moisture, sawdust is irrigated with a spray gun after 3 to 4 days.
   Important! Do not allow sawdust to be waterlogged, otherwise the seeds may rot.
5. After germination of seedlings within a week by 3-4 cm, they can be rearranged in good light conditions, for example, in a greenhouse without heating. Over the next 2 weeks, watering is carried out and fed with complex herbal preparations.
6. Seedlings 10-13 cm tall are planted in open soil.

In the presence of sawdust, the process does not require energy and gives excellent results.

into the snail

Corn can be planted on seedlings in a snail. This is a creative method that has been tested by many summer residents and pleases with good shoots:

1. Spread a kitchen towel on a flat surface.
2. The second layer is placed in a plastic bag, slightly less than the fabric in width.
3. The third layer is toilet paper.
4. The paper tape is abundantly moistened with water from a spray bottle.
5. At a distance of 10 cm from each other, spread the corn grains.
6. Polyethylene is rolled up, forming a snail.
7. The resulting structure is lowered into a container with water.
8. Corn sprouts can be planted outdoors.

You can learn more about the method of growing corn seedlings without land in the video:

Corn seedling care

To get strong seedlings and subsequently – an excellent harvest, it is worth a little work. Growing corn through seedlings at home requires certain requirements.

Lighting

Corn seedlings are photosensitive. If sufficient lighting is not provided, they will begin to stretch, lose their strength and subsequently lose their ability to resist the action of the wind. The fact that there is not enough light can be seen directly from the seedlings of corn – the leaves turn yellow and lose their vitality. The lack of full-fledged light leads to the fact that the plant withers, becomes pale. In order to grow corn through seedlings at home, it is advisable to add lighting with a fluorescent lamp at the beginning of growth.

Ventilation

In order to avoid stress when growing corn seedlings, it should be gradually accustomed to the ambient temperature. Airing is carried out starting from 5 minutes, gradually increasing the time to 15 – 20 minutes.

Temperature

The most comfortable temperature for growing is considered 20 – 24 ^oC. Under these conditions, the trunk grows strong and tall. And this, in turn, will contribute to the full development of the root system.

Watering

Corn is classified as a drought-resistant crop. Therefore, it can do without moisture for a long time, but the full development of the plant to obtain a crop will provide watering at the stages of germination, panicle ejection, cob formation.

How many times to water the seedlings, each must determine for himself. It depends on the temperature and humidity of the air.

Additional fertilizing

During the period of rapid growth of seedlings, seedlings are fertilized twice with Terraflex or Polifid. Allow to use top dressing Kemira hydro or Master. How many times to saturate the soil depends on the condition of the plant. Water-soluble fertilizers can be applied as early as a week after sowing. They should include up to 30% nitrogen. If corn seedlings are planted in conditions with unstable temperature conditions, periods of cold, then the plant should be fed with phosphorus in order to prevent its suspension in growth.

Diseases of corn seedlings

If at some stage the technique of growing corn seedlings from grains is violated, all conditions can be created for the appearance of common seedling diseases:

1. Fuzarioz: a fungus that affects the stem, seedlings and cob. A grayish-ashy coating is detrimental to plants, therefore, it is worth paying serious attention to the pre-sowing treatment of planting material, and observing crop rotation.
2. Stem and root rot: grows intensively throughout the plant and is explained by the creation of too humid conditions (high rainfall, excessive watering, waterlogging of the soil). The outcome of the disease is the death of the culture. To solve the problem, the approach should be complex (use of fungicides, crop rotation, limited watering).
3. Rust: practically untreatable. The fungus infects the plant and leaves no chance of saving the crop. Usually such seedlings are burned to prevent the spread of the disease.
4. Dusty smut: is massive. It affects the plant completely, stopping the growth of the plant and destroying most of the crop.

Most diseases lead to irreversible processes, which is why the issue of crop rotation and seed preparation should be taken seriously. Planting corn grains is necessary only after pre-treatment.

When and how to plant corn seedlings in open ground

Corn seedlings are planted outdoors when the danger of a return frost has passed. The soil should be warm, and the seedlings should be strong, with three good, strong leaves (25 days from the date of sowing). At this stage, the root system of seedlings is well developed and it has every chance of successfully taking root in its permanent place.

In the photo of the picking of corn seedlings when transferred to a permanent place of residence, you can see that they are trying to save earthen food and prevent it from crumbling in order to protect the roots during transplantation.

Before planting corn at home, they carry out the last preparatory work: they determine a sunnier place with light soil, fertilize and prepare holes for planting. For full pollination, fruiting, it is recommended to plant seedlings in at least 5-6 rows, maintaining a distance between seedlings of up to 40 cm, and between rows of up to 60 cm. Since there is more than enough free space, you can plant melons between plantings.

After the seedlings are planted, it must be well watered and covered with a layer of mulch. If we are not talking about hectares of plantings, plants can be covered with cut plastic bottles until the weather stabilizes.

Conclusion

Planting corn for seedlings, following all the recommendations of experienced agronomists, is not difficult, and the result will surely please you with early ears of fragrant corn. Do not ignore all the preparatory activities, as the final result may depend on the little things.