Content
Peppers and tomatoes belong to the nightshade family. Therefore, some stages of caring for seedlings are the same. They grow it in advance so that it can be
get a harvest. Seedlings grow in containers with a limited amount of soil. At a certain point, nutrients run out and seedlings of peppers and tomatoes require additional feeding. What is feeding seedlings? This is an additional addition of nutrients to the soil. Use dry or liquid fertilizers. Each type of plant requires a specific set of nutritional components, but there are also universal ones.
Most often, these are ready-made mineral mixtures or natural organic matter that summer residents have on their plots.
There are proven recipes for each type of fertilizer, so it is recommended not to violate the dosage. Otherwise, you can do more harm to the plants than good.
Which feeding tomato seedlings and pepper are the most effective? Those that allow plants to develop normally and do not negatively affect the process. Therefore, the choice remains with the summer residents, and the offer comes from professionals.
Growing these two crops is not fundamentally different.They are heat-loving, respond well to soil nutrition and fertilizing, and are not drought-resistant. But there are nuances in the growth of seedlings.
A little about peppers.
- To get an early harvest, peppers are grown only in a greenhouse or under cover. At the same time, they carefully monitor the nutritional value of the soil. It is fertilized with a full set of mineral components and organic matter. Seeds sprout pepper also much longer than tomatoes. Preparation for sowing is carried out carefully; seeds require special measures.
- Another difference from tomatoes is that they try to grow pepper seedlings without picking. The roots of the plant are located close to the soil surface, they are weak and easily injured. Peppers require frequent and abundant watering, especially during the flowering period. Otherwise, the flowers simply fall off.
- Pepper seedlings are quite fragile and require care when caring for them.
- You can’t grow sweet and bitter varieties next to each other. The crop is cross-pollinated and a mixture of varieties and tastes is obtained.
- Pepper seedlings, like tomatoes, do not like elevated temperatures, especially in a greenhouse. Therefore, it is necessary to regularly ventilate (without drafts).
Now let's move on directly to feeding. First, let's look at what nuances need to be taken into account.
Basic rules for feeding seedlings of peppers and tomatoes
When sowing seeds, summer residents prepare a nutrient mixture that provides the plants with the necessary substances. However, when young seedlings are actively growing, they require many useful components. During this period, feeding is carried out.
What should you consider when feeding pepper and tomato seedlings?
Basic Rules:
- Knowing of limits.Deficiency or excess of nutrients is equally undesirable. The condition of young seedlings immediately changes. Frequent feeding or large doses will do no less harm than poor nutrition.
- Type of nutritional composition. For tomato and pepper seedlings, choose liquid fertilizer. But if you only have dry mixtures, do not forget to dissolve them in water. The root system of young seedlings is not independently capable of absorbing dry components added to the soil. They will have access to them at the time of watering, but this is not enough and will take a lot of time. Therefore, tomatoes and peppers will experience insufficient nutrition.
- Procedure time. It is better to feed tomato and pepper seedlings after good watering. The optimal time is morning, when there is no danger of a drop in temperature. During the day, the air will still warm up, and this will prevent the development of fungus in the soil.
- Solution concentration. Follow the instructions exactly when applying ready-made mineral fertilizers or organic matter. If you purchased the composition for adult tomatoes and peppers, then reduce the concentration by half.
- Don't forget to regularly (and carefully!) loosen the top layer of soil. In this case, feeding the seedlings will be more productive.
Training videos with detailed explanations of each stage are very useful for gardeners. Let's move on to a more detailed review of nutritional procedures.
Feeding young tomato seedlings
Tomatoes are demanding crops in terms of nutrition. This lasts throughout the entire period of plant development. Strong, powerful seedlings are obtained with timely and competent application of nutrient mixtures.
After planting for permanent residence, it is guaranteed to produce a good harvest. How many times should I feed tomato seedlings? Optimally three times.
First time after 10 days after the pick. The roots have time to take root in the new soil and absorb nutrients from it. At this stage, it is good to feed the tomatoes with nitrogen and phosphorus. The ready-made drug “Nitrophos” is used. To feed, dilute one tablespoon of fertilizer in one liter of plain water. The second option is an organic infusion. Bird droppings or mullein will do. This top dressing takes time to prepare. The component is diluted in water (2:1) and infused. As soon as fermentation is over and the mixture settles, the fertilizer is ready for use. It is bred in a ratio of 1:12 for litter and 1:7 for mullein and watered tomato seedlings. From the collection of folk wisdom, fertilizing with infusion works well ash woody. It will be enough for her to dilute one spoon of dry ash in two liters of hot water, cool and feed the tomato seedlings.
The seedlings are fed a second time after 14 days. Now, when choosing fertilizer, you need to monitor the condition of the seedlings. If the seedlings have stretched out, do not feed them with nitrogen. Of the ready-made mixtures, it is preferable to use “Signor Tomato”, “Effecton”, “Uniflor Rost”. Tomato seedlings will take the amount of nutrients that they need. For healthy and strong seedlings, repeated fertilizing with Nitrophos will be sufficient.
The third time you will need to have time to feed the tomatoes a week before planting them for permanent residence. Again, you can take ready-made mineral compositions, an infusion of organic matter.
How to feed pepper seedlings
For small peppers, liquid feeding remains ideal. They begin feeding from the early stages of development.
What is the best way to feed
Mineral mixtures. Organic matter is not suitable for pepper seedlings.This should be remembered so as not to harm sensitive pepper seedlings. Fertilizers such as “Krepysh”, “Effect”, “Ideal” work well.
The pepper is shed for the first time in the two-leaf phase. To do this, take a mixture of ammonium nitrate, superphosphate and potassium sulfate (0.5g+3g+1g). Dilute in one liter of water and water the pepper seedlings.
The second feeding of pepper is carried out with the same composition, but in a double dose of components. It is done 14 days after the first feeding.
The third can be done a week before transplanting pepper seedlings to a permanent place. Now it’s good to prepare an infusion of wood ash. 15 grams of ash per 1 liter of water is enough. Or use the previous composition, but increasing the dose of potassium to 8 g.
We use the collection of popular advice
Popular wisdom offers a whole list of means for feeding tomato and pepper seedlings. The main components needed for crops are phosphorus, nitrogen and potassium. Feeding seedlings has become especially popular iodine.
It is carried out in two ways:
- root application (suitable for tomatoes and peppers);
- foliar (for tomatoes only).
Root feeding with iodine is carried out by watering the seedlings. The feeding solution is prepared from 1 drop of iodine and 3 liters of water. In some cases, a single feeding is sufficient. seedlings with iodine.
Foliar feeding with iodine is done by spraying seedlings on the leaf. This method not only nourishes tomato seedlings, but also helps fight the formidable late blight and downy mildew.Therefore, this type of feeding continues after planting tomatoes in a greenhouse or in the open air. In this case, dilute 3 drops of the substance in a bucket of water and use 1 liter of the composition for each plant.
Feeding tomatoes and pepper iodine increases the ability of plants to resist diseases and set larger fruits.
Extraordinary compositions for feeding seedlings:
Coffee lovers grow good peppers by adding them to the soil coffee grounds.
It nourishes the roots and loosens the soil, improving their oxygen supply.
Banana peel – a worthy supplier of potassium for pepper seedlings and, especially, tomatoes. Enough peels of 3 bananas for infusion in a three-liter jar of water. The infusion is prepared for three days and the seedlings are watered. Potassium promotes good nitrogen absorption by plants
Egg shells. It is especially good for feeding pepper and tomato seedlings after picking. It is placed as drainage in a container for diving or pre-collected to prepare an infusion. You will need half a bucket of eggshells filled with water to feed the seedlings after three days. At the moment of infusion, an unpleasant smell of hydrogen sulfide appears, but it stimulates the plants well.
Many gardeners use onion peels, yeast, and potato peelings.
Useful tips for gardeners on feeding seedlings
What else needs to be taken into account when fertilizing pepper and tomato seedlings? Condition of plants. They themselves will tell you the time and composition for the next feeding. Sometimes the recommended deadlines have to be violated in order to help the plants. The deficiency of each element is manifested by certain signals:
- Nitrogen - lightening of the leaves. Apply nitrogen-containing fertilizers.
- Gland – the appearance of light veins.It may appear from excessive illumination of seedlings. Copper sulfate will help.
- Magnesium – withering of leaves. The source of the element is ash.
- Phosphorus – change in leaf color to purple. Superphosphate is required.
If the plants grow strong, healthy, with dark-colored leaves and stems, then some gardeners are in no hurry to carry out regular fertilizing. This is especially true when growing seedlings of peppers and tomatoes in good nutritious soil.
Try to closely monitor the seedlings so that you can take action in time. It’s better to get information in advance on how to properly grow healthy seedlings of tomatoes and peppers.
Useful video for summer residents:
