Content
Eggplant seeds germinate 7-10 days after sowing. You should not check the containers in the first week - sprouts will not appear. But if the grains have been previously germinated, the seedlings will hatch within a few days. If they are not there even after two weeks, there is no point in waiting. It is better to completely replace the seeds, make fertile soil and re-sow.
Germination of eggplant seeds
The germination of eggplant depends both on the seeds themselves and on the conditions created. You need to take care of high-quality planting material. It is best to take a fresh harvest; the seeds should not be older than three years. Subsequently, the germination rate deteriorates significantly.
If you do not soak and germinate the seeds first, they will sprout much weaker. It is also important to create a consistently warm temperature, monitor watering, and create fertile soil. Even in such conditions, the planting material will partially rise - the figure will be about 50-60%.
What affects germination
The germination of eggplant seeds is influenced by several factors. Plants are quite demanding, so you need to create optimal conditions for them:
- A mixture of turf soil with humus, peat and sand in a ratio of 2:1:1:1 is suitable for cultivation. The optimal reaction is slightly acidic or neutral (pH from 6.0 to 7.0). If you are not sure, it is better to purchase soil in a store or measure the acidity using indicator paper or a pH meter. Poor quality soil, for example, contains a lot of clay or is too acidic (pH below 6.0).
- The holes should be small, about 1-1.5 cm, no more than 2 cm. Otherwise, the eggplant seeds may not germinate, since it will be difficult for the sprouts to make their way through.
- It is first necessary to germinate the planting material and also use growth stimulants. Sometimes you may get low-quality seeds. Even if they are purchased from a trusted supplier, some of the grains will still not sprout.
- Normally, water is given on a “every other day” basis. It is important to ensure that the soil remains only slightly moist. Otherwise, the eggplants may not sprout either.
- If after 5-7 days the shoots have not appeared, gardeners often begin to stir them up with toothpicks or dig them up. It's better to wait at least three more days. If the sprouts have not hatched two weeks after sowing, it means they will not appear again.
It is better to purchase seeds from trusted suppliers
How to improve germination
To increase the germination of eggplant seeds, it is necessary to create and maintain normal conditions. First of all, this concerns the following factors:
- Good lighting. Planting begins 80-90 days before transfer to open ground - approximately in February.At this time there is still little light, so you need to add phytolamps for several hours in the morning and evening.
- Comfortable temperature regime - during the day it should be about 25 degrees Celsius, at night it can be reduced to 20-22 °C.
- Pre-soaking and germination. To do this, it is better to use not just water, but a solution of Zircon or another growth stimulator. Keep the seeds for several days - when the sprouts appear, it will be much easier for them to sprout.
- Careful soil preparation. It should be fertile and loose. Moreover, it must be disinfected first, especially if the soil was taken from a vegetable garden or garden. The composition should be fertile and the structure should be loose.
On what day do eggplant shoots appear after planting?
At home, eggplant seeds germinate 7-10 days after planting. For example, if you plant them over the weekend, the first shoots should appear at the beginning of the next week. Normally, they should emerge en masse, without delay, and grow at approximately the same pace.
But sometimes eggplants do not sprout for 2 weeks or even more. This is an obvious delay as the seedlings must take at least 10-12 days to emerge. As a rule, the reason is associated with an insufficiently high temperature - at 15-17 degrees, development is very slow. But other factors may also influence. For example, seeds may not germinate due to improper planting or improper watering.
How to speed up the appearance of sprouts
If eggplant seeds do not sprout for more than 10 days, this is a clear deviation from the norm. To avoid this problem, it is recommended to pre-soak the seeds, as well as use drugs to stimulate growth.For preventive purposes, a disinfection procedure should be carried out. The basic preparation rules are described below.
Soak
Eggplant seedlings may not appear due to the fact that the seeds are of insufficient quality - empty, expired. To avoid this, it is recommended to first check the planting material in this way:
- Dissolve a tablespoon of salt in 1 liter of water at room temperature.
- Immerse the grains in water.
- Wait 30 minutes.
- Remove those that float.
Seeds need preparation - soaking and disinfection
The planting material is wrapped in damp gauze and stored for several days in a warm place (temperature 25-27 degrees). Water must be added periodically from a spray bottle to ensure constant humidity. After 4-5 days, the eggplant seeds germinate. If some of them cannot germinate, they also need to be discarded.
Stimulation
It is equally important to use growth stimulants. So that the seeds can germinate quickly, they are treated with solutions of the following drugs:
- "Epin";
- "Zircon";
- "Heteroauxin";
- "Energen" and others.
The product is dissolved in water according to the instructions and the gauze is moistened, and then the planting material is kept for several days. In fact, the soaking procedure is combined with stimulation.
If there are no ready-made drugs, you can make a growth stimulator with your own hands. To do this, take 5 g of wood ash and dissolve it in 1 liter of warm water. You can also use sodium humate or nitrophoska (similarly, 5 g each).
Disinfection
In order for eggplants to sprout and develop normally, the seeds must first be pickled. They do this to prevent diseases and pests. Disinfection is carried out in a weak pink solution of potassium permanganate (1 g per 1 l). Instead, you can also use fungicides, for example, Fundazol or Prestige. The drugs are diluted according to the instructions.
Why eggplants don’t sprout and what to do
Sometimes eggplant seeds do not germinate for 3 weeks or more. Such planting material will no longer produce seedlings. The reasons are often related to improper care or defective grains.
Improper watering
If eggplants do not sprout, be sure to check the soil and water if necessary. At first, it is better to do this with a spray bottle. Moreover, the water must be settled. Water at least three times a week, since plants are demanding of moisture.
On the other hand, excess humidity is also harmful. Therefore, you should not water too often. Because of this, the seeds may also not germinate and may also rot.
Seedlings need to be watered regularly
Poor quality seeds
If the grains were bought secondhand or from an unverified supplier, such eggplants may not germinate for a long time. Often they do not sprout at all. Therefore, you need to purchase planting material in stores with good reviews that have been operating on the market for many years.
Errors during landing
If the eggplants do not sprout, the reasons may also be related to errors during planting. First of all, it is necessary to properly prepare the soil. To do this, purchase a universal primer or create a mixture yourself based on several components in a ratio of 2:1:1:1:
- garden soil;
- humus or compost;
- black peat;
- river sand.
The mixture is first kept in the freezer for several days or placed in the oven for 15-20 minutes at a temperature of 100-120 degrees. You can also spill a weak solution of potassium permanganate, and then apply a bacterial fertilizer, for example, “Rizotorfin”.
Before planting eggplants, the soil should be thoroughly loosened and then the grains should be buried no more than 2 cm. If it is deeper, they may not germinate. Also, the sprouts will not hatch if the soil is too dense and contains a lot of clay.
Temperature violation
Eggplants are quite picky about temperature. Seedlings sprout normally at 23-27 degrees Celsius. If the room is cool (15-17 degrees and below), development is too slow and may even stop.
Therefore, it is necessary to maintain the temperature above room temperature. To do this, containers are located near heating radiators. Before mass shoots appear, the soil must be covered with a film with holes or glass. Periodically, the shelter is removed for ventilation.
It is known that at temperatures above 40 degrees, planting material dies. Therefore, containers should not be placed too close to heating radiators. They heat the air excessively and make it dry.
The optimal temperature for growing seedlings is 25 degrees
Conclusion
Eggplant seeds germinate quite quickly - in just a week or a little longer. If the conditions are normal, the planting material is pre-soaked in a solution of a growth stimulator, seedlings will appear in a few days.Next, you need to take care of regular watering, good lighting, maintaining a stable temperature and other care rules.
