Soil for seedlings of tomatoes and peppers: reviews

Content

1 Basic requirements for soil for seedlings
2 What should not be in the soil for seedlings
3 Buying ready-made soil for seedlings
- 3.1 Reviews
4 Recipes for homemade soil

Growing your own seedlings is both an interesting and very useful activity for all keen gardeners who want to be able to choose certain varieties for planting themselves and are guaranteed to get a good harvest in the future. After all, many crops in our rather harsh climate require a mandatory seedling growing period. And the most important component on which good growth, development and well-being of seedlings depends is soil. The two main and most beloved crops, the cultivation of which requires a seedling period - tomatoes and peppers - are no exception. Soil for seedlings of tomatoes and peppers is the most important component of success for getting a really good harvest. What should it be and where can I get it? These issues will be discussed in detail in this article.

Basic requirements for soil for seedlings

Many newcomers to plant growing at first generally do not see any difference in what kind of soil to use, because at first glance it seems that it is all the same. But it's not that simple.Soil has many characteristics, each of which is important in its own way and ultimately affects both appearance and productivity.

Mechanical composition of the soil

It determines what is called soil looseness. May be:

Light – sand, sandy loam;
Medium – light loam;
Heavy – heavy loam

For seedlings of tomatoes and peppers, a light or medium texture is best suited. It is regulated, first of all, by the content of sand or other inert fillers, for example, perlite.

Soil type

The most common type of soil found on sale is peat. This means that peat makes up from 70 to 95% of its components. This in itself is not bad. After all, peat has a porous structure and allows both moisture and air to pass through well. But peat also comes in several different types:

High peat – formed under the influence of atmospheric precipitation from plant residues (moss), characterized by a low degree of decomposition of organic matter (few minerals), a strongly acidic reaction. It has a red color and a highly fibrous structure.
Lowland peat – formed under the influence of soil moisture from low-lying soil layers in the almost complete absence of oxygen. It is characterized by a high degree of organic decomposition (many minerals), closer to neutral acidity. It has a dark brown and even black color and a crumbly structure.
Transitional peat – in terms of its characteristics, it occupies an intermediate position.

All types of peat can be used for seedlings of tomatoes and peppers; it is only important that its share in the total mixture is no more than 70%. Depending on the type of peat used, auxiliary elements are added.For example, for high-moor peat, lime must be added to reduce acidity.

Advice! As soil for tomato seedlings and peppers, you can also use black soil.

It is the most fertile type of soil; it contains everything that plants need for full growth. But for the initial sowing of seeds, black soil will not be the best choice because:

seeds at an early stage of development do not need many nutrients;
black soil is often clogged with seeds weedy herbs that also grow happily on it;
it is too dense and heavy a substrate for the germination of tomato and pepper seeds.

Attention! It is concluded that it is better to use chernozem not in its pure form, but in mixtures, and preferably not for sowing, but for subsequent transplantation of already grown plants into separate containers.

There are also so-called seedling substrates - they mean the use of everything that can replace the soil for growing seedlings: sand, sawdust, perlite, coconut fiber, grain husks and sunflower husks. When a certain amount of minerals is added to them, they cope quite well with the task of growing tomato and pepper seedlings, especially at the first stage of sowing and seed germination.

Soil acidity

This most important characteristic for seedlings of tomatoes and peppers should be in the range from 6.5 to 7.5, that is, close to neutral or even slightly alkaline. If this norm is not observed, the seeds will either not be able to germinate at all, or the roots will not be able to take advantage of even the nutrients available in the soil, and the seedlings of tomatoes and peppers will gradually wither. There are two ways to check the acidity in the finished soil mixture:

Use a ready-made test, sold in every specialized store, to determination of soil acidity or even ordinary litmus paper.
Use regular 9% table vinegar. Place a teaspoon of soil on a flat, dark surface and pour in vinegar. With an alkaline soil reaction, rapid foaming will be observed, with a neutral reaction it will be moderate, and in the case of acidic soil, no foam will appear at all.

Soil nutrition

This characteristic implies not only sufficient nutritional content, but also their balance. The main so-called macroelements, nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium, should be present in the soil for seedlings of tomatoes and peppers in approximately the same ratio. However, in addition to them, the presence of as complete a set of meso- and microelements as possible is required.

Warning! If on the label of the finished soil you read about the content of the main three macroelements in an amount of at least 300 - 400 mg/l, then you cannot sow tomato and pepper seeds in this soil.

But it can be used as one of the components of a self-prepared mixture for seedlings of tomatoes and peppers. The higher the content of these elements, the more this soil needs to be “diluted” with neutral components, for example, coconut fiber or sand, or perlite.

"Living" soil

This characteristic was not given much attention in previous years, but in vain, because it is the presence of living microorganisms in the soil that allows tomato and pepper seedlings to form a more stable immunity, that is, to resist various diseases and pests both from the outside and sometimes contained in the plants themselves.Very often, many methods of disinfecting the soil mixture before sowing destroy the beneficial microflora present in it. Therefore, it is very important, after disinfection (calcination or steaming), to shed the soil with one of the currently popular biological products: Baikal EM1, “Shine,” or Trichodermin.

What should not be in the soil for seedlings

There are substances and components whose presence is extremely undesirable in seedlings for tomatoes and peppers:

The soil must be free of fungal spores, insect eggs and larvae, pathogens, and weed seeds;
The soil should not contain toxic substances - salts of heavy metals, radionuclides, petroleum products, etc. You cannot take soil for the soil mixture from city lawns, near highways, landfills, airfields, etc.;
The soil should not contain actively decomposing biocomponents, since the release of heat and additional nitrogen can adversely affect the development of tomato and pepper seedlings;
It is advisable not to use clay - its properties are completely unsuitable for growing tomato and pepper seedlings.

Buying ready-made soil for seedlings

Many gardeners and summer residents living in cities have practically no opportunity to create a soil mixture for seedlings of tomatoes and peppers on their own, which is preferable because you can control all the components and their characteristics at each stage. But stores and markets offer an amazing variety of ready-made soils for seedlings, including ones specifically for tomatoes and peppers. How to sort through this sea of offers and choose the most suitable option?

First of all, pay attention to specialized soil for seedlings.There are also universal soils, but it only makes sense to buy them if you want to use them to “dilute” specialized, overly concentrated soils to obtain more land for planting already grown seedlings. A good option would be to purchase special soils for peppers and tomatoes, but, as a rule, to sow seeds they must be diluted with any disintegrants (coconut fiber, perlite, sand);
Whatever soil mixture you decide on, carefully study its composition to understand whether anything will need to be added to it later. Under no circumstances buy soil mixtures without labels with full information about both the manufacturer and the product;
Study the composition of nutrients, soil acidity and act in accordance with the recommendations given in the previous chapter;
As with any product, pay attention to the production date and expiration date of the soil mixture;
If you are still faced with a choice of which soil to choose, take for the experiment several small packages that you like according to the above parameters. At home, you can study them more carefully and control the acidity. Good soil for seedlings of tomatoes and peppers should not be dense, viscous or sticky. It should have a fibrous structure and contain leavening agents (perlite - small white crumbs). Should not have a rotten or musty odor or traces of mold.

You can also focus on the most famous manufacturers who have been on the market for a long time.For example, according to several independent expert organizations that conducted soil studies to determine their compliance with the declared parameters, only a few Russian manufacturers comply with all standards when manufacturing their products.

The leader among them is ZAO Fart St. Petersburg, producer of the famous Living Earth soil. Although for many years this primer has evoked extremely positive reviews from consumers, in the last two years even to them, or more precisely, to the “Universal” primer from this manufacturer, a number of complaints have arisen.

Reviews

Below are some reviews:

Ekaterina, 42 years old, Moscow

For several years in a row I have been buying Living Earth soil, both for seedlings of tomatoes and peppers, and for replanting indoor flowers. I was always so pleased with the result that I even decided that this was the best soil for seedlings, since it was light, nutritious, and had a lot of useful things added to it. That same year, I was somewhat surprised when I opened the package and found quite a lot of plant debris inside - all sorts of twigs, stones, even undecomposed grass. I didn’t like it, but I decided to plant tomato seedlings in this soil anyway. How unpleasant it was for me to see a colony of mushrooms growing along with the seedlings. I will not recommend anyone to buy this soil again.

Evgeniy, 45 years old, Ekaterinburg

Living soil is the best that is on sale; absolutely everything grows in it. Wife used this soil for pepper seedlings, so we ate enough peppers this year like never before. It’s expensive, of course, which is a minus, but you have to pay for quality. In general, I recommend it to everyone.

Recipes for homemade soil

If you have the opportunity and desire, then you can’t think of anything better than preparing the soil for seedlings of tomatoes and peppers with your own hands. Of course, you need to take care of this in advance and dig up several bags of garden soil in the fall. Bring home a bucket of sand. And prepare or buy a bag of humus (well-decomposed manure or compost).

Additionally, you need to purchase a package of perlite, vermiculite, coconut fiber and peat. Carefully mix all the components, disinfect the resulting mixture, and then treat it with one of the available above-mentioned biological products. It will be good if the mixture for seedlings sits for some time (at least a week) and ripens. Therefore, it is better to prepare it in the fall.

So, the best recipes for soil in which it is good to sow tomato and pepper seeds:

1 part coconut fiber, 1 part peat, ½ part humus, ½ part garden soil, ½ part vermiculite, a little lime if high-moor peat was used.
1 part fine river sand, 1 part sawdust or cereal husks, ½ part humus.
1 part peat moss, 1 part vermiculite, 1 part perlite

For transplanting already grown seedlings of tomatoes and peppers, the following recipes are preferable:

1 part humus, 1 part garden soil, 1 part perlite
2 parts peat, 1 part humus, ½ part garden soil, ½ part vermiculite.

Now, having familiarized yourself with all the possible characteristics of soil components and mixtures, choosing the right soil for your seedlings should not cause difficulties.