If you are a gardening enthusiast, you know that there is nothing more exciting than seeing the first little green sprouts from a seed. Getting seeds to germinate requires the right soil and the right amount of sunlight, as well as regulating the temperature so its not too hot or too cold. Read below to learn how to germinate seeds.
Picture tutorial on how to germinate seeds. This DIY tutorial includes: preparing sowing seeds, sowing seeds, and caring for germinated seeds. If you want to learn how to germinate seeds, read this article about production. Let’s learn the seed germination picture tutorial!
Preparing for sowing
- 1Choose good seeds. Try to choose fresh seeds that are within two years and suitable for your growing environment. If you're lucky you may be able to get seeds from native plants that will be better suited to your soil and growing conditions. You can buy different types of seeds at your local nursery, farmers market, or online vendors.
- 2Start planting at the right time. Some seeds take several weeks to germinate indoors before the weather warms, while others only take a few days. Seed germination times vary in different planting areas. Choosing the best time to plant is especially important if you want your seeds to grow healthy and strong.
- Read the instructions in the seed packet to find out when to start planting. Seed packets have a lot of important information.
- You can also search online for the best time to plant seeds.
- If you're still not sure when to plant your seeds, start planting a few weeks after frost reception this season. You can start growing them indoors now and then transplant them outdoors when they reach a certain height. This is a safe method for many plants.
- 3Choose the right growing medium. Seeds often require different nutrients to germinate than standard potting soil. Specific chemicals are required during the germination process, and different seeds require different substances. Different. You can obtain some of the material conditions for seed growth through nurseries or online suppliers.
- You can use soilless cultivation, which works with many types of seeds.
- It is cheap to make your own growing soil from vermiculite, perlite and ground peat moss. You can buy these materials at a gardening store and mix them 1:1:1.
- Do not plant seeds in ordinary soil. Seeds already contain all the nutrients they need to germinate, so regular potting soil will provide additional nutrients, which can be harmful to the seeds.
- 4Select a planting seed container. You will need a container with drainage holes in the bottom and a depth of 5 to 8 cm. Its shape can be an open tray, and different containers can be selected for different seeds. The width of your container will depend on how many seeds you need to plant; make sure each seed has some room to grow.
- You can purchase seed trays, but you can also use cardboard boxes, newspapers, wooden boxes, or other household items instead.
- When the seeds begin to germinate, the seedlings are transplanted to larger containers or planted in the ground. For this reason, the aesthetics of the seed germination container is not very important.
Sowing
1Prepare the container. Place the seeds in a line into the container, about a few centimeters deep, but not directly on top. Sprinkle some water. Don't let the seeds soak in water; they only need to be slightly moist. - 2Decide whether you want to soak the seeds. Some seeds need to be soaked for several hours before planting, while others can be planted directly. Determine if your seeds need pre-treatment before planting. Check the instructions on the seed package.
- Put the seeds into a clean container and pour in room temperature water to soak. Probably between 3 hours and 24 hours. Remove them and dry with paper towels.
- If you soak the seeds, plant them immediately after soaking rather than waiting until the seeds are dry.
- 3Sowing. Sow seeds evenly, pressing the seeds gently into the soil with your fingers. Cover the seeds with culture medium three times the thickness of the seeds. Sprinkle some water again to keep the soil moist.
- Don’t plant all your seeds in one place; don’t crowd it.
- Some seeds need to be buried deeper, while some do not even need to be covered with medium. Generally, seeds are sown according to the above method, but you should check to see if your seeds have any special planting requirements.
- 4Plant a seed container Place in the right environment. Most seeds do not need sunlight when they germinate, but some do, so you need to know the suitable conditions for your seeds to germinate. Generally, the suitable temperature for seed germination is 15 to 26 degrees Celsius However, some seeds have special temperature requirements and require very cold or hot temperatures to germinate, so you need to pay special attention to that.
- You can adjust the temperature by placing a heat pad under the seed tray.
- Once the seeds have begun to sprout, try to keep the temperature around 21 degrees Celsius until they are ready to be transplanted outdoors.
- 5Keep the cultivation medium moist. Lightly cover the tray with a piece of plastic wrap to retain moisture and temperature. Water once a day to ensure that the soil does not dry out, otherwise the seeds will not germinate well.
- Don't water too much, otherwise the seeds won't grow.
- You can use newspaper instead of plastic wrap. Use a spray bottle to keep the newspaper moist every day.
Take care of germinated seeds
- 1Move the seedlings to a sunny place. When you see the first seedling, its time to move it to a sunny location. Make sure the indoor temperature is below 21 degrees Celsius, but provide adequate sunlight, so that the seeds can grow healthily and robustly.
- 2Keep the seedlings moist. If you cover your seedlings with plastic wrap or newspaper, try to water them several times a day to keep them moist. You can water in the morning and afternoon, but not in the evening. Watering too much at night may encourage mold growth.
- 3Feed the seedlings after a few weeks. Sprouting food does not contain nutrients, so you will need to fertilize the seedlings after they have grown taller. Learn what nutrients are needed to grow seedlings. If possible, use organic fertilizers.
- 4Screen the seedlings. If a lot of seeds have sprouted, you may need to remove some of the weaker seedlings to ensure that the others grow better. Keep 2 to 3 seedlings in each container, or 2 to 3 in each area.
- 5At the appropriate time Transplant seedlings. When prefect season arrives you can move the seedlings outdoors. Make sure you use the right soil and transplant the seedlings to a location with proper sunlight and moisture.
Tips
- Label the seed so you know what type of plant it is.
- Some seeds store longer. To check if your seeds have expired, wrap at least 10 seeds in a damp paper towel and cover with plastic wrap. See if the seeds germinate over the next few weeks. If it sprouts, you can plant it. If there is no germination or only a few seeds have germinated, you need to choose some fresh seeds.
- Read the instructions on the seed package. The seed packaging will indicate when to start planting, how much sunlight and water is needed, etc. If you have some seeds left over, you can check online to find the type of seeds. In addition to moisture, some seeds also have requirements for temperature and sunlight.
Warning
- Once the seeds have sprouted, be careful to keep slugs or other herbivores away from your seedlings, as these animals will eat them up quickly.
You need to prepare
- Seeds
- Growth nutrients
- Container
Extended reading:
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3. How to grow sunflowers yourself. Illustrated tutorial on growing sunflowers
4. Rose planting tutorial: How to grow roses
5. How to germinate grains and plant sprouts picture tutorial