Sowing strawberries in peat tablets. When to plant strawberries with seeds, preparation of seeds, correct timing and care of seedlings

Every gardener would like to see strawberries in their beds, but many are put off by the difficulty of growing and caring for this berry. At the same time, following simple agricultural techniques will allow you to acquire excellent seedlings, which will certainly yield a rich harvest.

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In order to grow good seedlings strawberries from seeds, you need to carefully consider the choice of seeds themselves. Buy planting material today you can in any store where you can find big choice large-fruited hybrid varieties(like remontant strawberries) with good germination. You will learn in more detail about propagation of remontant strawberry seeds from the video at the end of the article.

If you decide to collect seeds yourself, then you need to select them only from healthy and strong plants. It is worth noting that propagation by seeds gives better results than vegetative propagation.

You can also stratify the seeds in order to guarantee good seeding material and strong seedlings.

Soaking in water of natural origin (rain or melt) for 2-3 days will help increase the germination of seeds.

After this, the seeds are laid out on paper (using some kind of tray) and placed in a plastic bag. It should be stored in a warm and bright place.

As soon as you see that the seeds begin to hatch, this means that you can transfer them to soil (pictured above).

Another way to prepare seeds involves placing them between layers of damp cotton wool or cloth.

The decomposed seeds are placed in a closed container, leaving small holes for ventilation, and kept for 2 to 3 days at an optimal temperature of +15 ° C, after which the seeds are put in the refrigerator.

After two weeks, the seeds are removed from the refrigerator and placed in a well-lit place with a temperature of about +18 ° C. At this stage, you need to check them regularly in order to notice in time the moment when the seeds begin to germinate.

Growing strawberry seedlings from seeds: soil preparation and sowing

In addition to preparing seeds, an equally important point when growing seedlings is the correct choice of soil. Here are several options for soil mixtures in which seedlings strawberry feels yourself at your best:

1. The first version of the soil mixture: 1 part vermicompost, 1 part coarse-grained sand, part of non-acidic peat.
2. Second option: 2 parts turf soil, 1 part sand and 1 part peat.

In order to prevent harmful microorganisms, pests and diseases that may be in the ground from getting into the seedlings, it is necessary to carry out soil prevention. A few weeks before you plan to plant the seedlings, you will need to steam the soil for planting in a water bath for about an hour, after which it will need to “rest” and recover.
It is extremely important to choose the right moment when to sow strawberries for seedlings. Sowing strawberry seeds is best done in late winter - early spring. Such timing will allow the seedlings to be transferred to open ground before the onset of the summer heat.

So, having prepared the seed and soil, you can begin sowing. The soil is poured into a container or box, leveled by making small furrows, maintaining a gap of 2 cm, and the seeds are planted. After planting the seeds, spray them with a spray bottle and cover the box with film.

An interesting way to plant seeds is to sow on snow (pictured).

1. To do this, you need to cover the box with the prepared soil with a small layer of snow (1-2 cm) and place the seeds on it.
2. Then the box is covered with film or placed under glass, ventilating periodically.
3. Such an original, at first glance, planting is, in fact, as natural as possible and will protect the seeds from excessive deepening.
4. Sowing on a snow cushion will have a positive effect on seed germination.

Whichever of these methods of growing seedlings with seeds you choose, the box will need to be kept in the dark at a moderate temperature until the first sunrise appears.

1. When the first shoots appear, you can move the seedlings to a brighter and warmer place.
2. The film or glass cover is also removed with the first sunrise.

Growing strawberries in peat tablets

Hybrid large-fruited varieties like remontant strawberries are best planted in peat tablets. Since expensive seeds can easily get lost in boxes with soil mixture.

Before planting the finished seeds, you need to prepare the peat tablets themselves:

1. Place the tablets in any container and fill with water.
2. The tablets must be soaked until they reach their full height.
3. If necessary, add water until the tablets stop absorbing it.
4. After this, you can put the seeds into the holes that are already present in the peat tablets.
5. The seeds do not need to be covered with soil; instead, it is better to place young seedlings directly in peat tablets in a container or greenhouse.

In any case, the shelter must allow light to pass through.

1. The container is kept in a well-lit place at an average temperature of +18 ° C, ventilated periodically and condensation is removed.
2. You need to remove the lid from the container or greenhouse shelter as soon as the first sunrise (pictured above).

When grown in peat tablets, young strawberry roots may find themselves without any shelter, in which case they can be sprinkled with a little earth.

During seed germination, peat pots may shrink a little, in which case they need to be filled with water until they stop absorbing it, and the excess should be drained.

Picking is carried out at the stage of appearance of 2-3 leaves in any containers: boxes, pots, containers, etc. (on the picture) . This stage must be carried out in a timely manner, since thickened plantings interfere with the normal growth of seedlings.

For more information on how to properly propagate strawberries from seeds, watch the video at the end of the article.

Caring for seedlings and planting in open ground

Young strawberry shoots need sufficient light, even and moderate watering. The top layer of soil should not be dry. The same requirements must be observed after picking.

1. The optimal temperature for seed germination is +18 ° C; if this figure is exceeded, germination will deteriorate or the seeds will not germinate at all.
2. Strawberry seedlings are responsive to various feedings. Special mineral fertilizers for seedlings and guamates are best suited. Feeding is carried out once every two weeks.
3. Seedlings can be planted in open ground starting in June.
4. If you are planning to grow seedlings of remontant strawberries, you need to take into account that they will bear fruit for a long time and therefore need fertile, loose soil.
5. Remontant strawberry seedlings, like garden strawberry seedlings, will respond well to adding humus or rotted compost to the soil.

The application of fertilizers depends on the initial state of the soil; for cultivated land, half a bucket of peat and humus per 1 m² is enough. For clay soils, you will need to double these components and additionally add about half a bucket of sand.

1. To grow beautiful and neat strawberry beds, use a planting cord to make furrows.
2. Measure a distance of 30 cm between the planting holes.
3. After this, you can plant young shoots.
4. If strawberry seedlings were grown in peat tablets, you can plant them directly with them without removing them.
5. The free space in the planting holes is filled with loose soil and lightly compacted, leaving the growth point above the ground. The planting is complete, now the strawberries can be carefully watered.

Planted strawberry bush

As the experience of many gardeners shows, it is possible to grow a rich harvest of strawberries in narrow beds without unnecessary hassle, regardless of which propagation method you choose, seeds or vegetative. This technology will make it possible to simplify care and harvesting as much as possible.

As you can see,

Seeds of large-fruited strawberry hybrids are expensive. In addition, the package contains from 3 to 10 small seeds. They are easy to lose in seed boxes and bowls, so it is better to sow the seeds of such strawberries in peat tablets. The method is also convenient because at the first stage there is no need to sift and steam the soil mixture and pick up the strawberry seedlings.

Strawberries - to sow seeds or not?

Spread the strawberry seeds between two cotton pads or pieces of clean cloth folded in 2-3 layers. Place them in a microwave container or other container, moisten them, close the lid, after making several holes in it for ventilation. If you have several varieties, provide them with labels. Keep them for 2-3 days at a temperature of +15...+18°C, then put the soaked strawberry seeds in the refrigerator for 2 weeks.

Some gardeners advise placing ready-made crops in the refrigerator. But it’s much more convenient: it takes less space. After 2 weeks, place the container in a warm (+18...+20°C) bright place. Check the seeds every 2-3 days so as not to miss the moment of germination.

When the strawberry seeds hatch, it is time to sow. Place the peat tablets in a container and fill them with water. Wait until they turn from tablets into “columns”. Add water until the tablets stop absorbing it. Drain off the excess.

Place the “sticks” into the recesses in the tablets. It is very convenient to do this with a toothpick. There is no need to cover the seeds with soil: strawberries sprout better in the light. The seeds are sprinkled only when so that they do not die from overdrying.

It is important that the hatched seeds do not dry out. To do this, cover the container with a transparent lid or place it in a greenhouse. Place the strawberry crops in a bright place with a temperature no higher than +20°C.

Remove condensation from the lid daily and ventilate to prevent mold from forming. If you do notice the first signs of mold, carefully remove it with a toothpick and drop a solution of the drug onto the area. Maksim or .

After the first true leaves appear, the cover can be removed. Sprinkle the strawberry roots (if they are bare) up to the root collar with a small amount of soil. If you notice that the peat columns are settling, add water to the container until completely absorbed, and drain off the excess.

How to feed strawberries

Once every 2 weeks, combine adding water with fertilizing. It is better to feed strawberry seedlings or with a solution.

If the weather permits, from the end of April to the beginning of March you can begin hardening on the balcony or glassed-in veranda. At first, cover the seedlings from direct sun rays and wind. A short-term nighttime drop in temperature to +3...+5°C is even useful.

Planting strawberries in the ground

You can plant seedlings in the ground after June 10. In well-developed seedlings, the roots are visible on the surface of the peat tablet.

Considering that remontant varieties Strawberries bear fruit all season long; the soil for them must be loose and fertile. It is advisable to add humus or well-rotted compost. Its quantity depends on the initial state of the bed. If it is cultivated garden soil, 0.5 buckets of humus is enough for 1 sq.m. If the soil is clayey, double the amount of humus and peat and add 0.5 buckets of sand. The total application rate is 30-40 grams per 1 sq.m. Dig carefully onto the bayonet of the shovel and level it so that there is no slope.

To ensure even rows, stretch the planting cord across the bed. Mark the row with a shallow groove.

Make holes at a distance of 30 cm. Place peat tablets with seedlings.

Carefully fill the remaining space in the hole with loose soil so that the strawberry's growing point (heart) is level with the ground's surface. Compact.

Carefully, so as not to wash away the soil around the bush, water the strawberry seedlings.

And one more tip: It is convenient to grow small-fruited strawberries in narrow beds of no more than 2 rows. The distance between rows is 35-40 centimeters. Can be grown in 1 row along the edge of other crops or fruit bushes, retreating from them by 50-60 cm.

Large quantity rows makes it difficult to regularly pick berries and process plants after the next wave of fruiting.

Experienced gardeners have long been familiar with the benefits of growing everyone’s favorite strawberries from seeds and therefore actively use this method. What are they?

1. Strawberry plantations need constant updating, and it is problematic to buy ready-made seedlings, unlike seeds, which are much cheaper.
2. Often good varieties They do not produce whiskers, which makes their reproduction difficult.
3. Seedlings grown from seeds are younger and stronger than those obtained vegetative way, is not infected with diseases, its fruiting is more abundant and longer.
4. You can quickly and in sufficient quantities obtain seedlings of a new variety of strawberries.

It is very convenient to use peat tablets for growing strawberry seedlings. In them, small seeds will not be lost, there will be no need to sift and steam the soil mixture, and you can also eliminate the picking of seedlings.

If you can provide strawberries with additional lighting at home, then you can sow the seeds at the end of February, when this is not possible - it is better to postpone planting to the first ten days of March.

Activities for preparing strawberry seeds for planting

It is necessary to carry out two procedures: soak the seeds and stratify them. You need to take 2 cotton pads, spread the seeds between them and place them in any container (preferably Plastic container). Then moisten and cover with a lid with holes necessary for ventilation and leave them in this state at a temperature of +15-18⁰C for a couple of days.

Then you need to put them in the refrigerator for 2 weeks - this hardening is called stratification. After this time, the container is again placed in a bright and warm (+20⁰) place and germination is waited for, checking the seeds after 2-3 days.

Video: Planting strawberry seeds in peat tablets

Sequence of planting seeds in peat tablets

As soon as the seeds hatch, the strawberry seeds are planted in peat tablets, which are first “soaked” by placing them in a container and filling them with water. It is added until a column grows from the tablet, after which excess liquid drained.

The hatched seeds are placed in small depressions, which are made with a toothpick. There is no need to sprinkle them with soil, as the germination of strawberries in the light improves.

Rules of care

It is necessary to protect the seeds from drying out. You can place the container in a home greenhouse or cover it with a transparent lid, removing condensation from it daily. Ventilation is also necessary to prevent mold from forming.

The cover is removed when the first leaves appear. If you see bare roots, be sure to cover them with soil. Monitor the condition of the peat tablets: if the columns begin to settle, you need to add water to the container, wait until they are saturated and drain off the excess liquid.

Feeding and hardening

When growing strawberries from seeds in tablets, fertilizing is combined with watering - once every 14 days, using a solution for this mineral fertilizers for seedlings or humates.

You can harden off seedlings on the balcony from the end of April, focusing on outside temperature, initially covering the seedlings from the wind and direct exposure sunlight.

Planting in the ground is carried out from the 2nd decade of June: by this time the strawberries should have grown branched root system. The soil will need to be fertile and loose. To improve garden soil, half a bucket of peat and humus is enough per 1 m2; for clay soil, you will need a bucket and half a bucket of sand for loosening.

Advice: It is convenient to grow small-fruited strawberries in narrow beds of no more than 2 rows. The distance between rows is 35-40 centimeters. Can be grown in 1 row along the edge of other crops or fruit bushes, retreating from them by 50-60 cm

The distance between the holes is maintained at 30 cm, between the rows 35-40 cm. A tablet with a strawberry bush is placed in each, the free spaces are covered with soil, without burying the heart, the whole thing is compacted and watered very carefully. This is where the planting work ends.

Garden strawberries (popularly "Strawberry" or "Victoria") are divided into large-fruited, small-fruited and remontant. Same for early, middle and late.

Typically, garden strawberries are propagated using tendrils and dividing the bushes, but if you want to try new varieties, you purchase new plants in the form of seedlings. True, when purchasing seedlings, you have no guarantee that you got what you wanted.

You can grow your own strawberries from seeds! Try it not difficult . We share the secrets of success...

Typically, a bag contains from 5 to 10 seeds, and more is not needed - this is enough to breed a new variety. Besides, it won’t take up much space on the windowsill.

How to start planting strawberries from seeds?

To grow seedlings you will need seeds and 20 mm peat tablets. The time for planting seeds for seedlings is from January to March. As mentioned above, there are few seeds in a bag, so you will also need a small amount of peat tablets, according to the number of seeds.

For seed germination garden strawberries Light plays the main role, so we install a table lamp near your mini-greenhouse, with an energy-saving lamp screwed into it instead of an incandescent lamp, and install the lamp reflector at a height of 10 - 15 cm above the crops - Thisfourthrule success.

When peat tablets were soaked in a solution at the rate of 25 drops per 1 liter of water, our seedlings in the mini-greenhouse sprouted on day 7, instead of 30 days indicated on the seed package.

First conclusions: Strawberry seedlings in tablets with coconut flakes feel much better than in peat ones!

As soon as the strawberry roots become cramped in the tablet, you will see this by the roots that begin to emerge. Take a small pot, pour soil into the bottom, leaving room for a peat tablet with seedlings, place the tablet and add soil to the top of the tablet - Thistenth rule .

All. By the time the strawberries are planted in a permanent place, i.e. when the danger of return frosts has passed, you will have good and strong seedlings of your own. Find out in Natural Farming and then grow your plants according to the agricultural practices that you consider correct. You can sow strawberries in February, but if lighting is a problem, then sow later! For example, in March. And remember that

Save so you don't lose!

Time for sowing strawberries for seedlings

At home, strawberries are sown as seedlings in late February-early March. In more early dates Strawberries are sown in nurseries when ready-made seedlings need to be put up for sale at the beginning of the season. If there is no such goal, there is no need to rush. If there is no additional lighting, start sowing in the first ten days of March.

Preparing strawberry seeds for sowing - soaking and stratification

You can plant seedlings in the ground after June 10. In well-developed seedlings, the roots are visible on the surface of the peat tablet.

Considering that remontant varieties of strawberries bear fruit throughout the season, the soil for them should be loose and fertile. It is advisable to add humus or well-rotted compost. Its quantity depends on the initial state of the bed. If this is cultivated garden soil, 0.5 buckets of humus and peat per 1 sq.m. is enough. If the soil is clayey, double the amount of humus and peat and add 0.5 buckets of sand. The rate of application of complete mineral is 30-40 grams per 1 sq.m. Dig carefully onto the bayonet of the shovel and level it so that there is no slope.

To ensure even rows, stretch the planting cord across the bed. Mark the row with a shallow groove.

Make holes at a distance of 30 cm. Place peat tablets with seedlings.

Carefully fill the remaining space in the hole with loose soil so that the strawberry's growing point (heart) is level with the ground's surface. Compact.

Carefully, so as not to wash away the soil around the bush, water the strawberry seedlings.

And one more tip: it is convenient to grow small-fruited strawberries in narrow beds of no more than 2 rows. The distance between rows is 35-40 centimeters. It can be grown in 1 row along the edge of other crops or fruit bushes, retreating from them by 50-60 cm.

A larger number of rows makes it difficult to regularly pick berries and process plants after the next wave of fruiting.