Even the most advanced agricultural technology will not give the expected return when growing tomatoes, if you use low-quality planting material and do not carry out pre-sowing processing. Knowing how to prepare tomato seeds for planting, how to soak tomato seeds according to the rules, you can count on a good harvest.

Biological features of tomatoes

The homeland of the tomato is the tropical regions of Central and South America. The climatic conditions of these places influenced the needs of plants for heat, light, moisture, a certain composition of the soil. For full development, tomatoes must be provided in a complex with all these factors. With a lack of one of them, the yield is significantly reduced.

  • Heat... Tomato is a heat-loving plant. The optimum temperature for its normal growth ranges from 15⁰C at night to 30⁰C during the day. A higher temperature negatively affects the development of plants, a lower temperature stops plant growth.
  • Shine... Tomato is picky about light. With its lack, the leaves turn pale, the buds fall off, the stems stretch out.
  • Moisture... Tomato is a drought-resistant plant that requires low air humidity. Watering is recommended to be rare, but abundant, 2-5 liters for each bush, depending on the variety.
  • Nutrition... The main nutrients of tomatoes are nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium. For the full development of plants, tomatoes require trace elements that affect their growth - manganese, boron, copper, magnesium and sulfur.

Seedlings of tomatoes

Tomatoes are grown in seedling and non-seedling methods. To obtain strong healthy plants, the correct selection of seed material and competent preparation of tomato seeds for sowing for seedlings is important. Experts recommend sowing not freshly prepared, but "matured" seeds, 2-3 years old. Many viruses in seeds lose their harmfulness during this time.

Important! Those who harvest planting material from fruits collected from their site should take into account that the seeds of hybrids marked with the F1 icon cannot subsequently be used.

Seed preparation stages

Preparing cucumber seeds for sowing seedlings

Most gardeners use complex training - they process seeds in several ways. Do I need to soak tomato seeds before planting? Yes, definitely. Even using only one preparation method, soaking, will give a good result.

  • Sorting... When sizing seeds, substandard and damaged seeds are removed, the rest are poured with 5% sodium chloride solution and mixed well. The floating grains are discarded, the rest of the seeds are used for sowing, after having been washed in clean water.
  • Disinfection... Tomato seeds can carry some diseases. Therefore, disinfection is a necessary procedure for preparing tomato seeds for sowing. At home, potassium permanganate is most often used for this purpose. This remedy is effective and safe for humans. The seeds are placed in a 1% solution of potassium permanganate for 20 minutes, then washed. Some gardeners disinfect seeds by soaking in vodka. This method also helps the essential oils evaporate. You can soak in vodka for no more than 15 minutes, then rinse in running water.

Enrichment with microelements helps to accelerate seed germination, early fruiting, and increase productivity. Before soaking tomato seeds before planting, you need to decide which product will be used.The procedure and terms of processing with drugs purchased in stores are indicated on the packaging.

Seed disinfection

Of the most affordable means, boric acid (2 g per 10 l of water), baking soda (50 g per 10 l), copper sulfate (2 g per 10 l) are used. The seeds are kept in a solution of the mentioned substances for 24 hours.

Suitable for soaking and hydrogen peroxide. How to soak tomato seeds before planting: the grains are placed in a 0.4% solution for 12 hours, washed and dried. The procedure increases germination, promotes rapid plant growth, protects against diseases and pests. Watering the seedlings with hydrogen peroxide solution supplies oxygen to the leaves.

To get early tomatoes, the seedlings must be cold resistant, so the seeds must be hardened. They are wrapped in a damp cloth and placed in a warm place for germination, and then in the refrigerator for 16 hours. After that, it is kept for 6 hours at a temperature of 18⁰С. Seedlings from hardened seeds are also "accustomed" to low temperatures.

Seeds are sown in boxes with a previously prepared sod - humus soil in a room with a temperature of 23-25⁰С. After the emergence of seedlings, the night temperature is maintained at 8-10⁰С, the daytime temperature - 18⁰С. When the seedlings grow up, they are planted in a larger container. The picking of seedlings is carried out after the formation of 2-3 true leaves.

Important! Seedlings are prepared for planting in open ground in two weeks, reducing the temperature to 5 ° C. Hardened seedlings withstand even short-term frosts and disease resistance.

Diseases and pests

  • Late blight... The disease develops when cold dewy nights alternate with hot days. It is difficult to save the affected bushes, therefore, the emphasis is on prevention: they disinfect seeds, soil and seedlings with copper-containing preparations, avoid the neighborhood of tomatoes with potatoes.
  • Mosaic... A very dangerous disease, there are no measures to combat it. It is recommended to be proactive: when planting seedlings, avoid mechanical damage, disinfect the soil, observe crop rotation and not plant tomatoes after cucumbers, since tomatoes can be affected by the cucumber mosaic virus.
  • Cotton scoop... The caterpillars of this insect feed on the fruits of the tomato. Moths settle on them in June, during mass flowering, and live until frost. To combat the pest, it is necessary to regularly destroy weeds in order to deprive them of additional nutrition, and spray the plantings with insecticides.
Preparing cabbage seeds for sowing seedlings

Tomatoes are a popular garden crop. A bountiful harvest for gardeners will ensure that tomato seeds are soaked before planting.