Tilling the soil with copper sulfate in the spring for tomatoes is carried out by many vegetable growers before planting seedlings. This is done so that young seedlings are better accepted and grow faster. Sometimes plants are planted in soil that was purchased at the store. However, it is not always of high quality and people increasingly decide to prepare the soil with their own hands.
This method is more reliable, since a person independently introduces all the necessary elements into the ground.Therefore, before planting tomatoes, you need to familiarize yourself with how to prepare the soil for seedlings.
Soil requirements
In order for tomato seedlings grown at home to bear fruit well, it is necessary to use special soil for planting the seedlings. When preparing the soil for sowing tomatoes, you need to add all the necessary nutrients that the plants need for normal growth and further development. Soil for tomato seedlings must meet a number of special requirements:
- the soil for planting seeds and seedlings must contain the optimal amount of nutrients; it must contain not only organic substances, but also other useful macroelements;
- the structure of the soil should be loose so that young bushes can easily access air;
- the acidity level should not be too high - the optimal indicator is 6-7 pH;
- soil for tomato seedlings should not contain fungal spores and painful microbes that can kill tomato bushes;
- High-quality soil should not contain industrial waste or heavy metals.
Soil components
Before cultivating the land, you need to find out what components it should consist of. There is a standard set of elements that must be used when preparing soil for tomato seedlings. Various mineral and organic elements are added to it.
Peat
This component must be included in the soil for tomato seedlings. It makes the soil looser, which allows it to better absorb and retain moisture. Peat has a fairly acidic environment, so dolomite flour, chalk and deoxidizing agents are often added to it.It also needs to be sieved as it may contain large fibers.
Peat has excellent absorption abilities, so it is often used in greenhouses where the humidity is highest. It constantly absorbs excess moisture and stores it in its pores.
The use of peat in a greenhouse reduces the amount of pathogenic elements. This property is very important in closed ground conditions.
Preparing the soil for tomatoes using peat has a number of advantages:
- the treated soil becomes lighter and begins to allow water and air to pass through better;
- such fertilizer is the best nutrient component for depleted and poor sandy or loamy soils;
- peat is a natural antiseptic with which you can get rid of harmful fungi and bacteria in the soil;
- with its help you can increase the acidity level of the earth.
Leaf soil
This soil preparation is carried out in the fall. The leaves are used to make the soil lighter and looser before planting. They do not contain a large amount of nutritional elements, but they are still very often used.
Leaves that have fallen in autumn are used as the basis for such soil. However, they cannot be collected from all trees. For example, oak leaves cannot be used to prepare soil for tomato seedlings, as they contain a large amount of tannins. It is also better to avoid maple and pine leaves.
The most suitable choice is birch or linden leaves. First, they are laid in several layers and sprinkled with fertile soil.
Sometimes freshly cut grass is placed between the layers. Leaf soil takes quite a long time to prepare – several years. Throughout this time, the layers of leaves need to be mixed several times. If necessary, you can add garden soil, urea and fresh manure to them.
Sand
Most often it is used to loosen the soil for sowing. The best choice for this would be clean river sand without clay impurities.
Preparing the soil for tomatoes with sand allows you to:
- Improve drainage. Quite often it is added to an area with loamy and clayey soil, which has low air permeability and a dense structure. The use of sand makes the soil structure looser.
- Keep warm. Earth mixed with sand warms up much better during the day and cools down more slowly at night. This allows tomato bushes to develop faster.
- Retain moisture. The liquid remains in the soil even on hot summer days. This allows tomatoes to develop even without regular watering.
Before preparing the soil for seedlings, the sand is disinfected. It must be rinsed with water and heated using a gas stove or oven.
Perlite
Spring preparation of the soil for planting tomatoes with perlite is carried out so that the soil absorbs more moisture. It has a reflective property that promotes the development of young bushes. Perlite is added to the top layer of soil under the seedlings so that it reflects ultraviolet rays and prevents the soil from overheating under the sun. The main advantages of perlite include:
- this material does not contain microorganisms and is completely clean;
- its use helps strengthen the weak root system of tomatoes;
- perlite does not cake and provides good breathability;
- has excellent thermal insulation properties that prevent plant roots from overheating or overcooling.
Humus
Humus is applied in the fall under tomatoes.It is recommended to add only overripe humus to the soil for tomato seedlings. If you constantly use fresh, this can lead to the death of tomato seeds and their seedlings.
Quite often, slurry is used to create planting soil. To prepare it, manure is mixed with several liters of water and poured onto the seedlings and soil after watering.
Invalid components
Not all components can be added to the soil for seedlings when preparing the soil mixture at home. There are restrictions that you should be sure to read:
- Organic fertilizers that are in the process of decomposition can harm the growth of seedlings. They emit a lot of heat, which gradually destroys the seeds and seedlings of tomatoes.
- It is not recommended to add soil or sand and clay to the soil for tomato seedlings. It makes the soil denser and heavier, which greatly complicates the flow of air and moisture.
- Do not add soil collected near busy roads to the soil mixture. It contains heavy metals that negatively affect plant health.
Disinfection
Preparing the soil for seedlings begins with its disinfection, during which all larvae and bacteria are removed from the soil. This procedure is carried out to prevent the death of bushes and obtain a good harvest.
You can disinfect the soil using a solution of potassium permanganate. It is prepared from several grams of the substance mixed in a bucket of water. After this, the soil should be sprayed with the resulting mixture. In addition to potassium permanganate, you can use the steaming method.
To do this, pour 2-3 liters of hot water into the pan.Then a clean cloth is attached to the top of the container, into which the soil should be poured. Place the pot with water and soil on low heat and boil for 40 minutes. Under the influence of high temperature, all pathogenic microorganisms will die.
It is also recommended to check the acidity level of the soil in advance. You can do this in several ways:
- use the services of a special laboratory and get tested there;
- use litmus paper to check;
- wild herbs are planted on the site, which do not grow in soil with high acidity.
If the acidity is too high, then I treat the soil with lime or dolomite flour. About 20 grams of substance are consumed per kilogram of soil mass.
Creating a planting mixture
After preparing all the necessary components, you can begin mixing the seed soil. It is not recommended to do this immediately before sowing seeds. Soil preparation is carried out several days before planting so that the soil can settle well and does not form voids after watering. There are several ways to prepare soil for seedlings.
First way
When creating a planting mixture, this recipe is used most often. The same amount of humus, sand, leaf soil and copper sulfate is added to part of the turf soil. All components are thoroughly mixed and added to a mixture consisting of 15 liters of water, 30 grams of sulfate, 40 grams of superphosphate and 15 grams of urea. The resulting solution is poured into the soil in which the seeds will be sown.
Second way
The turf soil is mixed with the same amount of sand and peat. If there is no peat, then you can add purchased prepared soil instead.If necessary, you can add a liter jar of wood ash and three tablespoons of superphosphate to the mixture.
Third way
We prepare a solution from two parts of turf soil, part of bottom sand and humus. Then half a liter of wood ash is added to the resulting mixture. The prepared mixture is applied under the tomatoes in the spring.
Conclusion
Not all people know how to properly prepare the ground for planting tomato seedlings. To understand this, you need to familiarize yourself with what components the soil mixture consists of and in what ways it can be prepared.
