The choice of soil for growing pepper and tomato seedlings is a topic that summer residents can endlessly debate.
According to the expert of the online publication BelNovosti, scientist-agronomist, landscape designer Anastasia Kovrizhnykh , some farmers prefer to use their own garden soil, while others insist on the need to purchase a ready-made soil mixture.
Let's figure out how to choose the right mixture and how to improve it for successful cultivation of perhaps the most important vegetable crops - tomatoes and peppers.
First of all, let us remind you that any purchased soil should be treated with any EM preparation or Trichoderma, which will help get rid of pathogens.
Frost or heat treatment will help eliminate pests and their larvae.
When choosing a soil mixture in a store, consider its acidity. Suitable indicators for tomato and pepper seedlings are 6-6.5 pH.
The ideal soil composition for seedlings of the named crops is humus, black soil and peat. In addition, it would not hurt to add a small amount of sifted sand, coconut substrate and sphagnum - all of them are needed to make the mixture light and breathable.
In such conditions, it will be easier for the roots to obtain oxygen, which will certainly have the most favorable effect on the development of plants.
Earlier, the expert told how experienced gardeners feed seedlings to protect them from pests and diseases and get an early harvest.
Expert: Anastasia Kovrizhnykh
