Snapdragon (antirrinum) is a popular plant for decorating a backyard, balcony, and terrace. In temperate and cool climates, the flower is cultivated as an annual, since it will not survive winter in open ground. To get early flowering snapdragons, they are grown through seedlings. In this case, the blossoming buds please the eye much longer. In order to get strong antirrinum bushes when the weather warms up, you will need to follow several rules.
Choosing the right soil
Tall varieties of snapdragons will be sown as seedlings in February. Summer residents should take care of purchasing soil in advance. Garden soil is too heavy for growing seedlings. The soil for sowing seeds should be loose, light and nutritious.
Of the ready-made primers, “Universal” or “Floral” are suitable. Such soil contains everything necessary for the active growth of seedlings; it is processed in production to make it safe for plants.
If you still decide to use garden soil, it is improved by adding 2 parts of peat and 0.5 parts of sand. The mixture will need to be disinfected by baking in the oven or steaming in the microwave. Prepare the soil 2 weeks before sowing. In the remaining time, the beneficial microflora will have time to recover.
Features of sowing
Beginners may be intimidated by the fact that the seeds of antirrinum are too small.There is no need to be afraid, you just need to use the correct sowing technology:
- The seeds are poured from the bag onto a white sheet of paper, on which they are clearly visible.
- The leaf is folded in the middle, after which the seeds move to the fold line.
- The paper is brought to the surface and the seeds are evenly distributed on the ground.
- The top of the crops is sprinkled with dry soil without lumps.
- As a result, the seeds should be at a depth of 1 mm.
- The soil is moderately sprayed with a spray bottle.
- The container is covered with a transparent lid or film on top and kept at a temperature of 21-24 °C.
You can use a plastic container, a transparent cake lid, or a wooden box as a container for sowing seeds. There must be drainage holes in the bottom of the container. Crops need to be ventilated daily, removing the cover for 15 minutes.
Temperature regime for seedlings
Until the seedlings appear, the room should be at room temperature. The seeds will hatch in about 8-12 days. After the emergence of seedlings, the temperature regime is changed.
Seedlings need to be kept cool so that they do not stretch out. It is enough to lower the temperature in the room to + 16-19 °C. From this moment they begin to gradually accustom the seedlings to the open air of the room. Every day the film is moved a little and after 3-4 days it is completely removed.
A week later, the temperature is again raised to 23-24 °C. While the seedlings are cool, they are watered very sparingly so as not to cause root rot. At the same time, overdrying of the substrate is not allowed. Due to an acute lack of moisture, seedlings may die.It is convenient to water small plants using a syringe without a needle.
Backlight for snapdragon
Snapdragon is a light-loving crop. Its seedlings need a daylight period of 12-14 hours. When sowing in winter, seedlings will need additional lighting. LED and fluorescent lamps, phytolamps are used for this purpose. The lamp should be located at a height of 30 cm from the plants.
In clear weather, it is turned on for 2-3 hours in the morning and evening. If it is cloudy, the backlight can be left on all day. Additional lighting is usually used until mid-March, until the length of the day increases naturally.
Timely picking
When numerous seeds germinate, the soil in the container will be completely covered with a green carpet. The seedlings quickly increase in growth. At a certain stage, due to the cramped conditions, they will begin to lack nutrition and light. If you do not pick the seedlings in time, their development will slow down.
That is why at the age of one month, the seedlings are planted in separate cups. By this time, the plants have already formed 2-3 true leaves. To extract the seedlings without damage, the soil is watered in advance. Then the tiny plants are taken out with a toothpick or a teaspoon along with a lump of earth and transferred to new containers.
The plants need to be planted at the same level at which they were in the ground until now. After picking, the seedlings are protected from direct sunlight for 3-4 days. Then you can again place the snapdragon on the southern, western or southeastern windowsill. The plants develop well if they receive a lot of warmth and sunlight.
When 5-6 leaves are formed on the antirrinum, the seedlings begin to be watered from a watering can. After the roots of the seedlings have completely entwined the earthen ball, repeated picking is carried out in a larger container. Plants are transplanted into the ground after the threat of night frosts has disappeared. The seedlings are first hardened off for 5-6 days.
