This Asian native was worshiped in India, Iran and Ceylon, and in Greece he was considered a royal plant. But only Europeans for a long time considered this plant harmful, it was believed that its smell can turn a person into a scorpion. What kind of gardener are we talking about? All this is about basil. He really took root in Europe for a long time, but then won the hearts of Italians and Spaniards, and then won the love of exquisite gourmets - the French.
Today, many gardeners in
central Russia are ready to grow it, they are only wondering when to sow basil for seedlings in order to try spicy herbs early and to collect their seeds. Before telling about this, we recall some features of this plant.
Botanical characteristic
To begin with, basil is a southern plant and tolerates very little cold, even quite insignificant by our standards, but he loves the hot sun and moisture-permeable and well-aerated soils. This plant belongs to the family of Labrum, or Lamiaceae, and is scientifically called Ocimum basilicum.
In our conditions, basil is an
annual plant. His root system is shallow and fibrous. The stem is tetrahedral and branched. Depending on the variety, plants come in different heights (from 30 to 90 cm) and colors, have a variety of aromas and tastes, and differ in leaf shape.
This plant blooms in August with small pink or white flowers, which are collected in fairly long, about 30 cm, inflorescences. Then, in place of the flowers, fruits are formed with four black nuts, the diameter of which does not exceed 1.5 mm.
Botanists have about 70 species of basil that grow in the wild, but no more than 10 of the most common species are grown in gardens and pot culture.
Kinds
In our gardens, to obtain fragrant spicy greens, as well as melliferous plants that attract pollinating insects, basil species such as:
- ordinary (Ocimum basilicum);
- fragrant (Ocimum basilicum);
- lemon hybrid (Ocimum x citriodorum);
- peppermint (Ocimum menthifolium);
- small-leaved (Ocimum basilicum minimum);
- purple (Ocimum basilicum var. purpurascens);
- subtle (Ocimum sanctum Vana Tulsi);
- eugenol (Ocimum gratissimum).
Each of these species has its own characteristics and differs from the others in the color of the flowers and leaves, the taste and aroma, the size of the bush, but the time when sowing basil for seedlings is the same for everyone. It differs only in climatic conditions and features of the region of your residence. If there is a greenhouse or a greenhouse on the garden plot, then you can sow a little earlier.
How to grow?
Having decided on the type and variety, it is necessary to clarify when to sow basil for seedlings. In the southern regions, this plant is grown by direct sowing in the soil, but in the middle zone of Russia this approach is risky: in late May and early June, return frosts come that can destroy the tender and heat-loving basil seedlings. You can sow in the tenth of June, but then you can get spicy greens only by July, but the seeds will not have time to ripen.
If you decide to treat your family and friends with this fragrant plant at the very beginning of summer, then you can grow basil through seedlings, which can later be transplanted into the open ground or into a greenhouse or greenhouse.
In addition to growing seedlings and direct sowing of seeds, basil can be propagated by cuttings. For this, one of the shoots is cut off from the plant, a slice is dipped into any root formation stimulator and placed in a container with water. In about a week or two, roots will appear, and after 14 days such a seedling can be planted in open ground.
Planting seeds
In order to calculate when to plant basil for seedlings, it is important to remember that when transplanting seedlings in open ground, their age should be 45-60 days. Based on the conditions of the middle band, this is approximately the end of March - the beginning of April. Before embarking on a landing, you need to prepare everything you need:
1. Seedling boxes or other containers.
2. The soil mixture.
3. Seeds.
4. Glass or plastic wrap.
Soil consisting of equal shares of peat, garden soil and humus is placed in seedling boxes. Basil is responsive to fertilizers applied to the soil, so before starting to plant the seeds, the soil substrate can be shed with the following solution: ½ teaspoon of urea, potassium sulfate, superphosphate and potassium chloride.
Since planting basil seeds is quite simple, even the most inexperienced gardener will cope with this: you just need to put them in the hole to a depth of no more than 1 cm and lightly sprinkle with moist soil. Then compact the soil by hand so that there are no air plugs. Capacities need to be covered with a film or glass and put in the warmest place.
When growing basil through seedlings, it should be remembered that the optimum temperature for germination is +20 ° C ... + 25 ° C. Under this temperature regime, seedlings will appear on day 7-10. If within these terms they did not hatch, it is worth waiting another week. Some varieties germinate slowly and not simultaneously. As soon as the first sprouts appear, the containers with them need to be transferred to a well-lit window sill.
Is it necessary to transplant?
Some gardeners, talking about how to grow basil from seeds, recommend replanting seedlings when the first or second real leaf appears. If there are several plants in one container, then, indeed, they need to be planted in order to create optimal conditions for development for each seedling. But if in small containers seeds were planted one or two little things, then it makes no sense to disturb the plants with a transplant. But you need to feed basil at this time. For this, 4 g of superphosphate and wood ash, 2 g of ammonium nitrate are dissolved in one liter of water. This top dressing should be repeated every two weeks.
How to care for seedlings?
If you figured out how to sow basil for seedlings, then caring for it will not be difficult for you. Weak and weak plants should be removed in a timely manner. If the seeds are planted in one container, it is advisable to observe a distance of 3-5 cm between the seedlings, thinning out the plantings. This will avoid transplanting and picking.
The main requirement for caring for basil seedlings is to prevent both waterlogging and drying out the soil.
So we figured out how to grow basil from seeds. Agree that this is not very difficult?