Pre-winter sowing of seeds - primrose seeds

The advantages of winter crops are explained by a kind of natural selection of plants. That is, the weak die, the stronger survive. In addition, flowers sown in autumn are much more resistant to spring frosts and diseases. Than their counterparts grown on a windowsill or sown in the spring.

It is useless to sow annual heat-loving flowers before winter. These are marigolds, zinnia, salvia, etc. When sown in winter, annuals that grow well include, for example, cornflowers, helychrysum, poppies, marigolds, godetia, clarkia, alyssum, sweet tobacco, lavatera, matthiola, nigella, mignonette, scabiosa, eschscholzia, annual chrysanthemum , annual aster (Callistephus). It is better to sow most of these flowers immediately permanent place. To get earlier flowering, as soon as the snow melts, place arches and cover them with film or thick spunbond.

When to sow seeds before winter

Seeds are sown only after the onset of a steady cold spell so that sprouts do not appear this season. IN middle lane In Russia, this period begins at the end of October–beginning of November.

Seeds are sown in pre-prepared furrows and sprinkled with prepared fertile soil mixed with peat and humus. Before sowing, store the soil in a warm room so that it does not freeze. There is no need to water the crops.

Pre-winter sowing of perennials

Winter sowing for perennial flowers is natural. In nature, ripe seeds fall to the ground and, after waiting for spring, germinate. Moreover, for many of them to germinate, they need to spend some time in a moist state at a low temperature.

This is also a plus for a gardener. For example, in autumn there is not so much to do on earth compared to spring. You can safely start sowing seeds. Slowly prepare the beds or dig up a flower bed, pick out all the weeds, add compost. While they're warm autumn days cover the prepared soil with black film or spunbond so that the seeds germinate weeds and weed them out. And finally, after waiting for a steady cooling, sow the seeds.

Before winter, you can sow seeds of lavender, gentian, aquilegia, primrose, gaillardia, doronicum, carnations, aubrieta, yarrow, beautiful small petal, bellflower, arabis, delphinium. Some plants' seeds cannot be stored for a long time or require special storage conditions. Therefore, winter sowing is the only way to seed propagation. These include corydalis, hellebore, adonis, aconite, liverwort, lumbago, and sanguinaria.

Seeds of some perennial flowers (prolomnik, alpine species bellflower, hazel grouse, gentian, Levisia, saxifrage) generally germinate poorly and can lie in the soil for years. Others require alternating low and low temperatures to germinate. high temperatures. Pre-winter sowing helps to solve this problem positively. These are mostly rare plants, many of them have small seeds, so it is recommended to sow them not directly into the ground, but into some containers. For example, in cassettes, plastic containers, small ceramic bowls, 7–12 cm high, separate for each type.

The optimal composition of the substrate for sowing seeds: 3 parts peat, 3 parts washed river sand(or vermiculite), 1 part garden soil. Do not forget about drainage (gravel, expanded clay with a layer of 2 cm).

It is better to sow perennial seeds in November and even later. If they are very small, then they are pre-mixed with sand, but not sealed. Just press it lightly into the substrate. Label each container so you don’t have to guess what has grown. It is better to place the containers in a shaded part of the garden so that the crops are not dried out by the winds. They weren't flooded autumn rains. In spring it is better to cover it with glass. For example, experienced flower growers In the spring, perennial seedlings with germinating seeds are placed in a cold greenhouse with a removable roof.

References: Magazine "Garden and Vegetable Garden".

Ph.D., Art. scientific co-author Federal Scientific Center for Horticulture named after I.V. Michurina, scientific secretary of the Academy of Non-Traditional and rare plants, member of the All-Russian Society of Genetics and Breeders of the Russian Federation

Do you want to already in early spring your garden or yard is lit up bright colors? Do you want to tinker in the beds, occasionally glancing at a gorgeous flowerbed full of flowering plants when the neighbors are just planting flower seedlings? Do you want to get strong flower plants with maximum immunity? Then you definitely need to read this article and make winter sowings of flower crops. Now we’ll tell you everything about how to do this, what crops to use, when to sow!

But, before we begin a fascinating story about how to correctly and when is the best time to plant grains in the soil, let's talk about the advantages and disadvantages, about the pros and cons of winter sowing of flower crops.

When there are two pieces of news, I always prefer to start with the good, so let me start with the merits of winter sowing flowers.

• Well, of course, this is the very first, earliest spring flowering, days, or even weeks earlier than the “neighbors”, and if you build a small greenhouse and cover the seedlings, it will be absolutely wonderful!
• The second plus is full use sprouts of spring meltwater accumulated in the soil from melting snow, so that a dry spring will definitely not threaten you, especially for those who plant the most luxurious flower beds in their summer cottages.
• Plus the third is natural stratification, or hardening. “If you want to be healthy, harden yourself,” this also applies to seeds. Over the winter, a kind of natural selection will take place, and the strongest and strongest seeds will produce powerful seedlings that will not be afraid of either the vagaries of the weather or diseases and pests.
• Plus the fourth - since the plants are powerful and strong, it means they are resistant to frost and return cold, and this cannot but be to our advantage.
• Fifth plus. Suppose every year we sow only seeds collected with our own caring hands - thus, using winter sowing, without knowing it, we can obtain elite seed material, simply ideally adapted to local climate conditions. And each year will be better than the previous one, both in terms of growth strength and the degree of flowering, coupled with duration.
• The sixth plus is a small head start, a drop of time that can be spent in the spring not on sowing seeds, but on something else.
• Well, a couple of not pluses, but pluses - this is the opportunity for plants to form more developed roots, and, therefore, you and I will have to pay less attention to them in the future in terms of care; and cats will bask in the sun on our windowsills, and not have seedlings standing (although this is not an acquired taste).

But there is also bad news, or rather, the disadvantages or risks of winter sowing of flower crops. There are significantly fewer of them, but, nevertheless, there is always a risk that you will incorrectly determine the sowing time, the weather will warm up, and the seeds will sprout and die.

Early thaws - the same picture, provocation, the seeds “think” it’s spring, but no, then there’s a serious frost and again a lot of attacks.

Well, let’s be honest, annuals germinate much worse when sown in winter than if you scattered the cats from the windowsills and started growing seedlings, just like that...

But we are residents of the 21st century, and therefore we need to somehow change the usual foundations; we boldly sow annuals before winter.

Sowing annuals

The very first and important rule- this means that the seeds of annual crops need to be sown only in already frozen soil, otherwise they will sprout and die. Around the beginning of October, prepare the soil well, choose a site such that melt water cannot wash away the seeds, and so that it is more convenient for you to contemplate the future beauty, and for the future beauty to contemplate the world around you.

Dig up the soil, add 300 g of wood ash per square meter. meter and make holes or grooves. As for the depth of these same holes or grooves, it must be calculated based on the size of the seeds, but usually the largest seeds are not immersed more than 4 cm, and small ones less than a centimeter (winter is ahead).

Next, stock up on loose and fertile soil so that the holes or furrows can be properly covered later. For this, it is ideal to use humus or a mixture of compost and river sand in equal parts, or the same from river sand and humus.

Around November, you can safely start sowing annual flowers. At the same time, you can sow both in November and at the very beginning of December, trying to sow twice as thick as usual in spring.

After sowing, the seeds are sprinkled with the prepared mixture, and sprinkled on top leaf litter, and to prevent it from being blown all over the area by the wind, they are also covered with spruce paws (they retain snow beautifully).

How to plant in the snow, you ask? It’s simple - they trample it thoroughly, crush it and place the seeds, and then sprinkle it with one of those mixtures described above, which are kept warm in our house. You can throw a snowball on top.

Proven annual flower crops that are sure to sprout in the spring are: summer adonis, alyssum marine, Chinese aster, blue cornflower, Chinese carnation, godetia grandiflora, graceful gypsophila, annual delphinium, dimorphotheca notemata, dimorphotheca rainbaum, Iberis bitter, Iberis umbelliferous, calendula officinalis, Clarkia marigold, Eschscholzia californica, Collinsia varifolia, Cosmos bipinnate and Cosmos sulfur-yellow, Chrysanthemum keeled, Chrysanthemum sativum and Chrysanthemum crowned, Lavatera three-month, Antirrhinum, Poppy self-seeded, Malcolmia maritima, Matthiola bicornuum , fragrant mignonette, dark purple scabiosa, Drummond phlox .

We sow perennials too

The principle is the same: prepare the soil well, dig with a shovel full of bayonets, remove everything plant remains, weed rhizomes, add 350-400 g of wood ash or a teaspoon of potassium sulfate per square meter. Next, we make holes or grooves, essentially the same as for annual flower plants. Perennials are usually sown from the first ten days of October to the beginning of November. The mixture needed to cover the sown seeds can be used the same as we described above. Choose the option you like and sprinkle it, and most importantly, keep it warm so that it does not freeze by the time of sowing.

In the fall, you can safely sow such perennial flowering plants as aconite, Alpine aster and New Belgian aster, buzulniki, species heuchera, gypsophila paniculata, dicentra, oriental poppy, spurge, rudbeckia, not terry varieties nivyanika.

I have already written about winter sowing. The time has come to tell you which flowers not only make sense to sow before winter, but are even very necessary, because for some crops this is almost the only way to get seedlings.

It’s not a sin to remind about the benefits of winter sowing regarding flower crops:

– earlier and long flowering, especially if you cover the beds with film or non-woven fabric early in the spring;
– natural stratification and natural selection of the strongest seedlings;
– maximum advantage of melt water;
– obtaining healthy plants that are resistant to frost, pests and diseases;
– freeing up time and window sills for spring work .

Of course, sowing before winter can turn out to be a failure, but in the spring we are not immune from losses. In order for crops to sprout well in the spring, you need to take two things into account: important points: guess the timing of sowing and prepare shelters for plants in early spring, when, after prolonged thaws, serious frosts may strike.

In the middle zone, winter sowing is carried out in early November, when the air does not rise above 0 degrees during the day, and the soil in the upper layer is slightly frozen. I won’t repeat about preparing beds for sowing, everything is the same as in the case of vegetables.

Let me remind you how you can carry out winter sowings without having prepared beds. I mean sowing in planting containers. Moreover, for crops that do not tolerate transplantation well, I sow 3-4 seeds in cassettes in each “hole”, and I dig the cassettes themselves onto the growing bed and cover them with snow.

If you have identified places in the flower beds, you can trample the snow and scatter the seeds of mignonette, matthiola or alyssum and other annuals directly over it.

Of the annual and biennial crops suitable for winter sowing:

summer adonis, ageratum, annual alyssum, Chinese aster, cornflower, graceful gypsophila, Turkish carnation, godetia, Ajax's delphinium, dimorphotheca notched and rainforest, iberis, calendula, clarkia, cosmos, kochia, lavatera, lacfiol, leftwort bicornuum, snapdragon, poppy , matiola, nigella damask, fragrant mignonette, dark purple scabiosa, fragrant tobacco, Drummond phlox, annual chrysanthemum, eschscholzia. Almost all dried flowers and annual cereals.

From perennial crops:

aquilegia, aconite, arabis, alpine and new Belgian aster, buzulnik, gaillardi, heuchera, gypsophila paniculata, gentian, delphinium, dicentra, doronicum, bells, lavender, lychnis, lupine, oriental poppy, matricaria, small petals, spurge, hellebore, aubrietta, pyrethrum , primrose, popovnik (not double varieties), rudbeckia, yarrow, echinacea.

Seeds aconite, adonis, hellebore, liverwort, lumbago, sanguinaria and corydalis They lose their germination very quickly, so pre-winter sowing is a chance to get your seedlings.

Just remember to put up signs and make notes on detailed plan landing

Autumn has already come into its own, the gardens are filled with the bright colors of the new season - asters, chrysanthemums and dahlias are blazing with bright colors, the leaves are turning yellow... the real cold is just around the corner, and with it the end of the next gardening season.

However experienced gardeners They know that autumn is a time of many worries and troubles necessary to prepare for the next season. Among them are autumn sowings.

Pre-winter sowing of annual and perennial flowers involves planting already on frozen ground - in late October - early November, or even on snow - in December - January. However, you need to start preparing for winter sowing of flowers now: prepare the soil, ridges and, of course, stock up on seeds.

If you have never sowed before winter, the very thought of this method of growing flowers can make you shiver chilly: how can you throw them, so tender, right into the snow? In fact, winter sowing of many flowers often gives the best results.

Pros and cons of winter sowings

So, why do you need to sow flowers in frosty weather?

In natural habitats, flowers, as a rule, reproduce completely independently. After ripening, the seeds fall into the soil, spend the winter under the snow and begin to germinate with the first rays of the spring sun. That is, such sowing creates natural conditions growth (we are, of course, talking mainly about frost-resistant plants).

In this situation, the plants harden and grow stronger and more resilient than when grown in greenhouse conditions. They are quite capable of withstanding spring frosts, are disease resistant and have good growth. In addition, hardened plants develop healthier and deeper root system, which allows them to obtain water from deeper layers of the soil. And this, in turn, means better resistance to drought and weeds.

By the way, annuals sown in autumn usually bloom about a week earlier than their counterparts sown in spring.

In addition, in the spring you won’t have to worry about whether the ground has warmed up enough for planting. The plants will germinate themselves at the most optimal time for them. Hence another undoubted advantage: freeing up your time in the spring and empty window sills! Pre-winter sowing eliminates the need to tinker with seedlings of these crops.

As for the disadvantages of autumn sowing of annual crops, we can mention, first of all, the relatively low germination of seeds (when compared with the seedling method of cultivation). It is for this reason that when sowing in autumn, seeds are usually sown much thicker than in spring, and this, in turn, increases seed consumption.

Winter thaws also pose a danger to winter crops. The seeds may awaken prematurely, in which case, of course, all the sprouts will die in subsequent frosts.

And, of course, not all flowers can be planted in cold weather. Heat-loving exotics native to southern latitudes will simply die under the snow.

But plants grown in this way will be much stronger than seedlings, and as for germination, you will always be able to notice in the spring those crops that did not germinate or germinate poorly, and duplicate the sowing in a timely manner.

As for perennials, there are even more reasons to sow in the fall. The fact is that many species of perennial ornamental plants for seed germination is necessary - that is, cold treatment. In order to grow these flowers in seedlings, soaked seeds are kept in the refrigerator for 2-3 months. However, it is much easier to sow these seeds in the ground before winter, and then stratification will take place naturally without much effort on your part.

Most perennials develop much more successfully when sown in winter. And if you cover the seedlings with film in the spring, you can often even achieve their flowering in the first year of life.

As for the germination rate of perennial seeds during autumn planting, it is significantly higher than that of annual plants.

Autumn sowing of annuals

The first rule when planting annual crops in the fall is to sow into already frozen ground. Otherwise, the seeds may germinate prematurely and die at the first frost.

However, it is necessary to begin preparing the soil in advance - at the end of September - beginning of October, before the ground freezes. It is worth carefully planning the area for planting so that in the spring the seeds are not washed away by melt water.

To prepare the soil in the selected area, it is necessary to dig up, apply fertilizer and make shallow grooves or holes. The depth of the grooves is calculated based on the selected plant species: for large seeds a depth of about 4-5 centimeters is needed, for medium seeds - about 2 centimeters, for small ones - no more than 1 centimeter.

In addition, it is worth stocking up on a substrate for sprinkling the seeds in advance. Because during the winter upper layer the soil may become very compacted, which will make germination difficult; it is recommended to sprinkle the crops thin layer peat, humus or a light soil mixture of compost, peat with sand or humus with sand.

The actual sowing can be started in two periods: in November-December, when the top layer of soil freezes, or in the snow, in December-January. In any case, the seeds should be sown more densely than in the spring.

When sowing in late autumn, the seeds are placed in furrows and sprinkled with prepared soil mixture. On top, you can additionally cover the crops with a layer of fallen leaves.

For winter (in December-January, when the snow layer is at least 25 centimeters) sowing, the soil is prepared in the same way (digging, fertilizing), however, there is no need to make furrows in the ground, since the seeds are sown directly in the snow.

The snow is trampled down, grooves are made in it, and seeds are placed in them. The crops are sprinkled on top with a layer of prepared (unfrozen) soil mixture or peat and additionally with a layer of snow.

In spring, the seedlings will need to be thinned out.

Some of the annuals suitable for winter sowing are: dimorphotheca notemata and rain, bitter and umbelliferous, collinsia varifolia, double-pinnate and sulfur-yellow, keeled, sowing and crowned, malcolmia maritima, Drummond, .

Autumn sowing of perennials

The soil for autumn sowing of perennial flowers is prepared in the same way as for annual flowers: they dig it up, apply fertilizer and make furrows. Sowing begins from mid-October to early November. The seeds are also sprinkled with a thin layer of prepared soil mixture.

In the spring, after the snow has melted, it is advisable to cover the seed bed with film. This way you will speed up the flowering of perennials, and at the same time protect the seeds from birds and spring rains. After the shoots appear, the film should be removed.

The busy summer has passed, the harvest has been harvested, and the work is almost finished. gardening work. A restless and beautiful autumn has quietly approached.

It's time to start the next season so that in the spring we can enjoy the first gifts of our garden. After all, every summer resident knows how short of free time is in the spring - every hour is expensive.

So why don't we make it easier for ourselves? spring work and not hold our favorite vegetables and flowers.

• Sowing before winter Suitable for cold-resistant crops. These are those plants whose leaves do not have pubescence (the edge of the leaves protects the plants from the heat).

If such species are planted in the spring, they will sprout within a month.

Thanks to pre-winter sowing, we gain time - the shoots of our winter-hardy vegetables will appear earlier (by about 2-3 weeks), which means the harvest will too.

Seeds planted in the fall will undergo winter hardening and the vegetables grown from them will better tolerate frost.

Sowing before winter - pros and cons

Why are they needed at all? autumn chores? Maybe we should leave everything until spring?

Well, no, because by choosing the right seeds and sowing correctly in the fall, we will get many advantages:

1. Frost-resistant plants will sprout together; they are stronger and more resilient.
2. Vegetables obtained from such crops are more attractive in appearance.
3. In the spring, we will free up more time for ourselves (after all, some of the varieties will already be successfully sown/planted).
4. Considering that the winter harvest is harvested 2-3 weeks earlier, you can have time to grow early-ripening types of vegetables in the vacated beds.

But is everything so perfect? Of course not. Pre-winter sowing also has pitfalls.

After all, it is not always possible to guess what winter and spring will be like. If the winter period drags on, the soil becomes compacted, which hinders the success of seedlings.

Yes, and it is quite difficult to determine the exact timing of sowing. Modern climate- an unpredictable thing, winter can come suddenly, or it can “delight” gardeners with slush.

Therefore, there is a risk of seeds freezing or germinating too early, which will die at the first frost.

But these unpleasant surprises can be smoothed out and an excellent harvest can be reaped.

To do this, you need to know some of the nuances of winter sowing. We will tell you about this.

So, seven smart steps for this event:

Step 1. Selecting the “winter residents” of the garden

What to sow before winter? There are a lot of cold-resistant crops:

• Carrots (Incomparable, Nantes 4, Moscow winter, Vitamin 6, Shantane 2461). Winter carrots are not afraid of the carrot fly (it is not damaged by it). Sowing carrots before winter produces larger fruits enriched with vitamins.
• Beetroot (Egyptian flat, Cold-resistant 19, Moscow winter, Podzimnyaya 474, Losinoostrovskaya 13).
• Head lettuce (Berlin yellow, Red head).
• Turnip (small-growing varieties: Danilovsky 312, Myachkovsky, Strigunovsky).
• Spinach (Victoria). Spinach is not at all afraid of the cold. Fresh herbs can please you with a harvest even in winter (it is collected from under the snow).
• Dill (Gribovsky).
• Garlic (purple-striped).
• Parsley (leaf Ordinary, root Bordovik sugar).
• Pasternak (Student, Round). In such a crop, the seeds can very quickly lose their viability - winter sowing will only benefit parsnips.
• Radish (Persistent, Rose Red).
• Onion (Ellan, Bessonovsky, Stuttgarten, Arzamassky, Strigunovsky, Danilovsky, Myagkovsky 300). Onion sets, especially small ones (up to 1 cm in diameter), are very difficult to store until spring; they simply need to be planted for the winter.

Suitable for sowing before winter are cumin, fennel, sage, katran, salad mustard, rhubarb, sorrel, watercress, horseradish roots, Chinese cabbage, borage (borage), corn, sunflower.

Have you ever sowed flower seeds before winter? So be sure to try them, because they autumn planting has its advantages - plant hardening, better seedlings, good growth, resistance to diseases and weather conditions.

The following annuals can be sown before winter: alyssum, aster, cornflower, godetia, iberis, cadendula, cosmos, poppy, nigella damask, eschscholzia, clarkia, amaranth and some others.

Of the perennial flowers for winter sowing, seeds of such crops as: gaillardia, doronicum, Carpathian and peach-leaved bells, lychnis, lavatera, carnation, chamomile, aubrieta, aquilegia, delphinium, primrose, yarrow, arabis and others are suitable.

Step 2. Choose a location

We need areas that dry quickly in the spring, fairly level in relief, with good drainage and highly fertile soil.

These should be warm, elevated areas with a southerly slope, protected from cold winds by dense hedges or trees.

Choose places where heavy snow does not accumulate. In the spring it will take a long time to melt and can flood the crops.

Advice. If the selected area is located in a lowland (or with high lying groundwater), make the beds raised (30-40 cm high). Ideally, the height of the beds should be up to 15 cm (except sandy soils, sandstone beds are made a little higher).

Step 3. Determine the deadlines

It is better to be late with sowing before winter than to hurry. The main condition for such seeding is that the plants do not germinate in the fall.

The best time for winter planting is when the ground temperature drops to +3°C (at a depth of about 5 cm), when warming is no longer expected.

In this case, the air temperature should be about 0°C. The most optimal time: a week to a week and a half before the onset of cold weather.

• In the conditions of the central Non-Black Earth Region ( European part Russia), such a period begins in mid-October and lasts until early November (in the northern regions two weeks later, in the south from mid-November to early December).

It is very important not to miss these days; it is during this period that seeds planted for the winter will not be able to germinate in the fall and will wait in the beds for the onset of spring.

If you hurry, the seeds will begin to germinate already in autumn period and die with the onset of cold weather.

Step 4. Prepare the beds

We need to prepare the soil in advance, even in warm weather (September-October).

For sowing before winter, more stringent requirements are imposed on the soil than for spring sowing.

♦ Regular garden bed. We will use it for winter sowing of vegetables and herbs in the southern regions:

1. After harvesting, the soil must be carefully dug up and large clods of soil must be broken up.
2. If it is very dry, water the soil. Water will awaken dormant weeds and they will make themselves known.
3. Completely clear the soil of emerging weeds.
4. Add fertilizer (humus, peat, or compost).
5. Cold-resistant crops love loose soil, so we need to add additional leavening agent (sawdust or sand) to the soil. Baking powder is mixed with fertilizer.
6. Level the ground well with a rake.
7. Make grooves to a depth of 1-10 cm (the depth depends on the type of plant).

♦ Warm bed. Its arrangement is practically no different from the usual one.

The only difference is that we need to remove the soil from the trench and lay a 30-40 cm layer of manure (goat, horse and sheep).

Pour fertile soil 20-30 cm high on top of it and water it very well.

Then mulch the prepared furrows.

• Decaying natural components will abundantly supply the earth with heat and create the most comfortable conditions for sowing before winter.

Seeds can also be planted in already frozen grooves, covering them with fresh soil on top.

To do this, store the soil in advance. Prepare mulch (spruce branches, leafy branches).

We will cover the beds with mulch to a layer of about 15 cm when cold weather sets in.

In spring, mulch is removed immediately after the snow melts (if it is not removed on time, seedlings will be too late and rare).

Advice. If you are just starting to develop a new area, set aside one bed for winter sowing, and plant the rest with green manure until spring.

Step 5. Preparing the seeds

Seeds for winter sowing are used absolutely dry (otherwise they will begin to germinate ahead of time).

They are sown in prepared beds and covered with a 1.5-2 cm layer of peat, compost or fertile soil.

• Many gardeners advise using pelleted seeds (placed in clay tablets). You can experiment with such seeds, because the clay capsule will serve additional protection seeds from hungry rodents.

How many seeds do you need? Here opinions are divided. You can hear from experts that when sowing before winter, the number of seeds needs to be increased by 30-50%.

But there is also the opposite statement that an excess of seeds will oppress their fellow tribesmen. Therefore the most optimal solution– sow seeds in the usual quantity (as in spring).

The trick of an experienced gardener. If you did not have time to sow the seeds before the first snow, you can use them for original stratification:

1. After the arrival of consistently cold weather, pack the seeds in linen bags and dig into the ground to a depth of a spade.
2. At the end winter period take them out, dry them and plant them as usual (spring sowing).

Thanks to this method, the seeds will receive additional hardening and will not be afraid of various diseases.

But this method is only suitable for parsnips, carrots, caraway seeds, katran, onions (any kind), lovage, fennel, parsley, dill and tomatoes.

Other crops do not need stratification.

Step 6. Sowing before winter

On light soils, seeds need to be planted half a centimeter deeper than you do in the spring (taking into account the layer of mulch).

It is necessary to mulch - this guarantees the safety of seeds in the cold and the receipt of good and friendly shoots in the spring.

Mulch consumption is up to 4 kg per square meter. m. The depth of planting of seeds depends on the type of plant:

• Celery: its seeds are very small, so when sowing they are only sprinkled with compost/peat. If seeds are buried deep into the ground, they may not germinate.
• Beetroot, leaf parsley, dill: 2-2.5 cm.
• Onion sets (bulb diameter up to 1 cm): 3-4 cm.
• Chernushka, dill: 1.5-2 cm.
• Leeks: 8-10 cm.
• Carrots: 1-1.5 cm.
• Spinach: 2.5-3 cm.

Advice. If unexpected snow falls, don't worry. Just rake it off and sow it before winter, sprinkling the seeds fertile soil, peat, or compost. They will survive the cold safely.

Carefully place the seeds on prepared, frozen beds and sprinkle with warm soil.

Place a layer of mulch on top of it. There is no need to water the crops - in the spring, the awakening plants will have enough melting snow.

Seeds that are moistened in the fall may swell and die in the cold.

Nuances of winter sowing of various crops.

♦ Celery. The fragrant vegetable requires very loose soil enriched with humus. It should be sown before winter in light, open areas.

We dig up the soil to a depth of 25-30 cm. The seeds must be planted according to the 45x10 cm pattern.

♦ Beetroot. Nutritious beetroot will develop well in areas where there has been no organic fertilization for 1-2 years. Beets love mineral supplements.

In order for our beets to grow healthy and acquire an intense color, plant them for the winter in lighted places, with deep soil water.

• If the waters are located close to the surface, make beds for it about 25-30 cm high. Avoid clayey, overly oxidized soils. Excess acidity can be eliminated by adding ash, chalk, lime or dolomite flour to the soil.

Beets will feel good after peppers, potatoes, tomatoes, onions and cucumbers.

We dig up the soil to a depth of 25-30 cm (at the same time add potassium-phosphorus fertilizers, ash and humus).

But winter sowing for beets should be done a little later than other crops (late October-early November). Leave a distance between seeds of 7-8 cm. The row spacing is about 25-30 cm.

There is a popular belief that it is best to plant beets for the winter - after the leaves have fallen from the cherry tree.

To further protect the planting from frost, cover it with fallen leaves, sawdust or pine needles, and sprinkle snow on top (all this must be removed in the spring, as soon as the snow begins to thaw).

Immediately after this, add the beets nitrogen fertilizer and cover it with film (remove it after the first shoots appear).

♦ Carrots. This "vitamin factory" really needs fertile soil, so use more peat, humus or compost.

Loamy, floodplain soil, slightly oxidized or neutral, would be ideal for it.

If the soil is heavy, add sawdust (necessarily semi-decomposed). The area must be protected from the wind.

• Avoid places with slopes for winter planting carrots. Flood waters will easily wash away the plant's seeds in the spring.

Before winter, carrots are planted at the end of November, in slightly frozen ground.

Immediately before sowing, add superphosphate (if the soil is depleted, add nitrogen fertilizer at the rate of 15-20 g per m²).

The soil is dug up to a depth of 25-30 cm. Carrot seeds, after sowing before winter, are covered with soil 1-1.5 cm high, and peat/humus is placed on top to a height of 2-3 cm. Leave the distance between the ridges 20-25 cm.

♦ Bow. Onion crops love places where carrots, cucumbers, potatoes or tomatoes used to grow.

When you prepare the soil for winter sowing of onion crops, use mineral and organic fertilizers.

Make the beds for onions about two meters deep.

• Onion "on a turnip". The seeding depth is 3-5 cm, the distance between seeds is 10-12 cm.
• Onion "on a feather". Plant the plant bulbs at a distance and to a depth of 2-3 cm.
• Onion sets. Plant to a depth of 5 cm, with a distance of 15-20 cm.

To further enrich the soil before sowing before winter, add ½ bucket of humus and ¼ bucket of sand.

Onion crops love space, so plant them in a checkerboard pattern. After planting, the soil should be compacted, and with the onset of cold weather, sprinkled with sawdust, and additionally lay dry branches on top.

As soon as the onion makes itself known with its first shoots, it needs to be fertilized.

Use superphosphate (30-40 g/m²). During bulb formation, add potassium chloride (10 g/m²).

In warm spring, it needs to be watered 2-3 times weekly (consumption 5-10 l/m²).

As soon as the onion is ripe, watering stops.

After 10-14 days, it must be carefully dug up, cleared of soil and left in the garden for 1.5-2 weeks.

Then tie it into braids or trim the dried feathers 3-4 cm from the bulb.

Our onions should be stored in a dry room at normal room temperature.

♦ Garlic. Garlic winter crops are planted with bulbs (aerial bulbs) and cloves.

Garlic needs neutral, very loose soil, with deep soil water.

Places suitable for garlic are after cabbage, tomatoes, cucumber, pumpkin, pepper, and eggplant.

• It is impossible to sow garlic before winter in areas where this year added manure - the plant can produce abundant tops and looser heads.

Larger cloves are deepened into the ground by 5-7 cm.

Garlic bulbs are planted 3 weeks before the onset of cold weather, the aerial bulbs are placed 2-3 cm deep in the ground. A distance of 20-25 cm is left between the rows.

To plant garlic before winter, the soil should be generously fertilized with compost (15-20 liters per m²), and ash should be added before planting (1-1.5 liters per m²). Or potassium-phosphorus fertilizer (15 g/10 l of water per m²).

If the soil of your site is too heavy, add sand. For mulching, it is better to use fallen leaves or spruce branches.

Step 7. What to do in spring

By early spring As soon as our first shoots appear, we thin out the plants. If the seedlings appear too early, the beds can be covered with agrofibre or greenhouse film.

• Agrofibre is more successful when used for sowing before winter, since it allows air to pass through perfectly (there is no need to worry about unnecessary overheating) and such shelter does not require the installation of a frame.

In the future, we only need to clear the plantings of weeds and water our future harvest.

Sprouts can be fed organic fertilizers. If you notice that seedlings are rare and significant sifting is observed, the areas can be reseeded.

Very often, winter sowing is combined with further spring planting.

Advice. We will not be able to predict good germination. If you have not noticed the activity of pre-winter sowing before May, carry out duplicate sowing. In the south, the success/failure of winter sowing can be judged already in early April.

Beware of voracious moles! Protect your plantings from them using repellent granules, smoke bombs or ultrasonic barriers.

Other pests and diseases do not threaten our early shoots.

Harmful aphids can cause problems, but almost always outbreaks of their activity occur at a time when the crop is already well formed.

Now, dear readers, you know how to sow plants before winter. These events may seem very risky to you.

But this is not entirely true if you carefully consider these simple planting rules and carefully follow them.

Don't be afraid to experiment! Plant at least a couple of beds before winter and you will see how much easier it will be for you in the spring.

And now I suggest you look short video on this topic.

See you soon, dear readers, and happy landings!