Super-powerful tomato seedlings in a brew

You won’t surprise anyone with tangerine peels in a hole with seed potatoes, or fertilizer made from banana peels, but not everyone knows that instead Tea bags can be used as substitutes for peat tablets. Meanwhile, tomato lovers have found a use for them when growing seedlings.

Terms of Use

Tea bags are harvested in winter. Black tea without additives is suitable for seedlings. To prevent mold and mildew, tea bags are dried. The first seedlings can be sown in March. Dwarf tomato varieties can be grown on a glassed-in balcony.

Peat tablet substitutes are easy to make:

• buy a package of universal soil for vegetable crops;
• cut off the top of the bags;
• pour soil into them with a teaspoon;
• tea bags filled with soil are placed on a baking sheet or in a shallow plastic container;
• watered with settled water.

Seeds before planting Soak the seeds in a potassium permanganate solution for 20 minutes, rinse in clean water, and dry. Use a pen or pencil to make 0.5 mm holes in the soil and place one seed in each bag.

Once all the seeds have been spread, the improvised tablets are covered with a thin layer of soil (0.5 mm) and sprinkled with water. Cover the container with plastic wrap and place it in a warm place to wait for the seedlings to emerge.

Picking seedlings in tea bags

Once the seedlings emerge, remove the plastic wrap from the container and bring it into the light. In cloudy weather, illuminate the seedlings with a fluorescent lamp. Pricking out begins when the seedlings reach 4-5 cm in height and have developed several true leaves.

0.5-liter plastic cups are suitable for transplanting. Pricking out seedlings is easy: just pick up the bag and transfer it to the new container. The roots are not damaged during transplanting, the root ball does not crumble, and adaptation occurs more quickly.

Pros and cons of tea bags

This method has few downsides, or rather one. Anyone who has tried sowing tomato seedlings in tea bags, they note that if the tea leaves are not dried well, then flies will start to appear in them and mold will appear.

There are more positive aspects:

• brewing improves the structure of the soil, making it looser;
• Tea leaves contain beneficial substances that improve and accelerate the development of tomato seedlings;
• the roots are not damaged during transplantation.

Beneficial properties

Tea leaves can be compared to natural, environmentally friendly fertilizer. They contain beneficial substances that tomato seedlings need for normal development. Potassium is the highest concentration in tea leaves, which tomatoes need at any stage of growth.

Next comes phosphorus. It is an essential component of all metabolic processes. The development of the seedling root system depends on its presence. The third most important element is calcium. It influences the metabolism (carbohydrate and protein) occurring in plant tissues.

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Other uses for tea leaves

Gardeners find new ones options for using tea leavesDry the tea leaves and add them to the soil mixture intended for seedlings. Use 2 to 3 cups of soil per bucket of soil.

The seedlings are fed with a tea infusion. It is steeped for 24 hours, and the following ingredients are used:

• ½ cup dried tea leaves;
• boiling water 2 l.

Before planting in open ground the seedlings are watered at the roots no more than 2 times.

Conclusion

Vegetable gardeners who enjoy a cup of tea in their spare time will appreciate its benefits. Tea bags can be used for sowing not only tomatoes but also cucumbers, zucchini, and eggplant seeds. This method requires no additional investment, so it's worth trying.