Anyone who at least once grows seedlings of vegetables or flowers may encounter this problem: a strange coating appears on the surface of the soil in the container in which the seedlings grow. If you look closely, it becomes clear that mold has settled there. This phenomenon raises many questions. What to do if mold appears in seedlings? Why does mold form on the ground with seedlings? Where did she come from? Is it harmful to plants and people? Let's try to answer them.
General information about mold on seedlings
Mold is a lower plant organism that can live in soil, air, water, etc. It can spread in the form of individual microscopic branched threads of mycelium and spores.
When parts of the mycelium and spores find themselves in a favorable habitat, they begin intensive reproduction in the surface layers of the soil, in which the underdeveloped root system of seedlings is located. It is not resistant to the developing parts of the mycelium, which penetrates its vascular system.
After some time, the roots of the maturing plant begin to secrete a special substance that suppresses the proliferation of mycelium. Due to this, it loses its inhibitory property. However, if mold appears on the ground with seedlings, the gardener must promptly take appropriate measures to combat it. Otherwise, there is a possibility that the young plant will die before it has time to grow.
Spot control
What to do if spots appear? The fight against white spots on tomatoes is a mandatory measure, the exclusion of which will lead to loss of harvest. In any case, it is necessary to remove the crop from the garden bed, burn it and disinfect the soil, both in the fall and in the spring. There is no need to think that the disease will go away on its own and affect only one bush; this does not happen; if one plant begins to die, then others will begin to wither.
In most cases, treatment is required for crops suffering from fungal and other diseases. Folk remedies and drugs can be used in the fight. The latter are considered much more effective, especially in advanced situations.
Measures to combat diseases that cause white spots
| Name of the provoking factor | Troubleshooting process |
| White spot, septoria | As soon as spots on the leaves are discovered, it is recommended to completely remove the leaf cover and its subsequent destruction, that is, burning, but in a remote place from the garden bed. Then the cut sites are disinfected to prevent infection from getting there. Copper sulfate or charcoal is suitable for this, which is preferable to use for an adult bush with an ovary, as it is safe. After which the tomatoes are sprayed with Bordeaux mixture or copper sulfate. |
| Powdery mildew | First, damaged areas are removed and burned. The remaining shoots are treated with the drug "Zineba". |
| Brown spot | It can only be eliminated by using special drugs. The diseased areas are first removed, then treated with Bordeaux mixture. Disinfection is done every 10 days, repetition rate is 4 times. When growing seedlings in greenhouses, regular ventilation is recommended. |
| Mosaic | Treatment is based on removing diseased areas of the plant and burning them. After this, the culture is watered with skim milk, to which 2-3 tsp is added per 1 liter. urea. |
Why is mold dangerous for seedlings?
White plaque on the soil, as well as on seedlings of any plant (tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, etc.) can cause its rotting and death. Under certain conditions, a fungal infection can begin to actively reproduce in the soil. Mold is an external expression of this problem that requires more detailed study.
Having noticed that the ground with seedlings is covered with white mold, the gardener must immediately take appropriate measures, because young plants do not have the same resistance to fungal infections as adults.
Experts have concluded that the ideal circumstances for the occurrence of this problem are temperature levels varying between 20-22 °C, as well as excessive air humidity. In addition, mold can be caused by insufficient ventilation in the room where the seedlings are located.
Why does the soil in seedlings become covered with white mold?
The ideal conditions for the appearance of white plaque on the ground in seedlings are:
- incorrectly selected or prepared soil (heavy in structure, non-moisture-holding, causing stagnation of liquid);
- increased level of humidity in the air (95% or more) and in the prepared substrate (80% or more);
- too high air temperature (19°C or more);
- lack of ventilation in the room where the seedlings are located;
- insufficient amount of light and ultraviolet radiation, which is blocked by window glass into the room;
- inappropriate size of container in which the young plant grows;
- improper soil moisture regime;
- seedlings are watered with “hard” liquid;
- insufficient drainage at the bottom of the container;
- dry air.
How to remove mold from the soil on seedlings
The best option for preserving the integrity and maintaining the health of young sprouts is to initially prevent the appearance of white plaque on seedlings of tomatoes, cucumbers or other plants. But if this does happen, there are several ways to combat this problem.
Soil replacement
Most often, if the soil is covered with mold in seedlings, experienced gardeners replace the contaminated part of the soil with new, healthy soil. However, some people carry out this procedure many times and do not achieve any significant results due to the fact that the soil begins to become covered again with microscopic fungi in even larger quantities.
Attention! Replacement of soil can only be carried out if the seedlings already have a well-developed root system and this measure cannot harm it.
Folk and chemical remedies
The advantages of folk remedies, as opposed to chemical ones, are that they are safer for a young plant, and also more accessible.
The most common folk remedy that can be useful when seedlings are covered with a white coating is ordinary baking soda. To combat mold, you need to dilute 0.5 teaspoon of sodium bicarbonate in one liter of water and spray young plants with the resulting liquid.
You can also spray the seedlings with an ash solution. To prepare it, you need to take two teaspoons of ash and dilute it in a liter of boiling water. The solution must infuse. In the absence of ash, you can use charcoal or activated carbon.
Despite the advantages of folk remedies, they are not always able to cope with the problem. In this case, the gardener must resort to the use of chemicals that are designed to combat mold.
After germination, mold on the soil and seedlings can be treated with oxychome, cichome, quadris, basezol or cuproxate. These substances are classified as fungicides. They are developed specifically to combat fungal infections.
The fungicide must be dissolved in water. The resulting liquid is intended for spraying a container with seedlings. In addition, this solution can be used as a prophylactic agent by adding it to the soil 2-3 days before planting the seeds. Typically, each drug is sold along with instructions for use and dosage.
You can treat mold on seedlings with biological products such as phytosporin, gamair-SP, alirin-B, etc. However, these products are less effective compared to chemical ones.
How to remove mold from the ground on seedlings by mulching
If the soil in the seedlings becomes moldy, it should be mulched. This event is also a good preventive measure to prevent the occurrence of fungal diseases. During the mulching process, a mixture of charcoal and wood ash (1:2) should be used.
Using river sand
Also, if the seedlings are covered with a white coating, you can pour river sand onto the contaminated soil and fluff it thoroughly.
How to distinguish
Mold and efflorescence can be difficult to distinguish by sight, but simply by touch. Efflorescence is dry and hard to the touch, it is difficult to confuse it with mold: the organic matter is soft, slightly moist, alive. In both cases, the color does not have to be white. For example, the red color of efflorescence indicates that iron and magnesium salts predominate in the water; It appears white when there are a lot of insoluble calcium salts (lime) in the water.
This is why there is little efflorescence if you use soft or settled water. By the way, there is a lot of efflorescence in snow water with excess sodium salts. If you are confident in the quality of the water, and efflorescence appears, the cause may be insufficient drainage, overly fertilized soil, or incomplete wetting of the soil.
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It is especially easy to distinguish a fungal infection from efflorescence. Mold looks like a downy coating, thin threads are visible; Over time, it grows along the walls of the greenhouse. Both mold and efflorescence should not be ignored. You need to take the fact especially seriously when the soil in the greenhouse turns yellow or green; what to do in this case depends on the time of discovery and the age of the plants.
Why do peat pots with seedlings become moldy?
If the peat pots containing the soil with seedlings are covered with a white coating, this means that their bottom part is in constant moisture. In nature, mold spores spread very quickly, they can even be in the air. And the constant wet surface of the container in tandem with high temperature and poor ventilation becomes an ideal environment for the appearance of microscopic fungi.
If the seedlings are not grown in a residential building, then you can resort to treating the surface of the container with vinegar or a household chemical designed to combat mold. Afterwards you should reduce the number of waterings. Ideally, you should stop watering the sprouts and start spraying them with a spray bottle, moistening the soil only in those places where the roots are located.
In addition, to combat fungal diseases, you can use ash by dusting the surface of peat pots with it.
Preventive measures
The best way to combat plaque is to prevent its appearance even before the ground turns white. First of all, the soil used for growing seedlings must be disinfected.
This can be done using temperature treatment: heating in the oven or, conversely, freezing for up to several days. Next, the soil is washed with a weak solution of potassium permanganate and then dried. You can begin planting work.
After the seedlings are planted, it is worth mulching the soil (covering it with mulch on top for protection). It is best to use ash, charcoal or crushed activated carbon as mulch for seedlings. This helps retain moisture at the roots of the plant and prevents mold from forming.
The next important element of prevention is proper watering. Be sure to take these tips into account:
Follow all these measures - and you won’t have to watch the surface of the soil turn white, and your seedlings will be strong and healthy!
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Mold prevention
To prevent mold from appearing on seedlings of cucumbers, tomatoes or other plants, it is necessary to provide them with favorable conditions for growth. To do this, the seeds and soil should be treated before planting. After these preventive measures, the likelihood of contracting fungal infections will be zero.
You can treat the soil in the following ways:
- Fold a large piece of gauze material twice so that it is laid in 4 layers. Place soil in the center. Tie the opposite corners of the fabric to make a bag. Keep it in a double boiler for 50-60 minutes.
- Pour a small amount of water into a metal bucket with a volume of 10 liters and place it on low heat. Place a taganka at its bottom, and place a 5 liter bucket on it with holes in the bottom. This bucket should be filled with soil. This procedure must be carried out within an hour.
- Set the oven temperature to 110°C. Sprinkle soil on a baking sheet and place it in the oven for half an hour.
The treated soil can be used for planting seeds after 14-16 days, during which its microbiological properties will be restored. To prevent the soil from becoming susceptible to fungal diseases, it must be stored in sterile containers.
Seeds can be processed using the following methods:
- Pour boiling water over the planting material. This procedure must be carried out very quickly. It will require very little boiling water.
- Soak the planting material in a manganese solution. The temperature should be within 40°C. The procedure must be carried out for about a quarter of an hour.
