Mint Seed Planting Method and Germination Time Explained in Detail
Mint is both a plant for beautifying the garden and a very good Chinese medicinal herb as well as a seasoning, so growing mint has a very wide range of uses for private individuals. So how should mint be grown, how long after sowing mint seeds will they germinate, and what methods can we use to prompt mint seeds to germinate quickly?
Mint Seed Planting Method
1. Basic information on sowing mint
Propagating mint by sowing is still very simple. The sowing time is between March——June, or in September. The flowering time is generally June——August.
2. Mint propagation method by sowing
If mint is sown indoors, its sowing period is very long, and sowing can be done from winter to early summer. When sowing, choose relatively loose and airy soil, then keep the soil moist, and simply sow the seeds on top of the moist soil. After sowing, do not cover the seeds with soil; you can cover them with plastic film to keep the soil moist. The temperature should be kept between 21℃——25℃, and generally seedlings will emerge in 1——2 weeks.
When the mint seedlings have grown to a certain extent, they can be transplanted. When transplanting, move them into flower pots with a 10——12cm diameter, and the light can be full sun or half sun. In the later stages of care, watering should follow the rule of watering when dry and wet.
Before mint blooms, it needs to be harvested in time. Pick the fresh leaves and store them for use. In autumn, pay attention to cutting off the old stems and so on.
How Long Mint Seeds Take to Germinate
After mint seeds are sown, it takes about 1~2 weeks for the seeds to germinate. If you want mint seeds to germinate as soon as possible, you can pre-sprout them.
Steps for Pre-sprouting Mint Seeds
1. Preparation for pre-sprouting: prepare mint seeds, ordinary facial tissue, a mineral water bottle, and a large plate.
2. Pre-sprouting steps:
① Pre-sprouting mint seeds generally needs to be done under relatively high temperature conditions, generally around 25-30 degrees.
② First prepare boiled water that has cooled, with a water temperature of about 40 degrees, then pour in the mint seeds and let the mint seeds soak in it for 5 hours. The water temperature does not need to be kept constant; just let the water cool naturally.
③ After the mint seeds have soaked, start cutting the mineral water bottle into a round cylinder about 5 cm tall, then stand the cylindrical part upright on the plate, then spread a piece of facial tissue over the top of the cylinder. The facial tissue should be able to hang down to the bottom of the plate. Pour the mint seeds onto the facial tissue in the middle of the cylinder, then cover with another layer of facial tissue. Then add water to the plate. The water will be absorbed upward by the facial tissue and keep the facial tissue moist, while due to gravity it will not make the facial tissue too wet.
How to Grow Mint
1. Soil: Mint is not picky about soil, but likes fertile, loose soil. If the flower pot is too small or there is too little soil, the nutrients cannot keep up and it will grow very slowly, so use soil with strong air and water permeability and fertility. Ordinary garden soil or leaf mold with a little chicken manure fertilizer added is enough.
2. Sunlight: Mint likes ample sunlight, so it must be placed in a place with sufficient sunlight. Do not worry even if the summer sun is strong. Insufficient sunlight easily causes leggy growth, the leaves do not grow large, and the plant is especially thin and weak; the whole pot may become smaller and smaller.
3. Water: Mint likes a moist soil environment and is relatively tolerant of moisture. Especially during the growth period, the soil should be kept moist, but the amount of water must not be too large, and waterlogging is strictly prohibited. When watering normally, maintain the habit of “do not water if not dry, water thoroughly when watering.”
4. Fertilizing: Mint likes fertilizer. During its growth period, apply fertilizer once a month, mainly nitrogen fertilizer, and phosphorus and potassium fertilizer can also be applied appropriately. If branches and leaves need to be harvested during the growth period, topdressing should be carried out at the time of harvest to promote the plant's recovery to a good plant shape.
5. Temperature: Mint has strong adaptability to temperature. Its rhizomes overwinter in dormancy and can tolerate a low temperature of -15℃. Its most suitable growth temperature is 25~30℃. When the temperature is below 15℃, growth is slow, and when it is above 20℃, growth speeds up.
6. Pruning: Mint grows very vigorously, so it must be pruned regularly. Once the old seedlings no longer have a fresh fragrance, they can be cut. Moreover, mint is very tough; frequent pruning and using its leaves to make tea or for other purposes is no problem. The more you cut, the more luxuriant it grows.
7. Repotting: Mint grows quickly, so repotting should be done once every spring. Mint is not strict about soil requirements, but likes fertile, well-drained neutral or alkaline soil. Potting substrate can be prepared from materials such as leaf mold, garden soil, rice husk ash or coarse sand.
Growing mint not only requires giving sufficient care at the time of sowing; the growth stage after germination is also very important. This article contains some of the main aspects of mint cultivation. In addition, if you want to learn more about mint growing, you can follow Rural Entrepreneurship; everything you want is there.