Raising seedlings in farmers’ fields with quality and vigor is difficult. They have little knowledge about the proper method of seedling raising. Therefore, they have to depend on the seedlings supplied by local nursery growers which is usually difficult to verify the variety of the seedlings.
Soil bed is important for raising seedlings in natural conditions, especially in coastal areas. Many nursery growers are raising seedlings in polybags but those seedlings are not surviving while transplanted in the main field. Therefore, seedlings in soil beds are a good option for adapting the seedlings to the natural conditions of coastal areas.
Soil Bed Preparation for raising seedlings
- If the soil where the bed is to be made is not good, fertile soil from another place should be added to the bed. Then the bed area should be well-tilled with a spade or plow.
- Necessary dung or rotted manure, TSP (Triple Superphosphate), and MoP (Muriate of Potash) should be mixed well in the soil and left for a few days. Vermicompost or Farm Yard Manure could be used if nursery growers have their own production.
- Beds have to be made to specific sizes. Usually, the size of the bed is 3 feet * 5 feet. Beds may be small if space is not available. However, the width of the bed must be 3 feet but the length could be more than 5 feet if space is available.
- For the edging of the bed, the ground should be raised 15 cm and poles should be dug around the bed and long bamboo planks should be tied to it. For nursery purposes, bed-to-bed distance should be maintained as the pathway is required for drainage and walking.
- After the bed is prepared, seedlings are raised in the bed by direct seeding or transplanting into the bed. In the case of seeding and transplanting in a soil bed maintaining a specific distance may be required. If seeds are very small, then only line-to-line distance is maintained.
