Cassettes for growing seedlings
Cassettes come in various shapes, sizes, colors. The size and number of cells are determined by the type of culture. There are 2 types of cassettes - cellular and cellular. In the first, the arrangement of the cells resembles a honeycomb (hence the name). They are effective in cases where seedlings grow and begin to shade each other. Then the location of the cells improves the lighting of the plants. Cells are arranged sequentially in honeycombs.
Cell cassettes with conical cells
Honeycomb cassettes
Honeycombs seem to be more efficient. However, the arrangement of the honeycombs in this form entails a disadvantage - when producing them in blocks of the correct shape, part of the combs remains trimmed. It is necessary to make a large layer of plastic around the edges. Because of this, both options are considered to be approximately equal.
The main idea of cassettes, which is important for large enterprises, is the ability to mechanize the time-consuming process of sowing seeds with the help of special lines, in which, when passing along the conveyor belt, the peat mixture is covered with the subsequent sowing of seeds exactly to each cell and moistening.
The line for filling cassettes with peat mixture and sowing seeds in them
The application of the line provides filling and sowing of 12-15 thousand cassettes per hour. In the absence of such a line, it will be necessary to sow manually, which currently does not correspond to modern technologies. In addition, during manual sowing, the seeds will be at different depths, which will give uneven seedlings. Only on small homesteads, sowing is done by hand. It is easier and cheaper to purchase a mechanized line.
An important condition for the use of cassettes is high germination seeds (at least 99%). Otherwise, some cells will be empty, without plants.
Using cassettes requires seeds of very high germination. Otherwise, part of the cells will be empty (the seeds did not germinate). Choosing a seedling peat mixture (without weed seeds) is no less important.
During picking into pots, weak, deformed seedlings, seedlings without sprouts are discarded. Only selected, leveled plants get into the pots.
As mentioned above, after 1-2 real leaves, seedlings with a lump of peat mixture, covered with roots, are pulled out of the cells andtransplanted into pots with a larger volume - 0.5 l. At the same time, the shape of the root part is similar to a cell. Hence the name - cassettes.
But when preparing seedlings for planting in field conditions, picking is not required. In modern seedling machines with a horizontal arrangement of the drum, it is enough to insert seedlings, the roots of which are mixed with a lump of peat mixture, into the depression. To sink each one into the soil, cassettes with cone-shaped shells (the lower part of the shell is narrowed) are best for this.
It is not recommended to choose cassettes made of cheap thin plastic. When moved from place to place, they will bend in the middle, and individual cells may break off. Over time, moreover, the thin plastic begins to crack. Higher-quality cassettes with a greater wall thickness of at least 0.6-0.7 mm with the addition of an ultraviolet stabilizer (protection against the destructive effects of sunlight). Notches or protrusions on them are intended for convenient insertion of cassettes one into another in stacks.
Cassettes made of cheap thin plastic are inconvenient to carry, after a year or two they crack and need to be replaced.