Dill can be grown at home on the windowsill. This makes it possible to always have fresh herbs on hand and allows you to have no doubt in its quality. For an abundant and high-quality crop, it is necessary to provide the culture with certain conditions and properly care for it.
Suitable varieties
There are no special varieties of dill for growing at home. It is recommended to choose from the following options:
- Gribovsky. Early ripe culture, harvest after 35 days. The variety is unpretentious, gives a plentiful harvest and especially fragrant dark green leaves.
- Grenadier. Early ripeness, harvest after 30-35 days. The foliage is very juicy and fragrant, green.
- Richelieu. Mid-season crop, harvest after 40 days. Dill has a large amount of bluish-green lace leaves and a strong aroma.
- Kibray. Late-ripening variety, which is characterized by high leafyness, light green color, slight waxy coating, strong aroma and taste.
- Gourmet. Mid-season variety, harvest in 40-45 days. Dill is characterized by high foliage, juicy green leaves, a delicate aroma and taste.
- Alligator. Mid-season variety, has foliage with a bluish tint and a persistent rich aroma.
Growing early varieties allows you to get greens as quickly as possible, but the foliage of such dill is less, and drawing into flower stalks is faster. Later varieties do not require sowing, do not form an umbrella for a long time.
Dill window sill equipment
The choice in the apartment is usually small, but if possible, you should choose a window on the sunny side. Dill needs a long daylight, so you need to organize additional lighting. It is good to use fluorescent or LED lamps. It is important that the height of their location is regulated - it will need to be changed as the culture grows.
For dill, the proximity of heating appliances is undesirable. If there is no window without a battery, then a window must necessarily open.
If you plan to put several containers with dill on one window, you should organize one large pallet where excess moisture will fall. When grown in pots, special stands for them or saucers are sufficient.
Capacity selection
Different capacities are suitable for dill:
- plastic containers;
- wooden boxes,
- pots for indoor plants,
- peat pots from which seedlings will need to be transplanted.
It is important to consider the size of adult plants so that they are not cramped in the selected container. The height of the pan or pot should be at least 10-15 cm. The optimal volume of pots is 1-2 liters.
A prerequisite is the organization of drainage. To do this, holes must be made in the bottom of the selected container.
Preparing planting material
One of the conditions for growing dill is a quality planting material. You should buy seeds in specialized stores, when buying, pay attention to the date - the longer the seeds lay, the later they will sprout.
Planting material should be prepared as follows:
- Germination test. This step is optional, but will help you understand what results to expect. To do this, put 10 seeds in gauze or toilet paper, put in a saucer and moisturize well. Add water periodically to prevent drying out. The average germination of dill is 45-60%. If less than 4-5 seeds sprouted, then the material is of poor quality.
- Flushing Essential Oil. This coating affects the timing of emergence of seedlings, so you need to get rid of it. To do this, the seeds should be kept in warm water for 2 days. It needs to be changed periodically.
- Disinfection. This treatment reduces the percentage of incidence of culture. It is optimal to use potassium permanganate for disinfection. The solution should be pale pink, the seeds in it should be kept for 2-3 hours. Instead of potassium permanganate, boric acid can be used - add 1 tsp. substances in a glass of water with a temperature of 25-30 degrees. Keep seeds in such a solution for 2-3 hours, then rinse with running water.
Soil preparation
The main requirement for soil is its fertility. You can use garden soil, be sure to bring peat or sand into it. The ready-made mixture for indoor plants or seedlings is also suitable. The best option is to mix it in half with garden soil.
For drainage at the bottom of the tank you need to provide a layer of fine pebbles, expanded clay or other suitable material.
Landing
Planting dill is easy. It is necessary to act according to the following algorithm:
- Moisten the prepared soil, if it’s not wet enough. To do this, use a spray gun.
- Prepare grooves. They need to be deepened by 2 cm, 5 cm between the rows. This planting scheme is not the only one, it is necessary to focus on the characteristics of the selected variety and the manufacturer's recommendations.
- Sow the seeds in the grooves. The material is very small, you can mix it with sand for sowing. If some seeds do not fall into the grooves, you can correct them with a toothpick, match or pencil. In the same way, you can evenly distribute the material along the length of the groove.
- Sprinkle grooves with earth. It is not necessary to compact the soil.
- Cover the crops with foil. Do not clean it until seedlings appear.
Crops before germination should be kept at a temperature of 20 degrees. If all the actions are performed correctly, and the planting material is of high quality, then the sprouts can be seen in 5-7 days.
Caring for dill grown on a windowsill
Dill in the care is unpretentious. It is necessary to provide him with the correct temperature, humidity level and lighting, regularly water, feed, after germination, to thin out the seedlings.
Watering
Dill is a moisture-loving crop. The frequency of watering should be oriented to the condition of the soil and time of year. If the crop is grown in summer, the soil should always be moist. It must not be allowed to dry out. In winter, watering is carried out when the soil dries up after the previous wetting.
For watering, you need to use the settled water. If it is with bleach, then it should stand for at least a day. In winter, it is good to use melt water.
In addition to watering, dill requires spraying. Such a measure will provide more juicy greens. Spraying is mandatory if the dill is kept close to heat sources or at a temperature of 25 degrees and above.
Top dressing
For dill on the windowsill, you can use universal mineral fertilizer (RosLa, Agro-Mineral, Planter). The dosage should be calculated in accordance with the instructions, top dressing every 2 weeks.
Lighting
Dill is a photophilous culture. He needs at least 14 hours of lighting. In summer, this is provided by natural conditions, but the windowsill should be the sunniest.
In winter or not on the sunny side, artificial lighting is required. The lamp must be installed at a distance of 5-7 cm from seedlings. It is better to turn it on in the morning or in the evening.
After emergence, the lamp should be half a meter from the plants. It is recommended to turn it on for 5 hours. If dill is grown without natural light, then the lamp should work 14-15 hours a day.
It is recommended to deploy a container with landings of 180 degrees every day. This provides an even distribution of light.
Humidity
For a successful cultivation of dill on a windowsill, a humidity of 40-50% is needed. If it is too high, there is a risk of fungal infection. The dryness characteristic of the heating season is also detrimental to the plant.
Temperature mode
Shoots appear well at a temperature of 20 degrees, but after that the temperature regime must be changed. Dill feels cool. A temperature of 8-20 degrees is enough for him.
Too high indoor temperature has a negative effect on the culture. It begins to thin and stretch, the quality of greens and taste characteristics are reduced.
Harvesting
Dill can be cut as needed or harvest the entire crop immediately. In the first case, greens are used for food; in the second, you need to take care of its preparation. You can freeze, dry or salt it.
To constantly have fresh herbs, you should plant dill with an interval of 2 weeks or regularly sow it.
Possible problems and solutions
When growing dill on the windowsill, you may encounter the following problems:
- Lack of seedlings. The reason usually lies in poor-quality material. You can verify this by checking the seeds for germination.
- Stretching plants. This indicates a lack of light. It is necessary to increase daylight hours with the help of artificial lighting.
- Premature shooting. This happens with a lack of moisture. It is necessary to increase watering, maintain the required level of humidity.
- Red shade of leaves. Indicates inappropriate soil acidity. You can find out the pH with a litmus test. If the soil is too acidic, then dolomite flour, lime or ash will correct the situation.
- Yellowing or browning of leaves. The reason may lie in too dense landing. Thinning required.
- Yellowing and subsequent reddening of the leaves. These are signs of Fusarium rot. Sick plants must be removed, and for healthy ones, use a fungicide (Fitosporin, Trichodermin).
On the windowsill, you can grow dill of different varieties. When growing, some problems may arise, but all of them are solvable with timely measures.