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Time to prick out tomato seedlings?

linzijayne74linzijayne74 Posts: 198
in Fruit & veg
Hi.  Here are my tomato seedlings.  (I scooped the seeds out of a cherry tomato a few weeks ago and these are the results!).  Are they big enough to move into their own plugs now, please?  I've never grown tomatoes in this way before.  Many thanks.  :)
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  • herbaceousherbaceous Posts: 2,318
    If it was me I would leave them a bit longer, but I am no expert!  If you planted into seed compost then I would add a layer of MPC up to the seed leaves. If they were planted in MPC then I would just leave them be for now.
    "The trouble with having an open mind, of course, is that people will insist on coming along and trying to put things in it."  Sir Terry Pratchett
  • linzijayne74linzijayne74 Posts: 198
    Hi @herbaceous; many thanks for your reply.  They're in MPC.  I shall indeed leave them to get a bit bigger.  I wasn't really expecting anything to happen with them; I just sowed them on a whim, so I'm just chuffed there's leaves and signs of life, to be honest!  Thanks again.  :)
  • herbaceousherbaceous Posts: 2,318
    That's the joy of gardening! Every day a new surprise  :)  It's always worth a bit of compost for an experiment don't you think?  My brother (definitely not a gardener) is becoming boring on the subject of his mango - growing just gets everyone in the end.
    "The trouble with having an open mind, of course, is that people will insist on coming along and trying to put things in it."  Sir Terry Pratchett
  • linzijayne74linzijayne74 Posts: 198
    @herbaceous Yes, we're constantly learning in the garden, aren't we?!  You're so right, it's absolutely worth experimenting because you learn so much.  Even if my tomato pip experiment goes wrong, I'll have learned something along the way.  Ha ha, I'm sure your brother's mango will be the BEST mango ever...who knows what the supposed non-gardener will grow next?!!!!  Thanks so much for your help.  :)
  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    If you're very careful, you could move those on @linzijayne74 . Make sure the pots you move them into aren't too big, and don't handle by the stems - use the leaves.
    You could leave them for a week or so though, if you prefer.
    There's a wee bit of leaf miner damage on a couple of leaves, but nothing much to worry about.  :)
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
  • linzijayne74linzijayne74 Posts: 198
    Hi @Fairygirl; thanks so much for your reply.  I've got some of those black plastic 'trays' that have individual 'plugs' that I'll pop them into, then I'll move them into something slightly bigger when they grow more again (hopefully they WILL grow more?!).  I shall be sure to handle by the leaves rather than the stems; I've very rarely pricked out before, so I'll definitely bear that in mind; I don't want to hinder what little progress I've made so far!  Thanks so much again.  :)  
  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    It'll do no harm to wait a little longer if you're unsure, although you could try shifting two or three and see how you get on. Always good to try, and nothing really lost if it goes wrong.  :)
    It's easy for people who've been doing it for ever to say - do this or do that, but knowing isn't the same as 'doing',  and we only learn that by 'doing'. Before you know it - you'll be doing it with your eyes shut   ;)
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
  • linzijayne74linzijayne74 Posts: 198
    @Fairygirl I shall perhaps wait another week and hopefully by then they'll be that bit stronger to withstand being moved from their beds!  Plus I'm currently furloughed so it'll give me a nice little job to do next week!  You're spot on; we only learn by actually *doing* these things and that's what gardening is all about.  I only started gardening three years ago and at the start I did things that now I know were wrong (or I'd certainly do differently given another chance) but at least I've learned from my mistakes.  Thanks so much for your help; I'm sure I'll have a bumper crop of cherry tomatoes before I know it!  :) 
  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    I hope you get a good result. I'm sure you will. 
    We all had to learn how to do these things at some point, and practising them is the only way. It's all very well watching an 'expert' on the TV, or on a video, but it's a case of getting a feel for these things ourselves  :)
    Potting them on and moving them each time they outgrow their pots is the right way to do it too.  :)
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
  • fidgetbonesfidgetbones Posts: 17,618
    Tip them out  of the pot. Hold each plant by the seed leaves not the stem.  Put each into a 7cm pot of mpc  to grow on. When the roots fill that pot, put them into  30 cm pots and stake well.  When I used to grow tomato plants for selling, I always pricked them out at that stage into individual pots. 
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