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Seedlings development

miked121qgkv_rj7miked121qgkv_rj7 Posts: 3
edited March 2021 in Fruit & veg
Hey there people! I'm new to the forum and have been looking for experienced seedlings growers so; here I am!

So, straight to the point, I've planted my seeds about 3 weeks ago and here is the results. I have calculated the required umol/M2/a and have, to my belief, put the lights to an acceptable distance. 

I am wondering if my tomato seedlings are bending to much or if they look healthy at this point. I'm also thinking that the stems should be thicker.

My goal is to be able to transplant directly into the greenhouse in about a month.(I'm in southern Quebec).

Another question, I have bought a bio fertilizer. When should I use it? 

Thanks so much guys 😁!

Posts

  • CeresCeres Posts: 2,698
    Hi and welcome to the forum.
    Your tomato seedlings look fairly small for something that has been on the go for three weeks but I am assuming they germinated quickly. Is the grow light to one side of the plants or immediately overhead? If it's to one side that could account for some of the plants bending over.
    Tomatoes are hungry plants and are generally potted on into something more robust when they have some adult leaves as by then they will have used up all the plant food in the seed compost. You will need to put your plants into the next size pots before they go out to the greenhouse and they will need to be slowly hardened off before they are moved to their summer home. This will mean taking them outside during the daytime and bringing them in at night until they can finally stay in the greenhouse 24/7 once the danger of frost has passed.



  • miked121qgkv_rj7miked121qgkv_rj7 Posts: 3
    Thanks for the fast response!

    Concerning the grow lights, no, they are directly on top. It must be the deflector on the picture making these confusing light bars.
    Also, I've made a mistake on the dates; I've planted the tomatoes the first of March my girlfriend reminded me.

    As for the pots they are in, these are 4 inches wide and 4 inches deep. Are these too small to contain the tomatoes because I've seen its supposed to be the last stage before going into the greenhouse.

    Anyways, if I'm doing something wrong, don't be shy to say so! 🙂
  • CeresCeres Posts: 2,698
    I normally start tomatoes in really tiny pots, approx two and a half inches in old money, and then pot them on into the size you are already using. It means that I don't waste so much compost if I get a catastrophic lack of germination, and it means that the plants get a whole lot of new fertiliser as soon as they go into the bigger pots. If you intend to leave yours in the four inch pots for a while, then they will need feeding once they have a couple of sets of adult leaves.
    I confess I have no knowledge of growing with grow lights so can't say if anything weird is going on there and as with all things gardening related, a lot of it is trial and error. These are a week older than your plants and are a little leggy due to relying on natural light which is a bit lacking in sunshine at present. One of these plants will get culled in order to let the larger one grow stronger.
  • miked121qgkv_rj7miked121qgkv_rj7 Posts: 3
    Thanks very much for the info, it's appreciated 😁
  • Blue OnionBlue Onion Posts: 2,995
    You can blow on them or brush the tops gently with an index card or something.  That will help strength them.  When you go to pot them on, your tomatoes can be planted deeper in the soil of the new pot.  Depending on how tall they are, I usually trim off the two lower sets of true leaves and plant them deep.  So don't worry about bent stems right now, but I would turn them in their spot to the opposite direction once in a while.  I use a combination of grow light and sunny windowsill.. so mine get both, and naturally bend towards the sunlight.. so need turned daily.  
    Utah, USA.
  • purplerallimpurplerallim Posts: 5,287
    Just out of interest I too sowed my tomatoes on the first of March. Mine are in the conservatory and came up after ten days. They are in 2" pots, and now they are uncovered during the day. I expect to repot them at least once, usually twice before they go in the greenhouse late April, burying them each time up to the first leaves, this seems to give them stronger roots and the thicker stem you mentioned. It's the night time low temperatures that will dictate when they go out as my greenhouse is unheated. Hope this helps @miked121qgkv_rj7

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