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Growing tomato seedlings is a bit troublesome, but enjoyable. It is very joyful to grow exactly the variety that I fell in love with. Many summer residents love to experiment and grow new varieties. They are trying to find ways to get a crop from tomatoes that have not previously been planted on their site. But in some cases, the seedlings have an unusual appearance. Then the question arises – why are tomato seedlings thin and long?
Tomato seedlings require certain conditions. Strong healthy tomato seedlings are the key to your harvest.
But sometimes the seedlings are strongly drawn out, becoming pale and weak. In this case, many gardeners are already beginning to worry about further success. There are many questions. Why did overgrown tomato seedlings turn out? What to do if tomato seedlings are stretched out? How can this be corrected or avoided in the future? How to tell if your tomato seedlings are stretched. The first indicator is a large distance between nodes.
Important factors when growing tomato seedlings
The stretched seedling does not look very good:
- the stem is long, thin and weak;
- the color of the seedling and leaves is pale;
- the whole bush is flimsy and bending.
To prevent this from happening, you need to know the basic parameters, the violation of which leads to the fact that tomato seedlings begin to stretch. We list the main ones:
Lighting
Light is necessary for all plants, especially during the growing season and growth. Therefore, tomato seedlings are drawn to the light to ensure a good life. Summer residents themselves create a shortage of light for seedlings. First, it is a thickened sowing of seeds. Each hatched seed needs lighting, the seedlings begin to reach up to get enough of it. It is worth considering what will be better – a lot of frail seedlings and a little, but powerful and healthy. Secondly, caring for a smaller number of strong tomato bushes is easier than caring for a detachment of painful ones. More effort will have to be spent on restoring seedlings and maintaining them in good condition.
Ambient temperature
It must be maintained depending on the phase of seedling development. If this parameter is violated, the tomato bushes also lose their rhythm and begin to stretch.
Changing weather conditions
Growing seedlings is troublesome in early spring due to the instability of climatic conditions. Grown seedlings may be in conditions with insufficient lighting just when intensive growth is needed. When planning spring work, consider this factor.
Watering
Here it is necessary to maintain the norms for young plants. Excessive moisture pushes the tomatoes to rapid growth, and the seedlings at this moment do not have time to absorb a sufficient amount of nutrients.
Feeding
Excessive application of nutrients stimulates increased growth of stems and leaves. The harmonious development of all life processes is disrupted, and tomato seedlings are stretched.
These are the main reasons for pulling out tomato seedlings, although there are others. For example, the choice of variety. Tall tomatoes require a slightly different regimen. Some elite varieties also need to be kept in different conditions. Be sure to consider these factors as well.
Summer residents need to understand two issues. The first is how to prevent pulling tomato seedlings (preventive measures). The second is what to do if the tomato seedlings are stretched out? Let’s start with prevention. Therefore, it is better to know useful information before sowing seeds. This will save time, effort, and keep the budget from buying seeds again.
Prevent pulling tomato seedlings
Why are tomato seedlings stretched? In order for tomatoes in seedlings to grow correctly, you will have to follow simple recommendations.
Sow tomatoes for seedlings in early spring. At this time, the sun is still not actively giving off heat and light. When growing tomato seedlings on the windowsill, provide additional lighting. Place it on the top and side. In this case, the seedlings will not lean to one side. It is necessary to ensure that the degree of illumination from different sides is equal. In order for tomatoes to receive the right amount of light, gardeners use energy-saving lamps, for example, daylight.
Tomato seedlings need to provide a full length of daylight hours. It equals 15 hours a day. Therefore, seedlings are illuminated to this parameter.
The second important condition is that before the appearance of tomato sprouts, place the containers in a place with an air temperature of 25 ° C to 28 ° C. However, after their appearance, urgently lower the temperature to 15-17 degrees. Otherwise, with good moisture and warmth, the sprouts grow intensively, without getting stronger, which leads to elongated seedlings. An indicator of a properly maintained temperature will be a thick stem, dark green leaf color and low growth of stocky bushes. After two to three weeks, raise the temperature to allow the seedlings to grow.
If the tomato seedlings not only stretched out, but also acquired a pale color, then they will have to be fed. For such top dressing, urea will be needed as a source of nitrogen. It is diluted in water (1 tablespoon per 10 liters of water) and small tomatoes are watered. Then provide a cool temperature (10°C). Seedlings will stop growing, but will restore color.
Of course, it is easier to prevent the overgrowth of tomato seedlings, but this happens to many gardeners.
Fixing bugs
And now the second option, when the tomato seedlings stretched out, what should I do? If some points are missed, the tomatoes have outgrown, you still should not give up and you should try to correct the situation. In this case, you will have to perform some actions:
Ensure proper balance of nutrients in the soil. Gardeners use stimulants and fertilizers. For example, “Athlete”. The drug will stop the growth of the aerial parts of seedlings and strengthen the root system. The action continues for a week, then the procedure is repeated. It is possible to spray tomato seedlings with a preparation. Don’t overdose! This is indicated by white spots on the leaves. After a while they will disappear and then you can continue.
Another option to reduce growth:
If the seedlings are very overgrown, then each stem can be cut into two parts.
The upper part is placed in a container with water for the development of roots. This will take about 7 days. As soon as good roots appear, the seedling is placed in a planting pot with nutrient soil.
It will take root, and you get an extra bush of tomatoes. As soon as the top shoot reaches a size of 5 cm, remove all the lower stems. This procedure must be done 18-20 days before planting tomato seedlings for permanent residence (open ground or greenhouse).
The second way to save seedlings is used already when planting. To do this, deepen the elongated stem into the ground. Do not dig a deep hole and plant tomato seedlings in unheated ground. It is enough to dig shallow grooves (up to 10 cm), put a nutrient soil mixture and fill it with water. After absorbing the moisture, place the seedlings by laying them on the bottom of the groove. Maintain a distance of 50 cm between the tops of the bushes.
Additional roots will form on the stem lying underground, and tomato seedlings will be strong and healthy.
Experimental gardeners use Mitlider’s advice – cut off the lower leaves on the seedlings. This is done as soon as the leaves of neighboring seedlings begin to touch. Stress causes tomato seedlings to stop growing for a week.
All of these methods work, try and grow strong tomato seedlings for your site.
