Watering tomato seedlings

The yield of tomatoes and other vegetable crops directly depends on proper care. One of the components of the care of tomatoes is their irrigation. Not many gardeners know that too much watering for plants of the nightshade family is even more dangerous than drought – this leads to fungal diseases of tomatoes, rotting of bushes, and cracking of fruits.

About how to properly water tomato seedlings, what you need to know about these plants so as not to harm them – in this article.

Watering frequency

How often to water tomato seedlings largely depends on the age of the plants. Of course, the composition of the soil, climatic and weather conditions, and the variety of tomatoes are also important factors, but the age of the seedlings still plays a major role in determining the irrigation schedule.

The root system of young plants, as well as their need for water, is significantly less than that of adult bushes that have reached their maximum height. At the same time, it is the young tomato seedlings that will die faster from a lack of moisture, since its weak and small roots are not far from the surface. And the roots of adult tomatoes can go deep into the ground at a distance of about 150 cm – there is almost always moisture so deep, the plant can live without watering for some time.

So, you can define the following rules for watering tomato seedlings at various stages of its “life”:

1. After the soil for sowing tomato seeds has been prepared and watered abundantly, germinated seeds are planted in it. Seeds are dug in with a thin layer of dry earth, covered with a film and remain in this position until the first shoots appear. In this period of time, the ground in containers and pots with seeds is generally not needed.
2. When the first shoots appeared, the film cover was removed, and 2-3 days passed, the pecking of green sprouts should become massive – all the seeds, or most of them, germinate and thin loops appear above the ground. During this period, tender seedlings cannot be watered – their roots will easily wash out of the ground. If the soil in the seedling containers is already too dry, you can carefully spray the seedlings with a spray bottle or a small watering can for indoor flowers.

   

3. At the stage of the appearance of the first pair of true leaves, tomato seedlings are watered as needed – when the soil in the pots becomes dry and takes on a crust. As before, a spray bottle is used for irrigation and only the soil between the tomatoes is irrigated, trying not to wet the tender bushes themselves.
4. After the growth of two or three true leaves, the tomato seedlings dive. Two or three days before this event, along with watering, they make the first top dressing with fertilizers. This will help soften the soil, make the saturated soil looser – the seedlings will be easily removed from the boxes, their roots will not be damaged when diving.
5. After diving, tomatoes do not need to be watered for 4-5 days. Even if the seedling looks lethargic and sick, it does not need to be watered during this period of time. By introducing water into the soil, the gardener will further complicate the adaptation of the tomato to the new habitat.
6. After five days, you can start watering the tomatoes according to the standard scheme, first of all, focusing on the dryness of the soil in the pots. On average, bushes should be irrigated at least once a week, sometimes seedlings will have to be watered twice a week or ten days. Here, much depends on the temperature and humidity of the air in the room with seedlings, as well as on the amount and intensity of sunlight that dries up the soil. 

   

7. When the tomato seedlings reach the required height, they gain strength (about 1,5-2 months after sowing the seeds), they are transferred to a permanent place: to a greenhouse or garden bed. Before transplanting tomatoes, they are watered abundantly for a couple of days – this will help to remove the roots of the seedlings from the pot without damaging them.

How and how to water tomatoes

Watering tomato seedlings is necessary not only on time, it must also be done correctly.

First of all, you need to comply with the following requirements for the water with which tomatoes are watered:

• The water temperature must be at least 20 degrees. The optimum value is 23 degrees Celsius. If tomatoes are irrigated with cold water, seedlings will start to hurt, first of all, this is fraught with infection of plants with late blight.
• Most of all, rain or melt water is suitable for watering tomatoes. At least, such water should be used while the seedlings are small – so the tomatoes will become much healthier, leaves and ovaries will form faster, the bushes will become strong and powerful.
• Only soft water is suitable for watering tomatoes. Tap water is not suitable for irrigating tomato seedlings – it contains too many impurities, which makes it hard and unsuitable for plants. You can soften the water by boiling – this option is suitable for tomato seedlings. When the plants grow up and move into the greenhouse or on the beds, it will become problematic to boil such volumes of water. In this case, water can simply be defended for several days, collecting it in tanks or barrels.
• All top dressing and feeding of tomato bushes is best done along with watering, so fertilizers or stimulants must be diluted in water.

No less important than and how to bring life-giving moisture under tomato bushes. Here, the main thing is not to wet the stem and leaves of plants, because they can easily catch a fungal infection due to excessive humidity and hypothermia, or too bright rays of the sun will burn the seedlings through drops on the leaves.

You can arrange a drip irrigation system with your own hands. To do this, you need ordinary plastic bottles, in which small holes are made over the entire surface. The bottom of the bottle is cut off, and the neck is screwed with a cap.

Bottles are buried in the ground near each tomato bush upside down. Water is poured into the bottle, and it gradually seeps through the holes, irrigating the root system of tomatoes.

In this way, you can stimulate the growth of the root system, because the roots will tend down to moisture. In any case, there should be drainage holes in pots and cups with tomato seedlings, otherwise the plants will simply rot.

How to determine the need for watering tomatoes

As already mentioned, tomatoes need to be watered, focusing on the degree of dryness of the soil. Not every gardener, especially a beginner, will be able to determine how often tomato seedlings should be watered from the top layer of soil in pots with seedlings.

Will help simple ways to determine the dryness of the earth:

• the color of dry soil is somewhat duller than that of wet soil. Therefore, if the earth in cups with seedlings is gray and lifeless, it is time to moisten it.
• In order to check the soil moisture in deeper layers, you can use a wooden stick (similar to how you check the readiness of a pie).
• It is very convenient to use a metal wire for the same purpose, the end of which is bent with a hook. The length of the wire should be about 30 cm. It is dipped into the ground near the walls of the pot with tomato seedlings and carefully pulled back. If the soil sticks to the hook, it means that it is still quite wet and the tomatoes do not need to be watered yet.
• Another accurate way is to dig a lump of earth at a depth of 10 cm and try to make a ball out of it. If the soil is molded, it is quite wet. When breaking the lump, the earth should crumble and crumble, otherwise, the soil is too waterlogged, the schedule for watering tomatoes needs to be adjusted.
• If you lift the pot with seedlings, you can navigate by its mass – dry soil weighs much less than wet soil.
• By tapping on the walls of the pot with tomatoes with a stick or pencil, you can determine the soil moisture by sound: dry soil will give a ringing sound, while wet soil will “sound” more deafly.

In accordance with the data obtained, based on such “research”, it is possible to correct the irrigation regime and the amount of water.

How much water do tomatoes need

The amount of moisture needed by tomato bushes directly depends on the plant development cycle:

• While the seedlings are in the house, she needs a small amount of moisture, because plants “live” in a limited space – a pot or a glass. To moisten such a minimum amount of land, a lot of water is not required, another thing is that moisture will also evaporate from a small container faster.
• Before flowering Tomatoes need to be watered at 5-6 liters per square meter of land.
• During the flowering period tomatoes need moisture most of all, so at this time the amount of water increases by about three times – each meter is irrigated with 15-18 liters of water.
• When the fruits set and begin to pour, watering is reduced – low-growing tomatoes at this stage need only 5 liters per square meter, and tall varieties – at least 10 liters.

Regardless of the method and mode of irrigation, the ground near the tomato bush should be moistened to a depth of at least 10-15 cm (depending on the height and branching of the tomato bush).

The “fate” of this crop depends on how to water the tomato seedlings, because, like all plants, first of all, tomatoes need moisture. Watering tomato seedlings should be carried out according to the schedule, these plants do not like randomness, they are equally harmed by both drought and excessive moisture.