Tomato seedlings have stretched out and the stems are too thin, what to do, how to save the plants

It is possible to get a good harvest if you properly care for viable, strong plants planted in the beds. Often, novice vegetable growers are engaged in growing planting material on their own and are faced with a problem: tomato seedlings have become elongated and have too thin stems, what to do in this case? Let's look at the reason for this phenomenon and options for correcting the mistakes made.

Content:

• Features of tomato development
• Seedlings stretched out after germination, reasons, what to do
• Tomato seedlings are stretched and have too thin stems
• Growing rules
• What to do if stretched seedlings bloom
• Useful tips
• Proper planting of seeds will help prevent stems from stretching.
• How to prevent seedlings from stretching
• Planting overgrown tomatoes

Features of tomato development

Obtaining squat, strong tomato seedlings with a well-developed root system may not be such an easy task for an inexperienced vegetable grower. Tomatoes are not an easy crop; their cultivation requires compliance with watering and fertilizing standards. An equally important factor determining the condition of seedlings is lighting.

Determine the quality of the teenager planting material it is possible by comparing the parameters of grown seedlings with the standard ones that tomato bushes should have before planting in the ground:

• stem height, depending on the variety, is from 25 to 35 cm;
• thickness - from 8 to 10 mm;
• the presence of a formed flower brush;
• Availability of at least 7 real sheets.

There may be several reasons for parameter mismatch:

• lack or excess of nitrogen in the soil;
• too compact arrangement of plants;
• insufficient soil moisture;
• insufficient soil nutrition, lack of fertilizing;
• poor lighting of containers;
• exposure of plants to the sun, increased air temperature in the room.

But what to do if the tomato seedlings are elongated and the stems are too thin, where should you first look for the reason? Experienced vegetable growers say - in insufficient lighting.

Seedlings stretched out after germination, reasons, what to do

Monitoring the condition of tomato seedlings will need to be observed from the first day the sprouts appear. Particular attention will be required during the period when the 3rd true leaf appears.

If you notice that the tomato stems are too thin and elongated. then the following measures must be taken:

• Having separated the seedlings, plant them one by one in personal cups; they should be deeper, because the stems will need to be deepened;
• fertilize the soil, you can add a mixture including dolomite flour, high-moor peat, chicken manure or potassium, nitrogen, phosphorus;
• carefully cut off the lower leaves; as a result of the stress experienced, active upward growth of plants will stop for at least 10-12 days;
• if possible, rotate the pots often around their own axis, so that the plants turn away from the sun each time, all the plants’ forces will be spent turning towards the light, upward growth will stop;
• lightly touch the tops of the seedlings, this stimulates the production of ethylene gas, which also slows down the growth of the stem.

Let's watch a useful video and find out what to do if the seedlings are stretched and the stems are too thin:

Tomato seedlings are stretched and have too thin stems

If the plants have become quite tall, but the stems remain thin, then you can correct the situation by doing the following:

1. The most rational option is to deepen the seedlings. It can be produced by making grooves along the rows, into which the stems are then placed, then soil is added to the containers. The stems should be completely covered, with only the leaves remaining on the surface. After this, the soil is well watered. The containers are placed in a well-lit place, the tops are turned to the south side. With a sufficient amount of moisture, the stems will quickly sprout additional roots; in order to speed up the root formation process, nutrients intended for feeding are introduced into the soil. The stems will quickly gain strength.
2. The second option is more radical. The elongated stems are cut off, placed in a jar of water and wait for roots to appear, then planted in the ground.
3. The third method - plants are cut above the 5th leaf, the tops are placed in water and germinated. After about a week, they can be planted in cups as independent plants. The soil for planting is flavored with a nutrient mixture. When the shoots reach a height of 5-7 cm, they can be planted in open ground.

The lower parts of the plants are not thrown away; they continue to be carefully looked after. This option for growing tomatoes involves obtaining two seedlings from each bush. Stepchildren soon appear on the lower part of the pruned plant. After waiting until they reach a height of 5 cm, remove all but the top 2.

Please note: it is advisable to cut off the stepsons approximately 20 days before planting in the ground.

The sprinkling method can be used if the seedlings are in spacious containers. Watering the plants is stopped; after 3-4 days they begin to wither. The limp stems are laid in the form of coils along the contour of the container, sprinkled with soil and watered well. Soon new shoots will appear, their underground part will be much larger and stronger. Such seedlings quickly catch up and surpass seedlings that were planted in the usual way.

Growing rules

Preventing stems from stretching is much easier than correcting your mistakes later. Therefore, it is important to remember and put into practice the basic recommendations.

Watering

They should be moderate in order to maintain sufficient soil moisture; it is enough to irrigate it twice a week. It is best to use a spray bottle.

Lighting

This is a very important factor; in most cases, the stretching of tomato seedlings begins precisely because of the lack of light. And it can occur when sowing tomatoes too early, when daylight hours are short for normal plant development, or when containers with plants are placed on a poorly lit windowsill.

In any case, you will need to take care of organizing the lighting. It is best to use fluorescent lamps, which are suspended at a height of about half a meter above the seedlings.The illumination period must be calculated based on the fact that the duration of daylight hours for tomato seedlings should be about 15 hours. It is also desirable that the plants are illuminated evenly from all sides.

Temperature

During the period of seed germination, it should be from + 16 to + 20 C during the day, and at night it can drop to +15 + 16 C. Compliance with the temperature regime allows you to control the intensity of seedling growth.

Feeding seedlings

It should be remembered that a lack of fertilizing is just as dangerous as an excess of it. Thorough fertilizing can cause excessively active growth of bushes, plants become long, stems become thin.

The correct thing to do is:

• do the first fertilizing no earlier than 10 days after germination, nitrophoska is used;
• the second is produced after 12 days, using a solution of ammonium nitrate or an infusion of wood ash.

Picking

It is carried out after two true leaves have formed on the stem.

Planting plants in personal cups:

• will improve ventilation of plants;
• will provide access to light;
• activates the development of the root system;
• will slow down the upward growth of stems.

What to do if stretched seedlings bloom

It is not advisable to plant flowering and elongated seedlings in open ground. If you assume that by the time of disembarkation this situation may arise, then you can do the following. 3 weeks before planting, the plants are cut off above the second true leaf, placed in water, and by the time they are planted in the ground, roots have already formed.

All flowers present at the time of planting are removed; they will not play a significant role in the yield of the plant, but will greatly weigh down the bush, which has not yet become sufficiently strong.All yellowed or dried leaves are also removed.

Only healthy, strong seedlings are allowed for planting; changes in the color or shape of the stem should be a reason for culling. Sick and too weak seedlings do not take root well; it is usually not possible to achieve high-quality fruiting from them.

Useful tips

To prevent seedlings from overgrowing and stretching, you can use special preparations designed to quickly saturate the soil with microelements. Spraying with Atlet and Stop fertilizers will help strengthen the root system of growing tomatoes. Before using the products, you should carefully study the instructions and strictly adhere to the recommended dosage during processing.

What results can be expected from the treatment:

• stopping the growth of the upper part of the bush;
• stabilization of seedling development throughout the week;
• thickening of stems;
• development of the root system.

Stop and Athlete preparations can be used no more than three times during the period of growing seedlings.

Pale leaves on seedlings indicate a lack of nitrogen, so the plants can be watered with a urea solution (1 spoon per 10 liters of water). After watering, containers with seedlings should be placed in a cool room (air t within +10 +12 C).

White spots on the leaves indicate that too much fertilizer is being applied. It is recommended to stop feeding until the white spots disappear.

You will learn even more useful tips when watching the video:

Proper planting of seeds will help prevent seedlings from being pulled out.

The soil should be loose, preferably with the addition of rotted sawdust and sand, it should provide ventilation for the root system and adequate nutrition for the plant.

When choosing seeds, you should remember that hybrids are more protected from common tomato diseases and are less susceptible to pest attacks.

The best option is to plant seeds in separate cups; the containers should be placed so that the plants do not shade each other and their leaves do not touch - in this case, ventilation of the plantings will be maximum.

We provide the containers with a drainage system. which will prevent moisture stagnation.

Tomatoes are usually sown in the third decade of February, but during this period the daylight hours are not yet long enough, i.e. You should consider the option of backlighting with a fluorescent lamp in advance.

To obtain a strong root system, seedlings are planted after the appearance of the second true leaf. Unpicked seedlings are weak and the stems are stretched.

5 useful tips to help grow quality bushes in open ground:

• It is not recommended to sow tomato seeds in open ground too early. The sowing time should be calculated based on the fact that it will take 55 - 65 days for the seedlings to grow.
• If there are no signs of a lack of nutrients on the plants, then fertilizing should not be done. Even if the sprouts are weak, the first fertilizing is carried out no earlier than 10 days after emergence.
• It is necessary to water the seedlings in moderation; abundant watering will provoke excessive upward growth of the stem, while it will remain thin, but the lack of moisture will negatively affect the rate of plant development.
• Too high a percentage of nitrogen in fertilizing will lead to rapid forcing of the stem.
• A lack of potassium can also cause unnatural elongation of sprouts.

How to prevent seedlings from stretching

Preventing a pulling situation is not so difficult:

• For tomatoes, you should buy soil intended for nightshades; nitrogen, potassium, and phosphorus are not properly balanced.
• When sowing seeds, maintain a distance between seeds (4 cm) and rows (6 to 8 cm).
• We fill the containers with soil to the edge; if the walls shade the sprouts, they will begin to stretch upward from the very first days of life.
• It is advisable to maintain optimal temperature (+ 20 + 25 C), air humidity from 60 to 70%, soil moisture from 70 to 80%.
• Fertilizers should be applied according to the timing; the dosage recommended in the instructions must be followed.
• Remember that daylight hours for tomatoes are at least 12 hours.
• When calculating the timing of sowing seeds, we take into account that to obtain seedlings of an early or medium variety it will take 65-70 days, for late varieties - up to 59 days.

Planting overgrown tomatoes

When transplanting overgrown seedlings into open ground, we adhere to the following rules:

• grooves for planting are made according to the pattern 45x50 cm, their depth should be 20-25 cm.
• Warm water is used for irrigation; superphosphate is added when watering;
• the stems are placed in grooves, the top is oriented to the north;
• the holes are sprinkled with soil;
• if a large part of the stem remains above the surface of the ground, then you will need to immediately tie it to pegs, which are placed at a distance of 6 cm from the stem,
• The rows are laid with mulch; it will retain moisture and prevent the germination of weeds.

Small and not yet sufficiently hardened plants can be shaded with spunbond for the first time.

Notice that the tomato seedlings have begun to stretch beyond normal - an increase in the spaces between the nodes on the stems.If, in addition, paleness of the leaves and thinning of the stems is observed, then measures to save the seedlings should be taken immediately. Inactivity can lead to a significant reduction in yield.