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Tomato tips?

• Message 1. 

  Posted by Paull2 (U14064177) on Monday, 18th April 2011

  I grow a few varieties of toms each year, both in the GH and outside in containers and/or open ground. I like to grow from seed and generally do well enough in terms of crop and avoiding disease. Like others, I imagine, I tend to have more plants available than I really need but dislike 'culling' healthy plants, so give them all a decent chance. However, this Spring, I've noticed big differences in the growth rates of my young plants, most of which I sowed (with heat) around the same time in February. Some like Roma are unstoppable but some others, even of the same variety, are behaving oddly.... one shooting up, the other grown no more than a couple of inches in two months. Seeds from reputable source, by the way. One or two young plants have developed 'woody' patches on the stem which I haven't noticed in previous years. I water regularly and do not allow to dry out.
  Will these 'runts' catch up or should I get rid now?

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  Posted by Italophile (U12516505) on Monday, 18th April 2011

  Paull2, ignore that other post. You've included everything in your post that you could have.
  
  Sometimes some tomato plants just develop at a different rate. I've had two or three of the same variety, sitting beside each other, with exactly the same treatment, all developing at different rates. That's tomato life. It's too early yet to decide the weaklings' futures. Sometimes they catch up, sometimes not.
  
  I'd suggest you do let them dry out between waterings. Seedlings shouldn't be constantly damp.

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  Posted by Italophile (U12516505) on Monday, 18th April 2011

  Clearance, the seedlings are presumably growing together in the same conditions, it's a very fair bet the same mix was used and, if fertilised, they've been fertilised to the same degree. Very odd if they weren't. They've certainly undergone the same watering regime.
  
  Regardless, if that's the sort of information you'd like before you form an opinion, why not ask for it? Simply posting to the effect that there's not enough information achieves nothing, helps no one, and is a waste of the ether.

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  Posted by Paull2 (U14064177) on Monday, 18th April 2011

  Irrespective of the factors you mention, they are all getting the same conditions and treatment. As has been said, my point is the extraordinary variations of growth under the same conditions. My chillies are far less variegated in comparison. Yes, I appreciate that some seeds will be stronger than others, so I'll give them all the benefit of the doubt for a few weeks more, thanks. By the way, what is that hardening 'woodiness' in the stem? And will it impede future growth potential? Is it disease or some fault in the conditions?

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  Posted by gaffelbiter (U14481810) on Monday, 18th April 2011

  I believe in a good cull and concentrating on producing fewer, but better plants. I must say you are a good month a head of me, I didn't sow my tomatoes until late March. I only have a poly tunnel and find tomatoes sulk if planted out before mid May. I garden in S/E Scotland

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  Posted by 4smilingcat6 (U14338727) on Monday, 18th April 2011

  I grow a few hundred tomato plants a year and am totally ruthless when it comes to `culling`
  
  If it`s not up to my standards it`s not good enough to sell.
  
  And yes some plants just do not seem to thrive even under the same conditions as others-they go in the compost bin

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  Posted by punpun (U14553477) on Monday, 18th April 2011

  Hi 4smilingcat6,
  I agree ref the culling & it is a very common mistake the newer to gardening person tends to make "not culling or thining out"
  
  I like you take no prisoners when it comes to any plants that are not performing.
  
  I thinout and give plenty of space and it pays dividends every time.

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  Posted by Italophile (U12516505) on Tuesday, 19th April 2011

  Sorry, Paull2, I forgot about the "woody" problem. Those sorts of blemishes are usually either too much water, too much fertiliser, or both. As I said earlier, seedlings shouldn't be permanently damp. They don't need it. Let them dry out between waterings. Better to water when necessary rather than as a ritual.
  
  If you're fertilising, I'd suggest giving that a break, too. I fertilise my tom seedlings only once between germination and planting out, and it's a very weak (highly diluted) feed at that. The more a seedling is allowed to develop under its own steam, the stronger the plant will be later in life.

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  Posted by Paull2 (U14064177) on Tuesday, 19th April 2011

  Many thanks. I don't normally use any feed at all until the fruit sets. Just ordinary general purpose compost too. Later, I'd pot up the plants in my own compost which is pretty rich in nutrition I assume, then use a liquid feed and perhaps some wood ash which I've read beefs up the potash they need (probably has little effect). Is their much point in fertiliser for such young plants in fresh compost, would you say? Faster growing perhaps but is the plant developing adequately for later fruiting requirements?

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  Posted by Italophile (U12516505) on Wednesday, 20th April 2011

  Your system sounds good. Given a bit less water.
  
  I only give my seedlings one very diluted feed before they go into the ground because the first transplant is into pretty neutral mix. They will tell you if they need a feed at that stage - you'll see a purplish tinge to the veins in the leaves. If the mix is good and nutritious, they shouldn't need feeding. Again, they will tell you.
  
  If you feed with a dedicated tomato food - low N, high P and K - you shouldn't need extra potash. There should be sufficient in the product.
  
  I plant outdoors in good - but not overly rich - soil. Once in the ground, I only feed twice. First, a couple of weeks after planting; the second time, late in the season. Growing in pots is obviously different - watering leaches out the goodness - but toms don't improve with richness in any department. They're actually one of those plants that will do its absolute best if left to struggle a little - the Need To Reproduce To Survive Syndrome. It's a matter of finding the balance.
  
  The thing with toms is that they're much tougher beasts than people believe. I plant outdoors and stake securely. One year a massive wind storm completely uprooted a couple of plants. It took some doing because tomato roots in the ground grow deep. I picked them up, took off the broken branches, replanted them, and they got on happily with their business. That's what I call tough.

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