Most gardeners prefer self-growing seedlings, as in this case it will be possible to get 100% quality material for planting.
But sometimes it happens that seedlings are pulled.
This article will focus on what to do if seedlings are very long.
If the seedlings are very long - what to do: basic information
Tomatoes are one of the most popular vegetables in the world. Not much is known about their origin, but most scientists call them the homeland of Peru and Ecuador. Tomatoes are one of the most useful vegetables for the human body, they are often used in the kitchen. From these vegetables you can cook countless dishes, each of which will have excellent taste. Naturally, it is much better to grow tomatoes at home, since market or store vegetables may not suit your taste, moreover, it is not known what substances they were processed before.
In addition to taste, tomatoes also contain many useful substances for the body, including:
Vitamin B
vitamin C;
choline;
salts of various elements and much more.
Choline contained in tomatoes helps lower blood cholesterol, strengthens immunity and hemoglobin, and also prevents the process of obesity in the liver.
However, everyone who wants to eat exclusively natural tomatoes grown at home will certainly encounter a lot of difficulties, since they require a lot of effort and time. To get an excellent crop of tomatoes, first you need to grow their seedlings, which is very capricious, and requires regular care and attention. If you do not follow all the recommendations of its planting, there is a high probability that it may simply not survive until the time when it needs to be planted in the ground.
If the seedlings are very long - what to do: definition of the problem
One of the main problems that every gardener may encounter when growing tomatoes is drawing seedlings. It grows, leaves touch other plants located nearby, and the struggle for space for life and light begins. This is a natural process in the development of seedlings, which must pass all levels of growth before they begin to produce seeds. To complete the life cycle, seedlings will begin to reach for light fluxes, since the process of photosynthesis will depend on them. This leads to the fact that the stems lose their strength, begin to turn yellow and old leaves begin to fall away.
This situation happens quite often with novice gardeners who decide to grow seedlings themselves. How to be in this case? Many in this case immediately throw out seedlings, preferring to throw it away. But no need to rush, in fact there are methods by which you can save young seedlings.
If the seedlings are very long - what to do: the main reasons
First of all, you need to prepare good conditions for seedlings.
1. The light. In nature, everything is thought out to the smallest detail. A plant that lacks light begins to reach for it. Therefore, when you start planting tomatoes in boxes - no need to be greedy and shove more plants into one container. Let them be better they will be less, but they will be much stronger and more enduring. These seedlings and fruits will give much more than the frail little sprouts that grew in cramped conditions. In addition, it is easier to contain 25 strong bushes than 50 weak shoots, which, in the end, will give approximately the same yield.
2. Excessive care. In this case, this can only be harmful, because if you water and fertilize young tomatoes too often, they will grow ahead of time and begin to stretch upwards. As a result, a similar problem arises. You need to remember the main thing: tomato seedlings should be watered only in those cases when it is really necessary, with dry soil.
3. Incorrect temperature conditions. That is, the omission of the moment when the sprouts sprouted and rushed up. Do not forget that you need to lower the temperature in the area where the seedlings are located, so that by the time of the dive it is in a suitable form and stage of development.
If the seedlings are very long - what to do: how to solve the problem?
What you need to do, that the seedlings did not start too stretched, you now know. Next, consider the situation when this has already happened, and you need to do something. We offer you 4 ways to solve this problem.
1. When planting seedlings in the ground, you need to deepen the stems. This does not mean at all that it will be necessary to dig deeper holes (the ground below may still be too cold, not warmed up after the cold weather), you just need to drop them “on a slope”. First you need to make furrows with a depth of 7-10 cm, pour water into them and wait until it is completely absorbed. Next, spread the bushes along the groove so that the distance between their tops is not closer than 50 cm.
Tip. Spread the roots to the south side, so that the plant then straightens to the sunny side.
2. Seedlings, which have greatly grown, must be divided into 2 parts. To do this, you need to cut everything that is located above the 6th leaf and put the plant in a jar of water. After about 7-8 days on the tops, which were cut off, the roots begin to break through. When they grow to 1.5 cm in height, they will need to be transplanted into pots and boxes. Using this method, it will be possible to obtain additional seedlings in which the newly formed half will form in one stem. Next, we will analyze what needs to be done with the cropped bottom. After some time, stepsons will begin to appear on the trimmed bushes. We need to give sprouts up to 5 cm, we leave only 2 top ones, the rest needs to be cut.
Important. Trimming stepchildren should be done no earlier and no later than 20-25 days before transplanting seedlings into open ground.
3. In the third method, the situation will be considered when the seedlings not only extended, but also changed their natural green color to a pale green. Each of these signs can indicate that the plant is clearly not enough nitrogen, that is, it needs to be fed. To do this, dilute 1 bol per 10 l of water. spoon of urea, and carefully pour the resulting liquid over seedlings. After that, remove the boxes with tomatoes in a cool room (about 10 ° C). This will allow the seedlings to regain their usual green color, and also slow it down somewhat.
4. The famous American vegetable grower J. Mittlider proposed an excellent solution to this problem, namely, regularly pruning leaves for seedlings. Tomato seedlings in this case will be in a constant state of shock. At that moment, when the leaves of seedlings begin to come into contact with neighboring plants, you must immediately cut one or two lower leaves. The plant, experiencing shock, after 7-10 days will cease to grow up, and the problem will be solved.
Remember that it is better to grow less strong than more frail plants, this will practically not affect the crop, but you will get much less problems. If you still have such a problem, use one of the tips above.
