Some of the Brugmansia leaves have a white colour, is this normal? I know I should remove the seed shell on the third one but I'm afraid of hurting it (of course it looks really really sad). When should I move them to their own pots? It's been about 23 days since sowing.
EDIT: I felt bad and performed emergency open seed surgery. It's in stable condition but there was some damage to the surrounding tissue. Nelly will probably pull through but any and all support is greatly appreciated.
I've never grown Leeks before. The germination rate seems to be in excess of 85% so far. Should I thin them to one per cell or is it fine to grow a few together?
Everyone want to call this 'Purple Spinach' but it's not related to spinach and that really bothers me. It should be called Purple Orach so that is how I will refer to it. I'm going to plant the seeds outside in the spring but was really curious about them so started a few early.
I thought they were unhealthily lanky but I searched for some images of seedlings and the few that I saw looked like this. Really odd. I'll keep an eye on them but I'm less concerned. All the seeds sprouted but one is green. I secretly hate that one.
Here are the Tiny Tim Tomatoes at about 3 weeks old. I've removed three or four seedlings already. I'll probably end up leaving three plants in the pot. One of them decided to be yellowy-white. Could this be a light or fertilizer thing? I'm must wondering because of the Brugmansia. I put a garlic clove in the middle because... *cough*
Supposedly I'll get the first fruit in three weeks. I think I need to step up the fertilizer and maybe toss in some more dirt so they can form more roots.
Your tomatoes look great! Hopefully, the pests will stay away from this batch. I think you're fine not thinning the leeks. I'm planning on separating my leeks into separate cells when they are big enough to handle. They germinated well for me too...much better than the onions.
ReplyDeleteThanks, I really wasn't sure what to do with them. The germination rate is really impressive. I've never tried onions from seed. I've tried some small plants from nurseries but they were TINY by the end of the summer.
ReplyDeleteEverything is looking really good! Those brugs have really grown fast and the Tiny Tims are nice and stocky.
ReplyDeleteThe yellowing must be some kind of nutrient deficiency, I don't think it will case any harm though. You can grow 3-4 onions per cell, they don't mind crowding. At planting time just gently break them apart. I have a few seedlings that are stretched like your purple spinach, I find most cool season veggies do this. I usually just plant them deeper at transplant.
I had heard that if you plant a hot pepper (such as jalapeno) with a tomato plant that the tomatoes will be hot. I tried it last year in the garden, but my tomato plant didn't do well ( I got no tomatoes) and the leaves overshadowed the pepper plant stunting it's growth. I'm gonna try again this year. What do you think?
ReplyDelete~Randy
Dan, the brugmansia really have grown fast. I'm surprised. I actually fertilized them the last time they were watered. Thanks for the leek information. I was worried about those lanky seedlings too so I'm glad they're most likely alright
ReplyDeleteRandy, I don't think that will work. I tried looking it up and couldn't find anything. Hopefully your tomatoes do better this year! Make sure to remove the lower leaves and bury about half of the stock (more roots will grow). Also water them well and make sure the soil is good. Reduce when the fruit is rippening and it should be sweeter.
Chicken Boys, I don't think that'd make your tomatoes hotter, either... I mean, maybe if somehow you were able to pollinate the tomato with really hot pepper pollen and collected the seed, grew and tested the F1 generation, then maybe... But probably not.
ReplyDeleteAerelonian, is that an 8" pot your tomatoes are in? You might want to leave only one plant in it. I got a few cherry tomatoes from a single plant in an 8" pot on my windowsill, but with nutrient and root-space competition from two or three others, yours might not do as well as they could. Are you planning on keeping them indoors or sticking them outside? That would potentially change the size pot you need--one dwarf/cherry tomato plant is fine in an 8" pot indoors (it won't grow as well as it would if it were in desirable conditions outdoors, so it won't need as much room), but you'd want a larger one if it goes outside. You have really good fluorescents--the tomatoes are amazingly stocky and healthy-looking ('cept for the yellow one... I'll ignore him)!
Also, I'd agree with Dan--you can keep the leek seedlings together in the cells, but separate them gently when you transplant. They don't take up too much vertical or root space, either, so don't worry about bunching them just a few inches apart from one another!
Everything is called spinach something-or-other... "Spinach" is the chicken of the vegetable world. Don't know what it is, but it's edible? It probably tastes like spinach!
And by vertical, I meant horizontal. Sigh. Sleep is needed.
ReplyDeleteYes the tomatoes are in an 8" pot. I started with ten and have now thinned to five (but it's more like 4 because one is super tiny). I'm trying to keep them small because they'll stay under the grow lights.
ReplyDeleteApparently these plants don't produce long and may actually start dying around the time I would put them outside. I just wanted to test the seeds and maybe have some winter tomatoes!
The fluorescents are alright but I think this variety is just really stocky. It only grows to 45cm! For their current size, the roots are still really tiny and I'm fertilizing so the biggest battle will be for light. I'll probably thin to two or three though.
Thanks for the knowledgeable response. I'm excited for those leeks!