Leggy Seedlings

If, like my tomato plants, your seedlings are a bit elongated, it can be rectified somewhat at the potting on stage. Bury the stems deep covering the seedlings up to their leaves and help them get some strength back.

Reasons for leggy seedlings/plants

1. Insufficient light

Indoor sowings are particularly susceptible to a lack of light as they can usually only get it from one direction and strain themselves towards the source. Regular rotating of plants will help with this problem.

2. Over-fertilisation

An imbalance of nutrients, particularly high Nitrogen levels, will result in too much green growth and a lack of flowers. Potassium and Phosphorous encourage fruit and flower development.

3. Incorrect Potting Technique

I am guilty of this and it only dawned on me this year, after many of my seeds had been planted. I am by no stretch an experienced gardener but this is my third year dabbling and I am still making rookie mistakes that seem so obvious once I realise them.

Instead of using seed trays with tiny modules, I often plant seeds directly into large pots. My logic was that (a) it would reduce the amount of times the plant would have to be potted on and (b) the seed would have plenty room and nutrients because it had no competition. I was wrong, oh so wrong.

The reason for starting seeds in small pots/modules and potting on in stages is:

(a) It promotes good root development. It is when the root hits a barrier (the pot base) that it develops from a long tap root into a fibrous one, sending out branches. This strengthens the root. By planting my seeds in a big pot, the root was just growing straight down, making no attempt to build itself up.

(b) Using large pots causes the soil to become anerobic and lack oxygen. Following on from poor root development, lack of activity in the soil (assuming there are no earthworms in the pots) causes conditions to become stagnant. This does not entice healthy plant development. Increasing pot size as the plant grows is the best practice.

Just look at my poor purple sprouting broccoli! Let them be a lesson to you.