Picking is an important step in growing tomato seedlings at home. There is little space for young sprouts, so to speed up the growth and strengthen young plants, you need to pick tomatoes at least once.
In order to get healthy, strong seedlings by the time of transplanting to a permanent place, you need to follow the rules.
The right time to transplant
There is an opinion that early picking has a beneficial effect on plant growth in the future. Sometimes tomatoes are planted before the real leaves appear; supposedly, the sprouts take root more easily, since the unformed roots are not damaged. But this is not advisable.
Before the true leaves appear, young shoots are not yet strong enough to withstand the stress of picking.
The ideal time is the appearance of the first pair of leaves. At this point, the seedlings become more viable and have strong roots. After 10–14 days, weak, underdeveloped seedlings are already visible and can be discarded.
It is also impossible to overexpose seedlings. In a cramped box, plants become weak and vulnerable to disease.
Watering mode
Before picking, moisten the soil, since in dry soil the roots are more damaged. But you also cannot overwater the soil and then remove the plants. Wet soil becomes too heavy and holds the roots, breaking them.
Water the tomatoes 1–2 days before picking so that the young seedlings are saturated with water and the soil becomes a little moist.
Choosing the right container
The essence of the picking procedure is to increase the nutrient soil and space for root development.
You cannot put sprouts into small glasses. Each plant should be provided with 0.5-1 liters of soil.
Soil preparation
Replanting tomatoes is stressful. In a new location, plants must receive the required amount of nutrients in order to quickly recover.
Use light, loose soil. In heavy soil, plants will not be able to adapt quickly; they will not begin to grow additional roots.
Favorable conditions for growth
In order for transplanted plants to begin to develop and gain strength, they need to be provided with favorable conditions for growth. For the first 4–6 days, you need to place the pots of tomatoes in a room with above-zero temperatures:
- around 16–18 OWith day;
- 13–15 OHappy night.
Do not water immature seedlings often. After picking, water the soil generously and leave the plants for several days. The next time they moisten the soil is when the leaves begin to lose turgor and the soil above dries out.
The first days do not place seedlings on a lighted windowsill. The sun's rays will cause rapid evaporation of moisture from the leaves, and fragile roots will not be able to absorb the required amount of moisture. Tomatoes should spend the entire adaptation period in diffused light.
Proper nutrition
Before transplanting to a permanent place, the seedlings are fed several times.But the first time this is done only 10–12 days after the pick. Immature plants will not be able to absorb incoming substances.
The right time is to fertilize when the young shoots begin to grow. You need to be careful when choosing the composition of the fertilizer. You cannot “overfeed” plants with nitrogen components. They will provoke rapid growth of green mass, and the seedlings may grow into planting in a permanent place.
Following these recommendations will help you obtain viable plants and, in the future, a rich harvest.
