I've tried this in the past, and my plants are always thin and stringy- is it because they are fighting to get towards the light? How do I get their stalks "chubby" and strong like the ones at the nursery?
2007-02-13 02:14:24 · 8 answers · asked by The Grand Inquisitor 4 in Home & Garden ➔ Garden & Landscape
The reason they are growing like that is exactly what you said, they are not getting enough light.
When you see your seeds germinating they should get as much direct sunlight as possible during the day and once they have 2 sets of leaves on them be separated into there own pot or area in the garden with some protection. Give them a feed of liquid fertiliser at this point, fornightly. You can buy specific fertilisers just for Tomatoes, and you can use this on your Capsicums and Peppers.
The ones at the nursery are grown under special conditions and receive optimum light, shelter, misting and even bottom heat.
2007-02-13 02:23:49 · answer #1 · answered by tassie 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Tomatoes are an amazing plant in that - you can take long seedlings and, when it is time to plant them outside, lay them down and bury as much of their stem as you want - making them the height you want. The buried stem will grow roots and actually makes for a stronger plant.
Not so with peppers though - important to keep them close to the source of light while still indoors. If useing a grow light - keep them an inch from the light, this will prvent them reaching for the light and getting stringy.
2007-02-13 05:28:40 · answer #2 · answered by Barbados Chick 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Keep daylight florescent light 2" above the tops of the plants
Keep the room temperature at about 60 F
Don't feed them
2007-02-13 02:20:12 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Put grow lights very close to the plants, a heating pad under them, and pinch the second set of leaves that form to force them to "bush" out instead of growing straight up.
2007-02-13 02:22:57 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Plant the seeds deeper in the soil and not only one in each pot
2007-02-13 02:18:56 · answer #5 · answered by ChocLover 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
they need smaller pots to start in. maybe you have too much nitrogen. that makes plants tall and spindly, and yellowy
2007-02-16 07:58:11 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Too much fertilizer will also cause spingly growth.
2007-02-16 22:39:50 · answer #7 · answered by Vivagaribaldi 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
contact me for help. i grow all the time.
2007-02-13 02:20:19 · answer #8 · answered by DASH 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋