Content
Seedling tomato considered among gardeners less whimsical than peppers or eggplants.
But sometimes this culture is a lot of trouble. Gardeners complain that tomato seedlings are not growing. This trouble overtakes not only novice vegetable growers, but also experienced summer residents are faced with a similar problem. You can solve any problem when you know the reasons for its occurrence. What factors lead to the fact that tomato seedlings grow weak, their leaves dry or turn yellow, and spots appear on the plant?
Among the main reasons are:
- violation of the diet;
- insufficient lighting;
- cultural diseases;
- invasion of parasites;
- illiterate picking of seedlings.
To help tomatoes in time, you need to carefully examine the seedlings. This is especially important if you are growing your own seedlings for the first time. Timely action is the key to your success with problems with small plants.
Finding out the possible reason
To begin with, we will determine what factors lead to stunted growth or poor appearance of tomato seedlings.
Tomato seedlings grow poorly if they:
Is getting insufficient nutrition
This is speculation, but certain indications point to a lack of beneficial ingredients. Examine the tomato seedlings carefully.
When there is not enough nitrogen, the stems are thinned, the leaves are small and pale, the entire seedling is very weak. Feed well with urea (4g per 10l).
Reddening of the underside of tomato leaves is observed with a lack of phosphorus. We feed with superphosphate (12g per bucket).
The ends of the leaf blades curl and turn yellow with potassium deficiency. Potassium sulfate will help. They acquire a marble color when they are low in magnesium, and stop growing from a lack of iron. For the same reason, tomato bushes begin to turn yellow from chlorosis. Treatment for seedlings - we remove in the shade and apply iron-containing fertilizer along the leaf, as well as magnesium sulfate (25 g per bucket).
Illiterately swooped down
Carrying out this operation requires attention and quality from the gardener. If you relax your vigilance a little, then you can bend the roots of the tomato, or damage or break off during transplantation, and also allow air space between them. Any of these factors will lead to poor survival, stunted growth, or death of the plant. To avoid this, carefully examine the root system of tomato seedlings and carefully plant it in the ground, observing all the requirements. If it is not possible to transfer a seedling with a clod of soil, carefully position the root system in a new hole and tamp the soil after transplanting.
Violations in the care of small tomatoes
This point, first of all, should include watering. Many growers believe that the soil should be moist all the time. However, because of this, the seedlings experience waterlogging. The soil in the pot should dry out a little so that diseases do not develop due to stagnant moisture, and the roots have access to oxygen. Provide good drainage for the planter box.
The second factor of care, in violation of which tomato seedlings do not grow, is the temperature regime. As soon as the seedlings have appeared, the boxes are placed in a cool room.Daytime indicators - 16 ° С-18 ° С, at night we withstand 14 ° С-15 ° С. After a couple of weeks, the indicators change - up to 20 ° C during the day and 16 ° C at night. A month later, there should be three leaves on the tomato seedlings and it is prepared for picking.
The third is lighting. Tomato seedlings in short spring days must be supplemented. Daylight hours are kept for at least 14 hours. However, if the seedlings are exposed to direct sunlight, they can get "sunburn". And then transparent or white spots appear on tomato seedlings. This happens when the cloudy weather lasts for a long time, and then the bright sun comes out. Shade the plants and spray with Epin.
Diseases and pests
These factors cannot be ignored, so below we will consider them in more detail.
The soil is not suitable for tomato seedlings
This option should be allowed if all parameters are met, care is competent, there are no diseases, and tomato seedlings are sick.
In this case, only replacing the substrate will help.
The list cannot be considered the most complete. The reasons that are most often recorded by gardeners are given. Among the rest, there may be an illiterate choice of a variety or non-application of the recommendations of the lunar calendar.
What diseases and pests stop the growth of tomato seedlings
Disease damage or exposure to parasites can not only slow down the development of seedlings, but also destroy entire seedling colonies.
Blackleg
Often among the seedlings, a number of specimens fall. The reason is the "black leg" - an infectious disease not only of tomato seedlings, but also of other crops. The stems darken at the bottom, "perebinki" are formed on them. Then the seedlings wither and lie down, the roots begin to rot. Diseased plants will have to be removed. The rest are necessarily transplanted at a greater distance than before. New soil is prepared, ash (wood) and calcined sand are added to it.
After transplanting, the seedlings are sprayed with "Fundazol" and do not watered until the soil is completely dry. Be sure to ventilate the room. Fighting this ailment is much more difficult than preventing it. It is important at the stage of soil preparation to add wood ash to the soil mixture, during the growth of seedlings to protect it from waterlogging and high temperatures. Inspect tomato seedlings daily. At the first signs of a "black leg" use biological products ("Fitosporin", "Baktofit"), dust the soil and seedlings with ash. It is better to remove the plants in the neglected form.
Rot (root and root)
Here the reason would be overflowing seedlings combined with low soil or ambient air temperatures. We'll have to act very quickly. Need to transplant tomato seedlings in a different soil. Before planting, the roots are washed in solutions of potassium permanganate or "Fitosporin".
Septoria (white spot)
Disease is indicated by off-white specks with a darker border. This is a type of fungal disease. It is transferred with the soil, and develops at high humidity and temperature. Diseased plants are removed, treatment is very problematic and lengthy. It will be more important not to forget to warm up and disinfect the soil before sowing a tomato.
Spider mite
The main pests that can harm it at the time of seedling growth are spider mites, earwigs, wood lice. Even if you do not know what parasites dangerous for seedlings look like, if you notice any colonies, carry out the treatment. The preparations Fitoverm, Aktellik and karbofos work well.
Conclusion
We have looked at the possible reasons that lead to poor seedling growth. But, it is necessary in each case to carefully look for unfavorable factors. You can understand why seedlings do not grow with constant monitoring of seedlings. The best way to keep your seedlings out of trouble is:
- study recommendations for growing tomatoes;
- think in advance about the possibilities of observing the temperature regime, lighting parameters and humidity;
- take care of good soil;
- choose stress-resistant varieties;
- find information on the rapid identification of diseases and pests of tomato seedlings;
- get rid of doubts.
The last point is very important. Growing strong, healthy tomato seedlings is much easier than people think.
It is a highly adaptable plant with good survival rate. Follow the recommendations and your tomato seedlings will grow without problems.
