Feeding seedlings

[onefivenine]

Hi all,
My Tumbling Tom, and 100s & 1000s seedlings have got their first true leaves, however they are still in seed compost in 3" pots. Should I feed them yet? If not when should I start?
Thanks!

[Alison]

I don't usually start feeding my tomatoes until they form their first flower truss. They do get potted on before then though so get a boost with new compost a couple of times.

[onefivenine]

Thanks for the reply Alison.
They are a little small I think, for me to try to pot on.
Is it a good idea to give them a little drop of tomato food in the meantime to help them on their way?

[Alison]

There shouldn't be any need to feed at the moment if they're very small, the seed itself contains enough food for them to get going. I tend to sow mine in really ickle pots (home made newspaper ones) as I don't have much propogator space and then pot on as soon as they have their proper seed leaves into 3" pots. When they get to the point of filling them then they end up getting potted on and then finally into their summer position, be that greenhouse or outside bed. Are you concerned that they're looking like they need a feed or are you just trying to give them a good start? If the former then maybe you'd be best putting a piccie up but if it's the latter then I'm afraid you could just be over cotton wooling them!

[onefivenine]

They don't look unhealthy to me so I guess it's the latter alright
I'm just thinking it'll be a while before they fill out their 3" pots and all that time will have been in seed compost with no feed so perhaps not the best start.

[tamsin]

They'll be out growing their pots in no time, my 8 week old tumbler has 10+ big leaves with more on the way and a bunch of little flower buds at the top. Once they get the first proper leaves they seem to go crazy! The one that's a month older is about 18" tall and 1' across - too many leaves to count

[sez]

No feed needed, onefivenine! The compost (even seed compost) has enough in it to keep them going, fret not

(mind you I tend to give all my seedlings a drink of seaweed fertiliser when I transplant them to help them settle in, but I don't think they even need that).

[bramble]

I've transferred mine from their modules, to 3inch opts and now on to 5 inch pots. They're doing great and I have,nt fed them yet.
I never feed mine until they start putting up floweer buds.
I've done this everry year and get a great crop of toms.
You're being over anxious, relaz and enjoy the experience.

[onefivenine]

They'll be out growing their pots in no time, my 8 week old tumbler has 10+ big leaves with more on the way and a bunch of little flower buds at the top. Once they get the first proper leaves they seem to go crazy! The one that's a month older is about 18" tall and 1' across - too many leaves to count

Thanks thats useful to know. Mine were sown on 29 March so interested to see how many leaves I have after 8 weeks.

No feed needed, onefivenine! The compost (even seed compost) has enough in it to keep them going, fret not

Thanks. I gave them one drop of general purpose food in a mini watering can just for luck, but that'll do em till they need to be planted out into their baskets.

I've transferred mine from their modules, to 3inch opts and now on to 5 inch pots. They're doing great and I have,nt fed them yet.
I never feed mine until they start putting up floweer buds.
I've done this everry year and get a great crop of toms.
You're being over anxious, relaz and enjoy the experience.

Thanks again for the reassurance.

[tamsin]

Here you go, one month old, two months old and three months old. They grow up quick!

[onefivenine]

Here you go, one month old, two months old and three months old. They grow up quick!

That's impressive. It looks huge after 3 months! Brilliant

[Eyren]

I have to admit that my month-old toms aren't anywhere near as big as Tamsin's - mine are in my conservatory, which is frost-free but quite cool (unless we get a sunny spell), so they're not exactly mollycoddled! Still, there's plenty of time yet for them to put on some growth - I won't be planting them out for at least another month, and I prefer them to be not too big at that point.