Very yellow seedlings

[Snoop Puss]

Hi guys, I've recently started sowing my seeds but every one of the seedlings that has popped up so far (tomatoes, brassicas, flowers, fennel and lettuce) looks very yellow. Before they popped up, they were kept indoors, so maybe not much light. But as soon as they began to emerge, I've been putting the module trays outside, so plenty of sunshine.

New bag of compost bought in recent weeks, same brand as previous years, texture looks OK, supposedly got all the feed required for three months.

Any views? Any advice? It seems very early to feed but maybe that's what's required.

[Jungle Jane]

I’d give them a dilute feed,I had to feed mine….I bought a bag of jacks magic from a garden centre,it was really dry,not as good texture as normal,bits in it that haven’t composted,really different to normal,I fed them dilute seaweed feed & they look alright but they need watering more than normal. A couple of days ago I bought jacks magic from a different garden centre in Braintree & it’s normal jacks magic,potted up my marigolds & it’s good,so two bags of the same brand can be very different.

[ameno]

It's almost certainly the compost. Just because it's the same brand, doesn't mean it's necessarily the same. Companies reformulate quite often, not always for the better.
Giving them a liquid feed every week is perfectly safe, and should perk them up again. For any further seeds or for repotting, I would recommend getting new compost, from a different course.
If you have a B&Q near you, GoodHome Enriched Multi-Purpose compost (make sure to get the Enriched one, not the normal one) is a Which Best Buy this year for seeds and young plants, and it's peat-free.

[Snoop Puss]

Thanks, guys. Have some liquid seaweed feed so will start with that. And yes, get some different compost in. They're still at the dicotyledon stage, which is why it's so bizarre.

Thanks again.

[Penellype]

I'm having dreadful trouble for the 2nd year running with yellow tomato plants, Hurst Greenshaft peas that won't germinate (Meteor are fine), and appalling germination/growth from peppers, spinach and beetroot sown indoors.

These are some of the tomatoes - they have had plenty of light:





I added perlite to the Shirley (bottom picture) before potting on as I thought the compost might be too wet. Both are in Westland Big Tom compost which I always use, as are the peppers, the peas, spinach and beetroot are in Jack's Magic.

[Snoop Puss]

That must be heartbreaking, Penellype, after all the effort you've put in to get them that far. I've just been talking with Mr Snoop and he suggests starting off another lot of seeds in different compost.

[quanglewangle]

It really is time for the compost industry to get more transparent and honest in labelling. A panel in plain type with clear descriptions and percentages of components, is what is needed.

No more 'farmyard manure' that's been nowhere near a farmyard, or 'added John Innis' when JI is a recipe (actually several) and not a substance, which can be added. What does 'feeds for 3 weeks' mean?

[SimpleSimon]

This has happened to my first batch of chilli plants. Really annoying but best not to panic and over feed them I guess. Chilli plants will pretty much bounce back from any state when I get them into the the tunnel. Well apart from all the leaves falling off!

[ameno]

Any poor germination is unlikely to be down to the compost. A seed should have all it needs to emerge from the soil inside itself - they can reach the cotyledon stage just in damp sand or on damp tissue. It's only its growth thereafter which is dependant on the compost.
Poor germination is far more likely to be down to a bad batch of seeds. I've had issues myself this year with pepper seeds, and in previous years with peas and beans. Try to contact the seller and get a refund or replacement for them if you can.
Poor growth after germination is very likely to be the compost, however (although with tender crops low temperatures, especially at night, can also be a cause).

[ameno]

It really is time for the compost industry to get more transparent and honest in labelling. A panel in plain type with clear descriptions and percentages of components, is what is needed.

No more 'farmyard manure' that's been nowhere near a farmyard, or 'added John Innis' when JI is a recipe (actually several) and not a substance, which can be added. What does 'feeds for 3 weeks' mean?

I agree that compost ingredients need to be more transparently labelled, but unfortunately that still won't tell us all that we need to know.
Gardening Which have found year after year that composts with seemingly incredibly similar ingredients (they get told the ingredients by the manufacturers) can perform radically different. Changes in the way the ingredients are processed, where they are procured from, and precisely what types, quantities and ratios of fertilisers are added can make big differences to the end product, and there is no real way of knowing exactly what those changes will be without testing that specific recipe.

[Snoop Puss]

OK guys, I now have another bag of compost. It's very wet at the moment and very dark, claims to be suitable for seeds. It contains composted coconut coir, composted plant material, sand and Leonardite. There's no grit, perlite or vermiculite. And no recycled household waste either.

I have some extremely coarse sand I could add instead of grit and can see if I can buy perlite or vermiculite locally. Is there any difference between perlite and vermiculite for seeds?

Thanks for any advice

[Penellype]

That must be heartbreaking, Penellype, after all the effort you've put in to get them that far. I've just been talking with Mr Snoop and he suggests starting off another lot of seeds in different compost.

Yes I am going to try some different compost - I got some Verve which I hope will be better. Luckily there is plenty of time for tomatoes to catch up - if I can get them to grow in the first place!

[Penellype]

Any poor germination is unlikely to be down to the compost. A seed should have all it needs to emerge from the soil inside itself - they can reach the cotyledon stage just in damp sand or on damp tissue. It's only its growth thereafter which is dependant on the compost.
Poor germination is far more likely to be down to a bad batch of seeds. I've had issues myself this year with pepper seeds, and in previous years with peas and beans. Try to contact the seller and get a refund or replacement for them if you can.
Poor growth after germination is very likely to be the compost, however (although with tender crops low temperatures, especially at night, can also be a cause).

Yes I agree that it seems likely to be bad seeds, but it is really really strange that several completely different types of seed (all still in date) are not germinating. With the spinach for example, in the Jacks Magic compost 6 plants germinated from 48 seeds, whereas a row of seeds in the hotbed produced a nearly complete row. My take on it is that the compost is sucking up too much water from the capillary matting and becoming waterlogged and airless. With the peas you can see mould on the surface near where the seeds were planted. The peppers were brand new seed and had about 50% germination, and of those that did germinate, several of the plants look unwell.

[Snoop Puss]

Yes I agree that it seems likely to be bad seeds, but it is really really strange that several completely different types of seed (all still in date) are not germinating. With the spinach for example, in the Jacks Magic compost 6 plants germinated from 48 seeds, whereas a row of seeds in the hotbed produced a nearly complete row. My take on it is that the compost is sucking up too much water from the capillary matting and becoming waterlogged and airless. With the peas you can see mould on the surface near where the seeds were planted. The peppers were brand new seed and had about 50% germination, and of those that did germinate, several of the plants look unwell.

In my case, I'm talking about seeds from two different suppliers in France, a Spanish supplier and Bingenheimer in Germany, who are well rated. It's odd that they should all have bad seeds in different varieties of plant. I'm doubtful in my case.

Too much water retained in the compost is a possibility. Perhaps I've packed it too tightly, so it's not draining that well. But it contains quite a bit of perlite, so that might mitigate that problem.

Do you have any views, Penellype, on vermiculite or perlite as an additive?

[Penellype]

Do you have any views, Penellype, on vermiculite or perlite as an additive?

I've used both in various situations - as I understand it, both help retain water, but perlite is fairly inert and helps with drainage, it is also light, so I have sometimes added it for plants that are going on my fence to reduce the weight, and in large tubs so that they are easier to move. Vermiculite absorbs water like a sponge and therefore helps to keep pots moist for longer.

There is a good explanation of the difference between them here https://homeguides.sfgate.com/vermic...ite-49660.html