Tomatoes from seed with no propagator, no lights?

[therose75]

Hi all

I'm in my 1st year as a grower and am struggling with tomatoes.

From a batch of over 20 seedlings we've only managed to keep one alive and well!
They all started well but with 2 in each pot and rather leggy we decided to transplant each one. That's when the trouble started.
So I've re-seeded and would love to have a higher success rate!

So here are my questions:

1. When do seedlings need to be thinned?
2. Can I just remove the weaker one and leave the other to grow even if it's not in the centre of the pot?
3. How long should I leave the seedlings on the window sill?
4. I plan to put them in the plastic greenhouse as I have with the more successful courgettes. When should I do this and if the nighttime temp is below 10deg should I bring them in at night? (we've moved to Bordeaux - night temps here are on average at 7deg in April.
5. I've put less soil in the pots this time around so I can just add soil if they get leggy. A good idea?

Any help would be greatly appreciated

[Bigmallly]

Hello & welcome to the vine, you could either transplant the seedlings or cut out the weakest. I would think 7C overnight should be ok. Mine have been in an unheated greenhouse for a few weeks & are getting temps down to 2C but are still doing ok.............not brilliant but then I wouldn't expect them to. You could put them in the greenhouse & cover with fleece or bubblewrap if you are worried about the overnight temps.

[Tripmeup]

What Mally said...Plus, plants don't have to be dead centre in the pot, they'll be fine...try not let them get too leggy either. But if you do, repot them deeper when potting on...

[veggiechicken]

Hello and welcome to the Grapevine.
You need to start the seeds off somewhere warm, like an airing cupboard. They don't need light until they germinate. Then move them to a well lit windowsill. I'd keep them in their pots until they have their true leaves, not the seedling leaves. You can either repot both seedlings or cut off the weakest, leaving the other to grow on.
Keep them in good light and turn them a couple of times each day to even up the light and stop them going leggy.
Each time you transplant them, pot them up deep, right up to the seed leaves.

You'll soon be picking your own tomatoes!

[muddled]

Hello, I don't have anything to add to the advice above...I just wanted to say hi and welcome to the vine!

[Guest]

Hi and welcome to the vine

[therose75]

Hello & welcome to the vine, you could either transplant the seedlings or cut out the weakest. I would think 7C overnight should be ok. Mine have been in an unheated greenhouse for a few weeks & are getting temps down to 2C but are still doing ok.............not brilliant but then I wouldn't expect them to. You could put them in the greenhouse & cover with fleece or bubblewrap if you are worried about the overnight temps.

Thanks a lot Bigmally!
When you say 'cover in fleece' do you mean cover the pot? Or should I whack a load of fleece and bumble wrap on the bottom of the plastic greenhouse as insulation?
If the sun is bright and penetrating through the window that's ok right? It's just direct sun which isn't so good early on.

[therose75]

Just wanted to thank everyone for being so welcoming!

It's lovely to start this experience knowing that people nice enough to help.

I'm sure I'll have many more questions!

[Bigmallly]

Thanks a lot Bigmally!
When you say 'cover in fleece' do you mean cover the pot? Or should I whack a load of fleece and bumble wrap on the bottom of the plastic greenhouse as insulation?
If the sun is bright and penetrating through the window that's ok right? It's just direct sun which isn't so good early on.

Something like this:

[Bigmallly]

Or should I whack a load bumble wrap on the bottom

That sounds quite appropriate.................

[Jimmy]

I put my old tomato plants on my compost bin along with any defunct tomatoes.
I eventually use the compost on my borders.
I get loads of tomatoes growing from the seeds.
Out in the cold etc, they still seem to grow.
I just hoe them in with the rest of the weeds.
Jimmy