Tomatoes and Tea

All gardeners experience setbacks.

We had a trip to Phoenix planned, leaving Thursday morning and returning Saturday evening. When we left, the little seedlings were just poking through the top of their pods, some maybe 1/4" tall.  We decided not to set them under the grow lights, fearing the heat from the lights would dry them out. They could not remain under their plastic cover, though, as that would be too moist. We propped open the plastic cover and set them on the dining room table.

Before...

What a surprise awaited when we returned home on Saturday afternoon! Those tiny seedlings had grown to 3-4 inches tall and were pointed towards the nearest window. 

...and After!

Tall seedlings are NOT good. They are what is known as "leggy". Tall, spindly growth is unhealthy for seedlings. They will have compromised circulatory systems. When the light source is too far away, they stretch their heads towards the nearest light source. It is important to place the seedlings under a light source that is 2-3" away. We immediately moved the tray underneath the light source which was lowered to approximately 2 inches above the tray.

Leggy!

I could barely contain my dismay on Saturday evening knowing I had to begin anew.  I also knew that I had used all of the seeds in two of the seed varieties I had ordered and could not purchase them in Flagstaff.

Four pods with Ultimate Opener variety were only 1-2 inches tall, so I took them out of tray 1 and put them in a small tray and placed them under the Aerogrow light. I decided to reoganize tray 1 and leave it underneath the light source to see if I can salvage any of the leggy seedlings. This tray now contains five pods of Oregon Spring, three pods of Sungold 1, three pods of Sungold 2, and six pods of Black Krim.

I planted seeds in a new tray with Oregon Spring, Sungold, Black Krim and SuperSweet (an addition to the original seed choices) and set them near the refrigerator with the plastic lid closed.

Dana Prom Smith, in the gardening column in yesterday's Arizona Daily Sun, said it best: "We can't learn anything worthwhile unless we first fail...If you don't handle grief well, tomatoes may not be your cup of tea."