Stagnated Seedlings

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januaryhou Atlanta, GA May 27, 2021

I recently tried (for the first time) starting plants from seedlings. Some of the plants like cucumbers are doing well, but most have stagnated. In particular, the tomatoes don't look great.

We started these a little late, but our season is long so we figured we'd at least get some yield off of them.

They get about 16 hours of light a day (from LED lights ~3 inches above the seedlings), and I have a heat mat that keeps them at around 76 degrees. I've been watering them from the bottom and have fertilized them twice.

They shot up in the first week, but have stayed roughly the same in the _four_ weeks since. I'm kind of afraid that they're a lost cause, but even if they can't be fixed, I'd be curious to know what might have gone wrong for next time.

Thanks for any help!

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Farmerdill Augusta, GA(Zone 8a) May 27, 2021

I have no idea. tomatoes are are easy to start. I don't use lights or heat mats. Just put a good growing mix in the planting tray, poke in a few seeds and get them outside when when night time temps reach 40. I am in Augusta so a shade warmer. Mine are now in the garden and have green tomatoes. The only thing I can think of is that you killed them with love.. Experiment with fall tomatoes. Put some good growing mix in a pot outside. Poke in a few seeds. Water them once a week and other wise ignore them. bet they do well.

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MaypopLaurel Cleveland,GA/Atlanta, GA(Zone 7b) May 28, 2021

Farmerdill mentioned good growing mix twice. So many growing mixes today are nothing more than decomposed tree bark, from mill yards, with perlite and fertilizer thrown in. The fertilizer isn't there to boost the seedlings. It's there to compensate for the breakdown of what is essentially rotting compost. No guarantees, but stick to mixes that state they are specifically for seedlings.

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Isanara Salt Lake City, UT(Zone 7a) Jun 14, 2022

The heating mat is not usually needed for Tomato.
The image seems to show plants that are not getting enough light to be happy.

Tomato is a high light plant and commonly available grow lights of the LED variety are seldom effective for establishment after plants germinate.

Putting the light closer to the plants next time can help somewhat.

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