I planted my tomatoes about two weeks ago in little foam cups outside. I have waited for them to pop up but nothing has yet. I water them twice a day and I have used a little bit of miracle grow. Does anyone know what I might be doing wrong?
My tomato plants wont pop up
- Thread starter meganisonfire
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What is the outside temperature. By watering twice a day you have probably rotted them. You would be better off sprouting them indoors in a very warm place. Never fertilize seeds. The seed itself is its fertilizer until about the 2nd set of true leaves and even then fertilize sparingly until at least the 3rd set of true leaves,
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You should water them every other day. They don't like as much water when they are sprouting. I sprouted from a seed packet earlier this year and I made sure not to flood my soil because of fruit flies. I flooded the soil with strawberries though. It was the only plant that wouldn't pop up. Oh, and lettuce! It died very quickly.
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Where do you live? Tomatoes need lots of warmth to germinate. Also twice a day watering seems like a lot. At that stage temperature is more critical than light or water.
I started some tomatoes from seed earlier this year and after they sprouted I gave them water about every three days. They are in the ground now and doing fine.
I started some tomatoes from seed earlier this year and after they sprouted I gave them water about every three days. They are in the ground now and doing fine.
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Twice a day watering is insane. Even every other day is nuts. Best seed germination occurs in warm slightly damp soil. In moist soil when the seedlings finally pop up you are inviting damping off. The wetter it is the more likely this is going to happen.
Commercial growers use a mist system for starting seeds as the only water needed is in the top 1/4-1/2 inch of soil. Once sprouted the cells in which the seeds are planted are watered from the bottom up until saturated and then left alone until the top 1/2 inch is COMPLETLY DRY. Then they are watered from the bottom up again.
For the home gardener who doesn't have a misting system saturating the growing medium right before planting the seeds is all you have to do if you are planting indoors out of the wind and in a warm place. Watering from the bottom up and saturating the soil alleviates the watering problem. If the planting medium is saturated the medium itself acts as a wick. Water us sucked up from the bottom to the top and in doing so keeps the seed damp, not moist or wet. When the seedling emerges there will be ample moisture. The more water you apply the less oxygen the newly formed roots will receive. By continuing to water your seedlings from the bottom up you greatly increase the time between watering while at the same time greatly reducing the problem of fungal infections. And by sprinkling whole ground (horticultural) cornmeal on the soil surface you will reduce fungus to almost non-existent.
Commercial growers use a mist system for starting seeds as the only water needed is in the top 1/4-1/2 inch of soil. Once sprouted the cells in which the seeds are planted are watered from the bottom up until saturated and then left alone until the top 1/2 inch is COMPLETLY DRY. Then they are watered from the bottom up again.
For the home gardener who doesn't have a misting system saturating the growing medium right before planting the seeds is all you have to do if you are planting indoors out of the wind and in a warm place. Watering from the bottom up and saturating the soil alleviates the watering problem. If the planting medium is saturated the medium itself acts as a wick. Water us sucked up from the bottom to the top and in doing so keeps the seed damp, not moist or wet. When the seedling emerges there will be ample moisture. The more water you apply the less oxygen the newly formed roots will receive. By continuing to water your seedlings from the bottom up you greatly increase the time between watering while at the same time greatly reducing the problem of fungal infections. And by sprinkling whole ground (horticultural) cornmeal on the soil surface you will reduce fungus to almost non-existent.
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You could be watering them too much. I planted some tomatoes, onions, carrots and peas from seeds and the only thing that wasn't growing was the tomatoes. I thought for sure they wouldn't take but they have. But I don't water my garden every day, I give it a good watering probably once, maybe twice a week. Either way I check the soil to see if it has any moisture, if it does I leave it alone, if not I'll water. Too much water will rot anything you have. I'd say leave them alone for a bit but check the soil just to ensure it's not dry. Any moisture, leave it, they'll be fine for a bit and hopefully they'll start to sprout.