Why don't tomatoes grow? The main reasons why tomato seedlings grow poorly Why the roots of tomato seedlings do not develop well

If tomato seedlings grow poorly, what to do in this case? Many people who grow their own vegetables have this question.

Everyone who has even a small part free land, usually tries to adapt it to create a vegetable garden. This solution makes it possible to independently grow various vegetables or fruit crops, which are a repository of vitamins and minerals. One of these crops that our gardeners love are tomatoes. Most modern recipes for winter preservation are based on the use of tomatoes or their juice. At the same time, the cultivation of this vegetable itself has some features, if these are not observed, it is extremely difficult to obtain a full-fledged strong and healthy plant.

Using a vegetable garden gives a person a lot of advantages, among which a special place is occupied by saving material resources and obtaining a natural harvest containing only useful material. One of the most beloved garden crops Tomatoes are rightfully our people.

At the same time, many people, trying to grow them at home, are faced with the problem that tomato seedlings do not grow. This state of affairs can become a serious problem and significantly reduce the yield of this vegetable, or even completely destroy it.

Why don't tomato seedlings grow? To date, several reasons have been identified why a plant may slow down its growth or even dry out completely. It should be taken into account that all of them can be eliminated independently, which will make it possible not only to preserve the plant and ensure its normal growth, but also to obtain a full harvest in the future.

Improper watering is the cause of slow growth

These criteria, which help seedlings to grow slowly, look like this:

• malnutrition;
• improper watering;
• lack of ultraviolet radiation;
• picking violation;
• diseases and pests.

The above factors cover almost all the reasons why tomato seedlings may slow down their growth or die completely. In this case, the slightest signs of disturbances in plant development should be the cause immediate response, since untimely assistance can negatively affect the overall health of the crop and the further formation of fruits.

Nutrients and tomato seedlings

The first and one of the most common reasons why tomato seedlings do not grow is a banal flaw nutrients in the soil. In most cases, this factor is the main reason for the slowdown in plant growth and disruption of their integrity.

Diagnosing such problems is quite simple, since lack of nutrition has its own visual features that are easy to notice even with the naked eye.

The main nutrients for this kind vegetable crops are the following:

• nitrogen;
• phosphorus;
• potassium;
• magnesium;
• iron.

What to do to make tomatoes grow to their full potential? The presence of the above elements in the soil guarantees the full development of plants and their health.

In turn, limiting the intake of any substance negatively affects general development tomatoes:

1. Nitrogen deficiency leads to the fact that the shoot develops rather poorly, and its stem remains for a long time too thin, giving the entire plant a stunted appearance.
2. A lack of phosphorus is also quite easy to notice, as it is expressed in a change in the color of the leaves, which take on a red-violet hue.
3. An insufficient supply of potassium contributes to the drying of the lower tier of leaves, and a deficiency of magnesium makes them excessively hard and dull.
4. Limiting iron intake contributes to the development of diseases such as chlorosis.

If tomato seedlings grow poorly and the indicated signs are present, it is necessary to add the missing nutrients, and the plant will return to normal.

Causes of poor seedling growth (video)

Solving other problems

What to do if tomatoes don't grow? Other factors do not so often lead to the fact that tomato seedlings do not want to grow, but still the reason for this phenomenon may lie precisely in them. The first of these is improper organization of watering, which can be expressed in two main conditions: lack of moisture or its excess. In the first case, the plant begins to dry out, and in the second, it begins to rot. As a rule, normalizing soil moisture eliminates this problem once and for all.

Small seedlings may be the result of a lack of sunlight, since large quantities of ultraviolet radiation are required for their full growth.

In turn, its limitation helps slow down the growth of shoots and their stunting. In order for seedlings to be strong, they need to be provided with access to sunlight.
Violation of picking can also cause stunting of plants, since in the process it sometimes damages the root system of the plant or creates voids in it.

Coping with such a problem is not so easy, since it is almost impossible to restore the integrity of the rhizome, but eliminating the voids is quite possible. To do this, you should compact the soil a little, ensuring that it adheres tightly to the roots and provides full access to all the necessary nutrients.

Tomato seedlings (video)

Estimate

Quite often, both beginners and experienced gardeners are concerned with the question: why don’t tomato seedlings grow at home? At first summer season when it is necessary to plant tomato seedlings in open ground, gardeners and those who are just starting to grow indoor tomatoes, as well as many others cultivated plants, are faced with the fact that this is not always possible. Thus, tomato seedlings at home stop growing at a certain point. Even if it grows well at first, situations are possible when the seedlings are exposed to one or another disease, and as a result, the seedlings remain at the same level for a long time. Accordingly, as soon as tomato seedlings need to be planted in open ground, new problems arise. As a result, growing seedlings seems difficult to many.

So, in order to understand why the growth of tomato seedlings at home stopped, we can consider the following points. There are several stages in the process of seedling growth. The first is, of course, sowing seeds. Next - picking, care and protection from diseases and pests. If you follow everything, growing seedlings will not be difficult.

Poor nutrition

So, if you planted tomato seedlings at home, you will need to ensure that the tomatoes are provided proper nutrition. For example, due to the fact that tomatoes are not fed correctly or watering is not done in a timely manner, they may have an insufficient amount of one or another element, and as a result, it will not be possible to grow good tomatoes.

In order to determine which element is missing, you just need to take a closer look at appearance plants. For example, if the leaves of the seedlings are small, then most likely there is not enough nitrogen in the soil. There may be a lack of phosphorus, as a result of which the leaves on the underside begin to turn red. purple. In this case, you will need to water the seedlings with fertilizers.

As for staining in a marble shade, this indicates that there is not enough magnesium in the soil. If, on the contrary, there is enough of all these elements, but there is no iron, then the leaves will turn yellow. Accordingly, as a result, various diseases develop and plants stop growing.

Having determined the cause of the disease, you will know how to grow a healthy tomato. The most common disease caused by a deficiency of one or another element is chlorosis. It is necessary to fight them, otherwise it will not be possible to grow tomato seedlings with high quality.

Thus, the lack of sufficient nutrients causes tomato seedlings to grow very poorly both at home and subsequently in open ground. What needs to be done in this case?

On initial stage Before planting seeds, you need to choose good soil. It must contain all useful microelements. To begin with, as already mentioned, you will need to decide what substance is missing, and then choose the method by which you will deliver this or that microelement to the plant, regardless of the variety of tomatoes.

For example, nitrogen is necessary to ensure that growth continues continuously this year and next. This applies not only to the height of the bushes, because it also happens that at first the seedlings stretch out and then stop growing. In this case, you need to feed the plants. Growing quality tomatoes is very difficult. As soon as you notice that the growth of seedlings at home has stopped, pay attention to further changes. So, with a lack of nitrogen, the leaves begin to turn yellow, the stem gradually becomes thinner and, accordingly, such a plant will need to be removed or try to deal with the problem in order to grow tomatoes well.

In order for the nitrogen in tomatoes to be preserved and the plant to grow, it is necessary to feed it with urea. To do this, you will need to dilute 1 tbsp in 10 liters of water. l. fertilizers, then water the plants directly at the roots.

The question of how to grow tomatoes at home is connected not only with correct definition which microelement plants lack, but also with the choice the right way combating a specific disease. So, a situation very often occurs when the plant begins to wither and become covered with purple. This means that the soil in which the tomatoes are planted does not have enough phosphorus. In order for a plant to grow, there must be enough phosphorus in the soil, as it affects how it develops root system tomatoes. In order to correct the current situation, you should purchase phosphorus fertilizers, which are used to feed the seedlings.

Depending on the concentration you purchase this or that fertilizer, on its packaging in the instructions you will see how it is used.

Most often, it is also diluted in water and watered different seedlings tomatoes at home at a certain interval.

Improper watering

Why do plants suddenly stop growing? Another important reason is that they are not watered correctly. Tomatoes are those plants that need proper watering. It is important to remember that they do not tolerate prolonged drought and excessive watering. Despite the fact that tomatoes do not need to be watered as often as cucumbers and peppers, do not forget that this procedure is performed at least once a week. At the same time, depending on the condition of the seedlings, you will need to monitor the condition of the soil. How to do this correctly?

Separately, it should be said that the first watering is carried out only 5 days after you see the first shoots. It is recommended to water all seedlings at any age with water. room temperature.

Errors when diving

Besides proper watering and fertilizing, tomatoes need other activities related to their proper growth. Quite often it happens that tomatoes need picking after they have been sown in one container. When planting bushes in separate pots or boxes, you must be very careful, as these actions can damage the root system of the plants. Picking is one of the most important reasons that will need to be considered if suddenly the plants begin to grow poorly.

The consequence of such a violation may be damage to the plant root. If, for example, the roots were torn off, they will need some time to grow and allow the tomatoes that are on the surface of the ground to develop further. Also, during transplantation, the roots of the plant may bend, and peculiar air cavities appear around them, which negatively affect the development of the plant.

Thus, picking is the most important process, which should help strengthen the root system, so it should be done only when the plants interfere with each other. If you sow each plant in a separate container from the very beginning, then you will not need to pick it, and you will avoid problems associated with diseases and insufficient growth of seedlings.

As for those situations where the plants are planted too close to each other, it will be necessary to pick 20-25 days after the first shoots appear. But here you also need to be especially careful, because if the plants have grown very large and begin to bend, then picking will need to be done earlier, without waiting for the specified period.

Other mistakes in care

So, based on all of the above, we can conclude that the cessation of seedling growth when growing tomatoes at home can occur due to excessive watering, due to improper picking, due to the fact that the plants do not have enough oxygen or there is insufficient amount of microelements necessary for the quality growth of tomatoes. Therefore, it is necessary to pay attention to additional points that affect the quality growth of seedlings. For example, you will need not only to know how to plant tomato seedlings and water the seedlings, but also to organize access to additional light for the seedlings.

All tomato varieties are very demanding of light, so it is advisable that the tray with seedlings be installed on the south side, and at the same time make sure that nothing shades the window or balcony. If you plant seedlings very early, then most likely they will not have enough light, and without installation additional equipment can't get by, because in winter time Daylight hours are very short. In this regard, it will be necessary to organize additional access to light.

Most often, the expert advises using tomatoes for home use. fluorescent lamps, which are installed at a distance of approximately 60 cm from the top of the plants. Please note that, if possible, in the first 3-4 days after the plants emerge, the lighting should be turned on around the clock. Only after these days will it be possible to turn on the lamp only when it is cloudy outside, or early in the morning for several hours and in the evening.

In addition to this process, tomato seedlings must be subjected to additional hardening measures. This procedure is the most important, because after a certain time you will still have to plant it in open ground. If the tomatoes have not been hardened, they will take a very long time to take root, get sick, or may even die.

Thus, before they are planted on the site, you will need to try to provide conditions in which the plants will live until the end of summer. To get used to environment Hardening is carried out as usual specifically for those tomatoes that you plan to plant in open ground.

If, for example, you want to plant them in greenhouses and greenhouses, then this procedure is not mandatory. In order for the plants to get used to outside temperature, you need to completely stop watering the tomatoes about 1 week before you start planting and take them outside for a few hours every day. open air(balcony - when growing tomatoes in an apartment, terrace, porch or area near houses). This also allows for early pollination. But don't overdo it, as freezing tomatoes is not advisable. Accordingly, no matter when you start growing tomatoes at home, small seedlings should not be taken outside if it is cool there.

Thus, knowing how to care for tomatoes, you will get a high-quality harvest, since growing tomato seedlings at home in this way promotes their growth, they will be adapted to absolutely any weather conditions and will not be afraid of temperature changes.

But it is not enough to know only how to plant seeds correctly and how to care for them. A separate issue is how to achieve a high-quality harvest and ensure it in the next seasons. In the process of planning for planting seeds for next year, before purchasing tomato seeds, you need to look and evaluate what tomatoes you have grown this year. After this research, if you are satisfied with the results, you can collect the seeds yourself and grow them every year indoor tomatoes.

IN additional information there is no need to learn how to collect tomato seeds, since there is nothing complicated here. First you need to choose the most suitable indoor tomatoes, which must be ripe. They will need to be cut, all seeds removed, and washed thoroughly in several waters. After this, all that remains is to place the resulting amount of seeds on gauze or paper and dry. At the same time, attention is drawn to the fact that the seeds that you purchased this year in a store or at the market are not hybrids, because as a result, even if the seedlings are properly cared for, you may get a completely different harvest than you expected. .

Diseases and pests of tomatoes

So, if you have done everything correctly and taken seriously such a process as selecting and planting seeds, watering, fertilizing, additional lighting, all that remains is to carefully monitor that the tomatoes are not attacked by various pests and seedling diseases.

In addition to this disease, another one arises in such conditions. This is a black leg - fungal disease. It is infectious and causes rapid death of the plant, therefore, as soon as the first signs of this seedling disease appear, it will be necessary to replant it quickly enough. healthy plants into new soil.

Tomato seedlings grow poorly: identifying the reasons (video)

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She will be healthy and strong. Most common following errors that impede the growth of young plants: Sowing seeds in acidic soil Most flowers and vegetables need to develop successfully in slightly acidic or neutral soil. Check the acidity of soil purchased in a store or brought from own plot, you can use an indicator - a strip of litmus paper. A handful of soil is poured into 0.5 cups of water, mixed, allowed to settle, and the indicator is lowered into the water. If the litmus paper strip turns red, the soil is acidic. It needs to be limed, but this should be done in advance, 2-3 weeks before sowing the seeds. In this case, it is not chalk or lime that is used, but ground or crushed eggshells (2-3 handfuls per 1 kg of soil). The pH of the soil will approach the optimal value for the development of seedlings. Adding an excessive amount of humus to the substrate for seedlings This contributes to the seedlings becoming infected with the viral disease “”. To avoid this danger, the soil, along with the humus introduced into it, must be sterilized (steamed or calcined in the oven) or processed (“Baikal”, “Shine”). Excessively frequent watering seedlingsYoung plants tolerate soil drying out more easily than waterlogging. Watering should be done approximately once a week, when upper layer the soil becomes dry to the touch, and the leaves of the plants begin to. Light deficit In March, when most gardeners sow seeds, daylight hours are still short. Especially in February (some plants require long-term cultivation before planting in the ground). In order for seedlings to grow well during these months, they need illumination with fluorescent or phytolamps. In February, additional illumination continues from dawn to dusk in any weather and on all windows. In March, windows facing north are illuminated in the same mode; On other windows, the lighting is turned on on cloudy days; on sunny days they are not used. Premature mineral fertilizers Only healthy, already well-developed plants can be fed, after about 7-10 days. More early feeding can only bring harm.

Ask experienced gardener, why the tomato seedlings are not growing or not developing too actively, and he will be at a loss. Farmers who have extensive experience in growing tomatoes on their plots sometimes do not even understand what problems can arise with this. However, if this is your first experience with tomatoes, a lot of things can go wrong at first. Therefore, you need to learn how to competently save the situation in order to grow tomatoes at home.

Many novice gardeners sooner or later face a similar problem. Why do tomato seedlings grow poorly? To correctly determine the source of the problem, you need to understand that this process itself is multi-layered and includes several stages at once.

To begin with, the seeds are sown in the ground. As tomato stems grow, it is necessary to regularly trim the plant, carefully care for it, and also be able to protect it from pests. If any stage is violated, significant troubles arise, such as the cessation of tomato growth. How to cope with these kinds of problems and how to identify their presence in the early stages? More on this below.

Video “Possible Causes”

From the video you will learn what can cause poorly growing seedlings.

Poor nutrition

To determine why seedlings are growing poorly, it is recommended that you first pay attention to feeding the plant. Very often, farmers do not pay due attention to this, and yet it is necessary to feed the tomato substrate, and this needs to be done about four times with breaks. What fertilizer methods are used:

• the first method is carried out 3 weeks after planting the seedlings in the ground. You can prepare the solution using liquid fertilizer, 1 tbsp. l. nitrophoska. All this is mixed with 10 liters of water. Pour the resulting mixture under the tomato root at the rate of half a liter per sprout;
  
• the second method is intended for secondary application of fertilizers to the substrate. Wait until the second cluster of flowers begins to bloom on the seedlings. Various store-bought fertilizers are used. Choose a proven product that can be diluted in water. Water the tomatoes with the solution, adding about 1 liter of water under each bush;
• The third phase of feeding will be needed when the third flower cluster begins to bloom on the tomatoes. A fairly popular product is the “Ideal” fertilizer. It must be mixed with 1 tbsp. l. nitrophoska and dilute with water. It is recommended to pour the resulting mixture over the tomatoes at the rate of 5 liters of solution per 1 square meter. m. beds;
• fourth recharge. It must be carried out no earlier than two weeks after the third feeding of tomatoes. How to prepare this kind of remedy? You need to use 1 tbsp. l. superphosphate, which is mixed with 10 liters of water. The volume of liquid for each bush will be in in this case the largest - up to 10 liters per square meter beds.
  

Bird droppings are also considered useful for tomato seedlings. It is filled with water, infused for several days, and then the root zone of the tomatoes is regularly poured with the resulting mixture. Problems for inexperienced gardeners arise already at this stage. The thing is that it is very important to adhere to the specified proportions. If you overdo it or, conversely, apply too little fertilizer, the results will not please you too much.

Improper watering

What is the complexity of the process of growing tomato seedlings on summer cottage, so it is in the volume and regularity of watering. Remember that you should not overdry the soil under tomatoes. Just as harmful overwatering. The best option– water the plant at least once a week. However, their frequency will depend on certain weather factors.

For example, you started growing tomato seedlings at home, and placed a box or other container with tomato sprouts on the window or out on the balcony. In this case, the regularity of watering will depend on both the brightness and duration of lighting of the tomatoes. Observe how many hours a day the seedlings are exposed sun rays. If this period is long, be sure to increase the volume and frequency of watering the tomatoes.

Interestingly, it is not recommended to water tomatoes immediately after planting them in the soil. It is necessary to wait until the sprouts emerge from the ground, and only on the fifth day after this the seedlings can finally be filled with water. Use pre-settled water at room temperature. This way you will prevent the accumulation of chlorine in the soil. If such a procedure is performed regularly and competently, the results will not take long to arrive.

Errors when diving

What to do if tomato seedlings grow very poorly? It is quite possible that the reason lies in improper implementation or even neglect of plant picking measures. Meanwhile, this procedure is quite important for the full growth of tomato seedlings. It will be needed if you sowed the seeds in one container, and now sprouts have emerged from the soil and it is time to separate them from each other. Be extremely careful.
This process is very scrupulous; in the process of transplanting plants that are not yet fully established, their root system can be significantly damaged, and in the best case, you will need time for them to grow back. If you, as a novice gardener, do not want to bother with such procedures yet, this can generally be avoided. In this case, it is recommended to sow the seeds in different containers.

Other mistakes in care

If your tomato seedlings are not growing well, perhaps you have made some other mistakes in caring for the plant. Among the most notable are also:

• poor seed quality. This determines in advance the result of planting them in the ground. Experts believe that it is undesirable to sow seeds into the soil that are already more than 5-6 years old. Therefore, if they are expired, it is better not to risk it;
  
• low nutritional value of the land. Of course, land from the garden or the private sector is the optimal and a budget option. But, on the other hand, you will not be sure of its quality. What if you also get pests along with the soil? Therefore, it is best to purchase the substrate in a specialized store;
• lack of heat. Flower growers also often do not stop attention on this. Meanwhile, the temperature in the room where the tomato seedlings grow should not fall below 24 degrees. Tomatoes are very heat-loving. Even if it’s cold in the room, turn on the lamp above the box with seedlings for a while;
• fluffy pet - cat. Oddly enough, but it is your pet that can negate your efforts. It is believed that cat urine can destroy tomato seedlings, so try to never let your cat near a container with tomato sprouts.
  

When growing tomatoes at home, pay attention to every little detail. Only in this case will you be able to get full-fledged tomato seedlings.

Diseases and pests

Most often, novice gardeners are faced with a problem called root rot. Why does this problem occur? It's all about excessive watering. Let's say you water your plants too often, and at the same time you put the seedlings in a dark and cool place. Hence the root rot. But not only this disease threatens your tomatoes in this situation.

Blackleg, a fungal disease, is especially dangerous for tomatoes. Plus, it is an infectious disease that instantly affects the plant. If your seedlings “live” in one container, try to transplant the tomatoes into another pot or box as soon as possible before the remaining seedlings become infected.

Overall, growing tomato seedlings will not take too much effort.

Video “Tomato seedlings: from germination to picking”

From the video you will learn how to deal with seedlings from germination to picking.

Many gardeners encounter problems when growing tomato seedlings. This could be due to many reasons. Each of them must be dealt with separately.

Causes of poor growth of tomato seedlings

To fix the problem, you need to figure out why it happened. There are many reasons why tomatoes do not grow after picking.

• Watering the seedlings is not carried out correctly. If watering is carried out strictly according to the rules, it is recommended to check the condition drainage system. It is simply necessary to ensure that excess liquid comes out of the container in which the seedlings grow. This will help maintain soil moisture at the required level.
• The composition of the soil is incorrect. Gardeners often use soil directly from the garden bed to grow seedlings. Its acidity level may be too high or low. This stops the growth of seedlings.
• A lot of fertilizers are applied to the soil. Plant growth can be negatively affected not only by a lack of nutritional components, but also by their excess.
• Infection with fungal or infectious diseases also inhibits the growth of seedlings. Pest damage can not only stop the growth of seedlings, but also completely destroy them.
• If the picking is carried out incorrectly, the root system of the plant is damaged. Inexperienced gardeners may press the roots incorrectly, which leads to the formation of air cushions.
• The plants are very densely planted. It is recommended to plant seedlings.

Picking should be carried out no earlier than 10 - 12 days after the appearance of the first shoots.

It is better to use it as a container peat pots. They have the property of dissolving in the soil. Thanks to this, when transplanting seedlings, the plants can not be removed from the container without damaging the measles system.

Appearance of seedlings

At first glance, it may seem that there is nothing complicated in the picking process, but in fact, picking must be carried out in compliance with certain rules.

Priming

The composition of the soil has a direct impact on the growth and development of seedlings. To grow good seedlings, you should never use soil from the beds.

Important! Don't skimp on soil.

The soil should not only have correct composition and structure, but also to be disinfected. To do this, it is thoroughly watered with a weak solution of potassium permanganate. As a result, the development of pathogenic microorganisms and bacteria in the soil can be prevented. The presence of peat and special fertilizers in the soil will help increase its level of fertility.

If this is not taken care of in advance, the seedlings will develop very slowly. But the situation can be improved. To do this, peat and the necessary fertilizers can be poured onto the top layer of soil in the container where the plants grow. After some time, all nutritional components will reach the root system.

Until the seedlings are ready to be transplanted into open ground, it is recommended to fertilize them at least 4 times.

• For the first time, plants are fertilized immediately after emergence. To do this, you can use a solution of nitrophoska and water. The plant is watered at the root until the soil gets wet.
• The second time the seedlings are fed after the flower clusters are formed. This can be done using ready-made products that are sold in retail outlets.
• After the development of the third cluster of flowers, the plant also needs feeding. Gardeners recommend fertilizing using Ideal fertilizer, which is mixed with nitrophoska and water.
• The last feeding of plants is carried out 2 weeks after the third. Superphosphate is dissolved in water and applied at the root of the plant.

If tomato seedlings do not grow, what to do? You can use folk method: put under the root chicken droppings, dissolved in water. This watering is carried out over several days as needed.

Important! If you choose the wrong proportion of the solution, it is possible that the leaves on the plant may turn yellow or completely fall off.

Seedlings also respond well to feeding crushed eggshell, flooded warm water. The liquid is infused until it becomes cloudy. Apply no more than a spoonful of the prepared solution under each tomato bush.

Fertilizing with yeast is often used. To prepare the fertilizer, yeast is dissolved in warm water with sugar. After a day, the solution is ready for use.

Important! This solution should not get on the leaf blades or stem. This may cause them to turn yellow.

After the seedlings are planted in the beds, they can be watered with water in which Atlet fertilizer is dissolved. As a result of this, the above-ground part of the plant will slightly slow down its growth and development, but the root system of the tomatoes will grow quite actively.

Watering and growing location

The soil should not be too dry

At first glance, it may seem that there is nothing difficult in organizing watering seedlings. It's actually very important point. The soil should not be too dry, but it is also not recommended to be overzealous with watering. This can lead to the development of pathogenic microorganisms or putrefactive processes.

If the soil is still too wet after watering, you can place a dry cloth on its surface. After a while it will absorb excess moisture. You can also gently loosen the surface of the soil in the container. This will promote the evaporation of moisture from it.

Seedlings may grow poorly or slowly if the location for their placement is chosen incorrectly. It is necessary to select a well-lit place, without drafts. Otherwise, the plants may die.

Don't forget about the room temperature either. As soon as the seed material is planted in the ground, the room temperature should be at least 25-28 degrees. To create greenhouse conditions, containers can be covered with film. In addition to the fact that it will help support required temperature, the shelter helps retain moisture.

After the shoots appear, the film can be removed, and the temperature in the room must be lowered to 18-20 degrees. Otherwise, the leaves on the plant will probably turn yellow.
After 2 true leaves appear, the seedlings must be hardened off. This will help make her stronger. You can simply open a window for a while or take the boxes out onto the balcony for a while. In this case, the air temperature outside should not be lower than 18-20 degrees. Each time, the hardening time of seedlings increases by 3-5 minutes.

Important! If the seedlings are exposed to direct sunlight, there is a possibility that the leaves will turn purple or fall off completely.

Diseases

Fusarium

Often the reason that tomato seedlings do not grow is the development of diseases characteristic of vegetable crops. It is necessary to establish which disease harms the plant and makes it frail.

Fusarium. This disease is caused by a fungus, the spores of which enter the plant from the soil or through infected seed material. The disease causes seedling growth to become slow or stop completely. The seedlings become sluggish and may turn yellow or die.

When the first signs of disease are detected, it is necessary to immediately remove the diseased plant from the container where other seedlings are located. In addition, the soil in the pot must be completely replaced or disinfected. To do this, you can use drugs such as Fitolavin, Fitosporin, Bravo or Profit Gold.

Blackleg. The causative agent of the disease is a pathogenic bacterium. When infected, the stem of the plant turns black, and after a while it completely falls off. You can help the seedlings only at the very beginning of infection. The soil is disinfected by using a weak solution of potassium permanganate.

Black rot. The disease begins to develop when there is an excess of moisture and a lack of heat in the room. In this case, the plant becomes lethargic and its growth stops. It is no longer possible to help such a plant. When the first symptoms of the disease are detected, the infected plant must be immediately destroyed. Healthy bushes need to be transplanted into another container and soil.

To minimize the risk of contracting diseases of vegetable crops, it is necessary to carry out preventive actions. First of all, purchase high-quality seed material. It is better to give preference to varieties that are resistant to diseases and are suitable for growing in open ground.

How to speed up the growth of seedlings

In order for the seedlings to be strong and grow actively, it is necessary to adhere to certain rules. Among the most important are the following:

• the place in which the seedlings are grown should be light and warm;
• the soil in which you plan to plant the seeds should consist of peat, sand and humus. It should be disinfected in the oven or with a solution of potassium permanganate;
• It is better to water the plants with warm, settled water;
• if the room is too hot, it is recommended to spray the seedlings with a spray bottle;
• Before picking, the soil must be thoroughly watered. As a result, transplantation causes less injury to seedlings;
• After picking, the soil near the root must be compacted well. Otherwise, the measles system may die;
• After germination, the plants can be watered with a solution of milk and water. This will reduce the risk of developing diseases to a minimum.

Knowing what to do if tomato seedlings do not grow, you can grow healthy and strong seedlings.