Help with my little plants!!

[jmhammRN]

So, for the first time I have started tomatoes from seed. This past Sunday was the 4 week mark since planting. 11 different varieties, including Sweet Ozark Orange which I got from Ozark here on this site, were planted. Things were going really well until tonight when I went to check on them I noticed some problems. The first leaf that caught my eye just appeared as if it had gotten too close to the grow light and got scalded. However, upon further examination I found other problems as well. Now I will do research and probably figure out the problems and hopeful remedies within a couple days but I want to get an answer as quickly as possible in hopes of halting a disaster. And I hope this post will help with some answers.

Here are the pictures:

The first couple are just a view of my little crop under the grow light, 51 plants.

The next two show yellowing on some leaves.

The 5th picture shows some "moss" growing on the soil, only 3 have this -- with this one by far the worst.

Then, the rest of the pictures are my big concerns - Is this blight?? Obviously I have already removed the problem leaves to at least slow the problem. And no the leaves that are cut off and just laying in the soil are not affected, they are just the cotyledons that I trimmed off a few days ago.
--I will admit that sometimes while watering the leaves would get splashed, but I tried to let the top of the soil dry out before watering again.

[jmhammRN]

I had planned to start hardening them off this coming weekend and then planting the next weekend. But, would it be beneficial to move everything up a week and get them planted quicker? I plan to plant only in Earthtainers, Earthboxes, Smartpots, and 5gal buckets - nothing in ground.

[RayR]

Two questions:

1.) What have you feeding the plants?
2.) Have you checked the bottom of the leaves for spider mites? A strong magnifier is needed, 10X or better jewelers loop or comparable magnifying glass is needed.

[jmhammRN]

Originally Posted by RayR

Two questions:

1.) What have you feeding the plants?
2.) Have you checked the bottom of the leaves for spider mites? A strong magnifier is needed, 10X or better jewelers loop or comparable magnifying glass is needed.

I started with brand new containers. My grow medium was Epsoma seed starter. I have used about 1/2 strength MG tomato fert twice now, once two weekends ago and this last weekend.

As far as spider mites......? I'll have to find a magnifying....or wait my wife has surgical loupes so I can have her look. But, nothing big enough for me to observe.

There were some kind of mosquito looking things buzzing around the plants and grow lights after I moved them to the garage and under growth lights. Might this be a source? At first I thought they were mosquitoes but upon killing one it wasn't.

[RayR]

Small flying insects may be aphids, the flyers deposit the nymphs on the leaves.
The brown speckling on some of the leaves and the interveinal chlorosis would make me suspect sucking insects first as the cause.

[greenthumbomaha]

While the experts are diagnosing the problem, I wanted to chime in on the Espoma. Its a fairly rich seed starting medium. In the future I would hold off a little longer and start gradually with something milder like fish emulsion or a fertilizer balanced for seedlings. I use a starter from Fertilome and the tiny jar has lasted over two years and quite a bit is still left. There are many other options, experts on here have developed their own products. My neighbor uses worm castings exclusively.

- Lisa

[jmhammRN]

Lisa

Thanks for the info. As I said I am new to seed so I just assumed that the grow medium was both sterile and had no 'nutritional value' -- or very little. And I had read where people use half or quarter strength fert at first so that why I used the MG. I will take every bit of info I can get!!


RayR

The bug I was talking about is a midge. I searched the internet and found a picture.


Is there anything I can try now to treat the problem, something multipurpose or organic that wouldn't hurt the plants even if it didn't help?......just until I can get the problem identified and hopeful eradicated. If I lost all my first seedling I would be so distraught!!!!!!!!!!!! Because everything has gone so well. I sewed 66 seeds, of which 58 germinated, one took three weeks to sprout. And I only lost 6, which was to a grow light incident -- before I got a good grow light, the lights I did use at first got really hot and I burnt those 6 up.


Justin

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[clkeiper]

Honestly they look a little anemic to me. That is all. Maybe an iron deficiency not a fungal issue which could be a Ph related deficiency. .
The purple is indicative of phosphorus deficiency which can happen in cold weather.

[ginger2778]

Give em a little dilute epsom salts in their next watering and see if they don't green up nicely for you. The only time I ever got any yellowing on my seedlings was after I had given them some dilute blue fertilizer crystals mixed in water. Gave em epsom salts the next watering, and they greened up right away. Wait for them to be a little bit dry first before watering.

Marsha

[marc_groleau]

What would be the dilution rate of Epsom salts?

thanks

[jmhammRN]

Originally Posted by marc_groleau

What would be the dilution rate of Epsom salts?

thanks

Yes, do tell please!!


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[ginger2778]

It was a guesstimate, but say, 1 Tablespoon per gallon. Keep in mind that most of the time, the yellowing is caused by overwatering, so letting em dry out pretty well before you give them this dose would be suggested.

Marsha

[creister]

Yes 1 tablespoon/gallon. The insect in the picture is a male mosquito. Chlorosis can be caused by mineral deficiency. Too much water? I would get them outside and hardened off sometimes sunlight does wonders.

[clkeiper]

Don't worry about the "moss", it is algae and I think we all get it. when the soil is mostly on the dry side take a pencil and "draw" circles around the stem, disturbing the layer. I have it and use my fingers, the label from the plant or a pencil to disturb it to get it to go away. Wait a day or so to water, too, after disturbing it if you can. you don't want to rewater the algae.

[creister]

You can even apply the epsom salt/water mix as a foliar feed. Just mix it up and put it in one of those spray bottles you can buy at walmart and spray both sides of the leaves. I'd do it at night when you turn your lights off. That way, you can give them some without watering if your soil is still wet and you are concerned about over watering.