Am I too late?

[cythaenopsis]

I've been very busy with a new job and completely forgot about starting my tomato seedlings (with all the snow and cold weather we've been having in the NY area). Can I get my seed germination going now and still be in time to put them outdoors in late April or early May?

[Doug9345]

I think you are still in good shape time wise.

[nnjjohn]

Originally Posted by cythaenopsis

I've been very busy with a new job and completely forgot about starting my tomato seedlings (with all the snow and cold weather we've been having in the NY area). Can I get my seed germination going now and still be in time to put them outdoors in late April or early May?

hello CS, hope your new job is stress free as for seeding , I should hope so, I'm going to be starting another seed tray as soon as my seeds I ordered come in the mail.

[TightenUp]

just about perfect timing!

[pinklady5]

I live in New Jersey and I start mine on St Patrick's Day every year with great success. You should be fine.

[ginger2778]

Go for it! 6 weeks should do it.do it right away, today is not too soon.

Marsha

[nnjjohn]

Originally Posted by pinklady5

I live in New Jersey and I start mine on St Patrick's Day every year with great success. You should be fine.

hia pinklady! hope all is well this friggid March! My seed trays are full of assorted heirlooms I ordered from Remy on this site. I am hoping to finally grow Sungolds haha,, also hoping to grow black krims and prudent purple and a few other variety. Hope all goes well 2014 grow season, John

[pinklady5]

Originally Posted by nnjjohn

hia pinklady! hope all is well this friggid March! My seed trays are full of assorted heirlooms I ordered from Remy on this site. I am hoping to finally grow Sungolds haha,, also hoping to grow black krims and prudent purple and a few other variety. Hope all goes well 2014 grow season, John

Hi nnjjohn, I just started my seeds on Monday. What an awful winter it has been so I am more than excited to get things going! Pruden's Purple and Black Krims are on my list too! Wishing a successful growing season to you as well!

[nnjjohn]

Good luck Antoinette this season.. invest in a garden fence lol.. i know they aren't cheap.. but I know what it feels like when critters wreck months of preparation and dedication..i'm commited to cultivating nice tomatoes this season Alfredo, how you doing? over 90% my variety seeds i ordered here from remy germinated within five days in the 72 cell tray .. btw the prudens and red celebrity did germinate and are doing fine in my mg seed starter mix in my first seed tray i seeded with those burpee super beef steaks ,, i potted some sbs in cups already.... I guess I will wait until a few true leaves before transplanting the variety heirlooms from remy in cups? they are getting some window sun today now and no issues so far.. no doubt I notice there is a big difference between seed started potting mix.. i am using seedling mix for the cups too. And going to experiment a little with the many left over super beef seedlings in their tray as well as trying some in potting mix in cups to compare the mediums performance growth rates.

[nnjjohn]

So far my seedlings are looking great using the miracle seedling mix.. i have only been using window light and see now need for grow lights which i was using 24/7 until they were about an inch or two tall.. the window provides uv sunlight through the window and wondering if i should bother using grow lamps on cloudy days? I suspect in Nature these seedlings would not get artifical light on cloudy days so, as long as I see them growing each day.. i think i will not bother hitting two week old seedlings with grow lights.
1) Choose the right variety - Some tomato varieties are determinate type plants, meaning they may grow to about three feet in height and then stop. Others, especially most of the heirloom types, are indeterminate, meaning they will grew as high as you allow them to grow. If your space is limited, choose determinate types like Celebrity, Sunbeam or Mountain Spring.
2) Don't plant them too close - Tomato plants need at least 1 1/2 feet between plants, preferably 2 feet, and that's for plants that are grown upright on stakes or cages. If no support is given and they are allowed to sprawl on the ground, tomato plants need twice as much room. Plants spaced too closely will produce few fruit and have more disease problems as the foliage stays wet. Plant according to how big they will get, not on the size of the transplants.

[marc_groleau]

You could easily plant out on Memorial Day. Granted, in NJ you probably plant out in Mid May but you got plenty of time.

[Brendan]

Plenty of time. You mention late April early May as your outdoor transplant time in NJ. I would think that's a bit early in your location. Also, due to the harsh winter, transplanting outside will be a week or two later.

[pinklady5]

I agree and should have mentioned it in my earlier reply. I start my seeds on St. Patrick's Day and I don't plant out until Memorial Day or just earlier than that. Cytheanopsis, you can start your seeds anytime now.

[taboule]

Originally Posted by cythaenopsis

.... and completely forgot about starting my tomato seedlings

I'm sorry I don't understand this. How could it be possible?

;-)

[cythaenopsis]

Ugg... and I was even later than when I posted. Life got busy and planting seeds took a back seat, mainly because I'd never done it before and I was hesitant until I knew more.

Well, time waits for no one so I just went ahead and did it. Last year I picked up a couple of basil starter kits on the cheap, which includes these "hockey puck" style soil discs that balloon when water is added. It makes a nice medium for growing seeds. So I borrowed that for my tomato seeds.

Doing this for the first time, I wasn't very confident with how well the seeds would sprout. The majority of my seeds were collected from my Black Krim last year. I fermented, flushed, dried, and stored them. The other seeds I got are Russian Oxheart, Black Plum, and Sara's Galapagos. I used a foam egg carton with tiny drainage holes poked in the egg slots, then the cut off lid placed below to catch run off. I used the seedling mix for the egg cartons, filling the egg slots about 4/5th of the way. I put some seeds in at various levels, as deep as 1" and a high up as 1/8th. I had so many seeds that I just sprinkled them all over, figuring only a few would sprout up.

I also use the zinc tin pot that was included with the kit and some potting soil, just to see if it might work. Lastly, I took another egg carton and placed the seeds in a paper towel, folded it up, and soaked it.

After about a week, I hadn't seen any sign of activity in the paper towel. But then just a few days later, green! Totally surprised me. Then I lifted up the paper towel and saw an amazing array of roots--the seeds punched right through it. I gently extracted a bunch from the paper towel and then planted them in soil. Also, some of the seeds in the soil started to pop up. The Black Krim has been explosive in number -- many more sprouted than I expected! And actually, I've got a bit too much clutter going on... which means it's going to be hard to separate the seedlings when I plant them separately.







The Russian Oxheart is coming up, but not growing as quickly as the Black Krim. And unfortunately the Sara's Galapagos is doing NOTHING. Hopefully they just need another week, otherwise I'll just have to assume the seeds I got are bunk.