Potting Up w/Pictures

[AlittleSalt]

This is a way of potting up tomato plants. I'll share pictures along the way. Hopefully, it gives some of you some ideas to think on.

The baskets were bought at Dollar Tree. They hold twelve 16 oz. party cups. They hold the right amount of water for bottom watering.

I'm using a cheap drill (Handi Works) with a 1/4" drill bit (An easy size to find and comes in a lot of drill bit sets.) Just stack 7-8 cups and drill the holes. If you stack the cups too high - the bottom ones don't get drilled and sometimes makes the cups split.

[brownrexx]

A perfect fit!

[AlittleSalt]

Then figure out how many of each variety you want to grow. Potting up an extra comes in handy just in case frost or a dog or whatever attacks your plant.

Make some labels. I use masking tape and mark them with a fine point Sharpie. Stick them to the cup. (You can write on the cup or however you want to do it.)

[AlittleSalt]

Then take your potting mix (Not potting soil), a large bowl/bucket, and add warm water. I use a 32 oz. Big Gulp cup of hot water from the tap. I like for the potting mix to be between 70 and 80F degrees. EDIT- Remove the large sticks/chunks from the potting mix.

Next, fill the cup around half full of wet potting mix and press it in there. Make a well in the middle to set your plant in, and then fill the cup the rest of the way with potting mix.

You can cut off the cotyledons or just let them fall off themselves. I leave them on.

This is how I pot up tomato plants.

[jmsieglaff]

Awesome method Salt! Thanks for sharing your pictures. Looks like an enjoyable afternoon. Mine afternoon is less green, more white.

[MissS]

A very nice tutorial on potting up. Thanks much for sharing your growing experience with us.

[AlittleSalt]

Thank you

I got 50 of them potted up today. It's starting to look like there are another 100 to go. Some are extras just in case.

[MissS]

Hmm... 150 plants there, eh? I hope that you are not another Texan that is going Impish.

[AlittleSalt]

Lol MissS.

It's around how may I potted up last year. I know at least one of my wife's coworker friends will want to buy some plants. (I hope)

[rhines81]

Great Post. More people should share their methods as it encourages new ideas on how to do things.
Those baskets look like they were made specifically to hold 12 cups.

[My Foot Smells]

Nice. Surprised to see some true leaf on the seedlings this early, still waiting myself (maybe my lights are not powerful enuff). I've grown the Ark. Trav. several times for many years, seems to handle the heat very well and get production. Ultimately it lost favor with the mrs. due to being smaller in size (12 oz.).

Extended forecast here calls for colder temps to move back in, but nothing serious.

[Starlight]

Thanks for sharing your method Salt! In a couple of weeks I will be helping an autistic teen to learn to start seed and grow some plants for a small garden. I had been thinking about methods that would work for him that would be simple , yet productive and your method I think is just going to be perfect. : )

[imp]

Originally Posted by MissS

Hmm... 150 plants there, eh? I hope that you are not another Texan that is going Impish.

Hey, hey! I resemble that remark!!!!

Not sure why I sort of like the little girl- bratty, etc., but somehow funny, too.

[AlittleSalt]

I am glad this thread is helpful. Before joining Tomatoville in 2014, I had never started tomato and pepper seeds in seed cells or potted up a plant. I always bought transplants.

Beans, okra, squash, etc. I had planted directly in the garden.

The method I use of potting up is a conglomerate of information that I've read here. I figured, since I was potting up - why not take some pictures, and then, why not explain why.

I chose to use MG potting mix because it is sort of like Jalapenos. When a lot of us think of a hot pepper, we think of Jalapenos and compare others to them. Well, the same goes for regular MG potting mix.

The reason why I used the off-brand plastic geared drill even though we have much better ones - any electric drill will work. We're drilling through beer/soda cups. I have read many times that some put holes on the lower sides of the cups. I'm sure it works too, Putting the holes on the bottom works well for me and the cup doesn't loose much strength. I haven't had one fail.

Star, if there is anything I can do to help you with the autistic teen - let me know. I'll do my best.

Imp, the cat is funny. Our almost 1 year old tomcat just showed up after a loooonnng day of tomcatting. Yeah, I was worried about him.

Rhines81, I agree. I would like to see other people's methods. Picture's help too.

Foot, if you are using soft white fluorescent lights like I did - buy some daylight fluorescent light bulbs/tubes. The difference makes you say, "#$%^ why didn't I do that before".

[MissS]

Imp, you forgot this...