Tomato Seedlings lower branches wilting and falling off

Gamebucketman · March 22, 2006

I have been having a problem with some of my seedlings and it is happening to more and more of them every day.

They are a little over a month old and I have them under shoplights in the spare bedroom. Potted in Hyponex (probably not the best) potting soil.

I have about 100 seedlings and they are pretty crowded sitting under the lights. About a week ago i noticed one seedling that had its lowest branch wilting as if it were needing water but the rest of it looked fine. The next day the branch just fell off.

Since then the same thing has been happening to other plants. Sometimes the cotyledons are affected sometimes not. But the rest of the plants look great. I just hope they stay looking great and it doesnt affect them any more. It also seems to affect potato leaved seedlings less than the regular leaves, but some potato leaves have had problems too (possibly just seems to affect them less because the potato leave to regular leave ratio is lower).

I wasnt too worried because it was just happening to one or two and once the branch fell off the rest of the plant looked fine. But now it is happening to 5-10 seedlings per day and im getting worried.
I havent taken them outdoors yet and ive been meaning too but the weather has been miserable lately.

I hope that is enough info. Please let me know what you think.
Thanks,
Justin

Suze · March 22, 2006

It could be either fungal in origin (pythium or rhizoctonia in the potting soil you used) or due to lack of light to the lower branches/leaves caused by the overcrowding.

How tall are your seedlings?

A big help in either case would be to get the plants outside as soon as possible, which you say is problematic at the moment...

Overwatering can also cause lower branches to drop.

Gamebucketman · March 23, 2006

They have gotten a little leggy even though under the lights, i'd say the ones that started having the problem are 9" or so tall and seems to be spreading to others. and Im quite sure I dont overwater. I'd put my money on the potting soil.

But today was bright and sunny so i got some of them outside and will get them all out tommorrow. Hopefully some fresh air and sunlight will help them pull through. I'll let you know how things turn out.

Thanks a lot for you response suze.

Justin

Suze · March 23, 2006

Hope it works out well for you, Justin. Just remember to harden your plants off when you start taking them outside so they don't get fried.

And try not to go back and forth between the lights and the outdoors if you can help it (you may already know this).

Bringing them inside for the night if it's cold is fine though.

March 22, 2006	#1
Gamebucketman Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2006 Posts: 9	Tomato Seedlings lower branches wilting and falling off I have been having a problem with some of my seedlings and it is happening to more and more of them every day. They are a little over a month old and I have them under shoplights in the spare bedroom. Potted in Hyponex (probably not the best) potting soil. I have about 100 seedlings and they are pretty crowded sitting under the lights. About a week ago i noticed one seedling that had its lowest branch wilting as if it were needing water but the rest of it looked fine. The next day the branch just fell off. Since then the same thing has been happening to other plants. Sometimes the cotyledons are affected sometimes not. But the rest of the plants look great. I just hope they stay looking great and it doesnt affect them any more. It also seems to affect potato leaved seedlings less than the regular leaves, but some potato leaves have had problems too (possibly just seems to affect them less because the potato leave to regular leave ratio is lower). I wasnt too worried because it was just happening to one or two and once the branch fell off the rest of the plant looked fine. But now it is happening to 5-10 seedlings per day and im getting worried. I havent taken them outdoors yet and ive been meaning too but the weather has been miserable lately. I hope that is enough info. Please let me know what you think. Thanks, Justin

March 22, 2006	#2
Suze Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Texas Posts: 3,027	Re: Tomato Seedlings lower branches wilting and falling off It could be either fungal in origin (pythium or rhizoctonia in the potting soil you used) or due to lack of light to the lower branches/leaves caused by the overcrowding. How tall are your seedlings? A big help in either case would be to get the plants outside as soon as possible, which you say is problematic at the moment... Overwatering can also cause lower branches to drop.

March 23, 2006	#3
Gamebucketman Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2006 Posts: 9	They have gotten a little leggy even though under the lights, i'd say the ones that started having the problem are 9" or so tall and seems to be spreading to others. and Im quite sure I dont overwater. I'd put my money on the potting soil. But today was bright and sunny so i got some of them outside and will get them all out tommorrow. Hopefully some fresh air and sunlight will help them pull through. I'll let you know how things turn out. Thanks a lot for you response suze. Justin