Help! I planted my tomato seeds indoors too early!

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Lynnette2 Draper, UT Apr 04, 2009

Please help! I am stressing out that I have done the wrong thing. I planted my heirloom tomato seeds on February 10th right after I bought them. I transplanted the seedlings into 3 1/2 inch pots one week ago. Our last frost is end of May. I just started figuring out the the "time till harvest" date is 80 days and that (as I can figure) means from the time I transplanted them into the 3 1/2 inch pots. Correct? And if that is true the plants will be 67 days old before the last frost here (end of May/first week of June). What is going to happen to my wonderful plants if I have them indoors until then? Are you going to get rootbound, spindly, and die? Please help. What should I do?

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Stephen_Albert Kenwood, CA Apr 04, 2009

You can continue to re-pot up: from 4 inch to gallon, to two gallon, three gallon, five gallon containers. Continue to give the plants plenty of room for roots. When it comes time to plant into the garden, strip the leaves away leaving just the top two sets of leaves. Bury the the stripped stem up to the top two sets of leaves. The plant will root from those nodes and have an even larger roots system. In the garden you can extend the season by making a plastic hoop house a couple of feet tall using pvc and clear plastic sheeting (this is a mini-coldframe/greenhouse and set the tomatoes into the garden before the last frost). A coldframe can be anywhere from 3 or 4 to 20 plus degrees warmer than the outside temperature. Put down some plastic in the garden now to start warming the bed.

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Lynnette2 Draper, UT Apr 04, 2009

Thank you Stephen! I am happy I still can have my plants!

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Gymgirl SE Houston (Hobby), TX(Zone 9a) Apr 08, 2009

Thanks Stephen! I sowed on time but most of my heirloom seedlings stalled big time and are just now taking off. Too late for plant out now. 90 days would put them smack in the middle of our scorcher! No time to set fruit. Next opportunity for plant out will be end of July. Will try 2 keep them alive til then. If so, could have heirlooms for Thanksgiving dinner!

Lynette, let's compare notes on our progress. I'm thinking of bringing them 2 my office where its cold and has fluorescent light. Should slow em down and keep em from trying to set too soon. It'll be too hot 2 out em outside. Plus our humidity encourages pests and disease. LMK.

Linda

This message was edited Apr 8, 2009 9:13 AM

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