It’s been 5 weeks since sowing my first tomato seeds.
50 seeds went into a variety of flower pots, grow pots and peat pellets.
I now have 22. Last week I had 25 so I have either mislaid a couple on sunny windowsills or I have done some unconscious culling !
From the original batch sown on the 16 March I now have the following:
3 x Alicante. Seedlings are 8-10 cm in height, growth of 2-4 cm on last week and now have between 6-12 true leaves. 2 are in 10cm pots and 1 is in a 7.6 cm pot.
3 x Black Cherry. Seedlings are 9-12 cm in height, 
growth of 3-4cm on last week and have between 12- 14 true leaves. All 3 are in 10cm pots.
3 x Carbon. Seedlings are 9-10 cm in height, growth of 3-9cm on last week and have between 5-7 true leaves. All 3 are in 10cm pots.
3 x Moneymaker. Seedlings are 11-16 cm in height, growth of 2-6 cm on last week and have between 16- 18 true leaves. All 3 are in 10cm pots.
3 x Red Robin. Seedlings are 5 cm in height, growth of 1 cm on last week and have between 8 -9 true leaves. All 3 are in 10cm pots.
4 x Sungold. Seedlings are 9-11 cm in height, growth of 1-2cm on last week and have between 9-12 true leaves. 2 are in 7.6 cm pots and 2 are sharing a 10cm pot.
3 x Tigerella. Seedlings are 7-12 cm in height, growth of 2-5cm on last week 
and have between 13- 16 true leaves. All 3 are in 10cm pots.
3 x Tumbler. Seedlings are 12cm in height, growth of 2- 4 cm on last week and have between 15 – 16 true leaves. All 3 are in 10cm pots.
All the above are still indoors in a light position in front of a bay window. There has been more direct sun this week. I didn’t think they had changed much. But looking at the statistics for last week there’s been growth and definetly many more leaves.
I don’t think they are sturdy or stocky enough. The one’s in the garden centre look hardier. But they are alive and growing !
From the 2nd sowing which was made on the 31st March and was 20 seeds in peat pellets I now have the following :
3 x Carbon. Seedlings are 2-5cm in height. This looks like they have spent the past week shrinking. But I have potted them on from the peat pellet into 10cm pots and following the advice I was given at Wisley I have again planted them as deep as possible. So the compost stops just short of their seed leaves. They now have between 2 – 4 true leaves.
3 x Gardeners Delight. Seedlings are 2-6cm in height. Again I have potted them on from the peat pellets into 10cm pots. They now have between 3-5 true leaves.
Of all the repotting I have done so far the easiest to transplant have been the seedlings that grew individually in the peat pellets or as a sowing of 5 seeds in 10cm pots. The peat pellets are very easy to handle. You just pick them up, pop them into the new larger pot and arrange the new compost around them. When I have had to extricate a seedling from the communal pot I have used a dessert spoon to lever it out, then holding by the leaves have placed it into the new pot and again arranged the new compost around it. Finding a workable method to plant the right depth took a few initial goes and the peat pellets were more forgiving in terms of being lifted in and out than the individual seedlings.
The other growing container I used were the grow pots. I probabaly wouldn’t use them again. There is nothing intrinsically wrong with them but I just didn’t take to them.
From the 3rd sowing which was made on the 3rd April and was 10 seeds in quarter (20cm) seed tray and 9 seeds in peat pellets I now have the following:
4 x Red Robin. Seedlings are 2cm in height. I have potted them on to 3 x 10 cm pots and 1 x 12 cm pots. They have 2 true leaves.
I also have the 4th sowing. The Easter weekend seeds. Update tomorrow.
Seedlings Anonymous
This is the group of seedlings from all the 3 previous sowings, on which I am paying the price of not paying attention to all the advice on the importance of labelling. There are 15 of them. They could be any of the 10 seed varieties. I can identify the Red Robins as they have a distinctive enough height and growth pattern. Perhaps family resemblances for the others will be easier to spot as they grow !
What Now
This week will be the introduction to the great outdoors. This should have probably already have happened ! Especially for the seeds sown on the 16th March. So hardening off in terms of putting the plants out during the warmer temperatures of the day but bringing them back inside at night. This is in case the temperature drops overnight. Frost would mean a sad and premature end to my tomato growing experience.
I am also wondering as part of this process whether to pot on the plants which are currently in 10cm pots into 13 cm pots as I think this is the size they then remain until they are planted in their final positions for the summer.
Decisions, Decisions ! I will keep you posted.
