The stems and new leaves seem to have a stronger purple color than I have previously noticed on seedlings. I'm curious what this may be caused by and hope it's a good thing.
Seedlings under lights 2 weeks, doing well, purple color?
I have a batch of seedlings under grow lights for two weeks now. They seem to be doing well, due to the exellent advice I received on here
The stems and new leaves seem to have a stronger purple color than I have previously noticed on seedlings. I'm curious what this may be caused by and hope it's a good thing.
The stems and new leaves seem to have a stronger purple color than I have previously noticed on seedlings. I'm curious what this may be caused by and hope it's a good thing.
-
rainbowgardener
- Super Green Thumb
- Posts: 25279
- Joined: Sun Feb 15, 2009 6:04 pm
- Location: TN/GA 7b
When leaves turn purple, they are in need of phosphorus which you can find in teh right amount in any good tomato fertilizer. This is the middle number on the package where it displays "NPK" and is important for healthy growth. I use a 5-6-5 blend from my local gardening supply.
Once a tomato plant has at least two sets of real leaves (not including the two when it first sprouted), you can begin feeding them a light dose of fertilizer.
I usually mix a bit of fertilizer into the transplant mix when I move them up into larger cells. Then I apply this slow acting fertilizer according to the package directions. Tomatoes, eggplants, peppers all need the same fertilizer and you want the phosphorus to be the higher number. It is also OK if you use a fertilizer that is say 5-5-5. The most important thing is to NOT feed your tomatoes a fertilizer that is higher in nitrogen because all you will get is great foliage.
Once a tomato plant has at least two sets of real leaves (not including the two when it first sprouted), you can begin feeding them a light dose of fertilizer.
I usually mix a bit of fertilizer into the transplant mix when I move them up into larger cells. Then I apply this slow acting fertilizer according to the package directions. Tomatoes, eggplants, peppers all need the same fertilizer and you want the phosphorus to be the higher number. It is also OK if you use a fertilizer that is say 5-5-5. The most important thing is to NOT feed your tomatoes a fertilizer that is higher in nitrogen because all you will get is great foliage.