Pinching off new tomato leaves??

[newgardner]

Okay, now I'm really confused. As I've mentioned...I'm very new to gardening. I've read something about pinching off brand new tomato leaves when I repot?? I have brand new (about 2") tomato plants and will be transplanting them soon. Am I supposed to be pinching off certain leaves??

Maybe I need to buy a book... "Gardening 101" ....lol

Any help is greatly appreciated!!

[Kisal]

I wouldn't remove any leaves, but many people ascribe to the practice of removing the seed leaves when they transplant seedlings, and then planting deeply, so the true leaves are just barely above soil level.

I tend not to transplant as early as some do. I like my seedlings to develop a good root system before I move them. When I do transplant, though, I sometimes remove the lowest side branches, so I can plant more deeply.

[newgardner]

Great, thanks!! Is 2 inches okay for me to re-pot? Or should I wait for about another inch of growth? I'm sorry...once I learn more...I won't have so many questions.

Hopefully, I can join those of you answering questions like mine. haha

Thanks again!

[Kisal]

There should be a minimum of 2 true leaves, in addition to the 2 seed leaves, before you transplant. IMO, a minimum of 4 true leaves would be even better.

But as I said, I don't transplant as early as some do. I prefer to wait until the seedling has developed a strong root system, before I move it to larger pot. Just my personal preference.

Don't worry about the questions.

[TZ -OH6]

There is no real rush to tranplant tomatoes at a small size. They just take up more room under lights when in bigger pots. I usually wait untill they are starting to shade each other. I also like an inch or two between the seed leaves and the first true leaves for good spacing/height when I deep plant down to the seed leaves in the new pot. I usually plant down to the seed leaves and do not remove them. If going deeper I might pinch them off but usualy don't . More green leaf means more photosynthesis and more growth.


I don't worry about damaging roots. A little damage to the tap root is good as it makes for a fibrous root system. Many times I dense plant 5-10 seeds per square inch and have to tease them apart into bare root plants, which get pretty torn up, but they don't seem to blink after repotting.

[newgardner]

Thank you guys so much for the helpful information! I really appreciate it!!

[Bobberman]

If you try to plant tomatoes to early the ground is very cold 6 inches down and will slow the growth. Early planting you can even lay the plant and cover with dirt to the bottom leaves with the warmer surface dirt!!

[newgardner]

Thank you all so much! I'm going to have to start taking notes!!! haha