Paul4444
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Tomato seedlings leaves purple and branch curling upside dow

Hi

I'm new to growing seeds indoors and have had a lot of problems associated with that. The most current is the leaves on one of my tomato plants are turning purple underneath and one of the branches has curled back on itself and the leaves are upside down. This happened overnight. The plants are about 4 weeks old and we're transplanted into 4 inch pots a week ago. They are in sunshine mix number 2 and I fully watered them with half strength fertilizer at the time of potting up. The soil is still damp about 1 inch from the top. The room temp is 66F and they are 2 inches under a t5ho light with a fan blowing. Any ideas of what's causing this please?

Thanks

Paul
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Paul4444
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I'm using a 20-20-20 general fertilizer

imafan26
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Location: Hawaii, zone 12a 587 ft elev.

Purple leaves on seedlings usually indicate a phosphorus deficiency which usually goes away when they are transplanted into fertilized soil or if you fertilize them in their current pot.

Paul4444
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Thanks. I did fertilize a week ago and again this morning but they still look the same. Is 20-20-20 enough? Any ideas on the curling branch?

imafan26
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Location: Hawaii, zone 12a 587 ft elev.

It will take a little while for the fertilizer to get to the plant phosphorus is not that mobile.
I do get curling leaves but usually it is because they bend over when I water and they don't straighten up afterward or I have changed their position relative to the light.

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applestar
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Location: Zone 6, NJ (3/M)4/E ~ 10/M(11/B)

Just as an another idea, purpleness and yellowing can also occur from exposure to too cold temps like in the 40's. Could it have gotten colder than you thought at some point during the night?

imafan26
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Location: Hawaii, zone 12a 587 ft elev.

You are right, cold slows down nutrient uptake. Where I am, I don't have to worry about that.

Paul4444
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The plants are in the basement and the temp is fairly constant so I don't think so. Is it common for a branch to turn over that much?

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applestar
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OK -- the turned over leaf could be result of sucking insect damage. Any sign of aphids? I wouldn't worry about that too much unless there ARE pests or more severe curling becomes evident.

Paul4444
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No pests. It's in the basement and the climate here is just starting to warm up so there aren't many bugs yet. Thanks for the advice



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