seedling falling over

[carnationindex]

I have two seedlings in this pot. The biggest seedling is falling over, but the other smaller one is fine. Its not leggy. The big one has a lot of leaves and they're very big and look too heavy to be supported by the stem. I tied it to a tooth pick and it straightened out overnight. But when I took the tooth pick off, it will fall over within a day. It falls over to almost 0 degrees but it looks really healthy. I can correct it but it will fall over again. What's going on here?

If anyone needs pictures I will upload them.

Thank you!

[Kisal]

Pictures would help a great deal. For starters, is it a vine? Vines tend to be "floppy" in some respects.

[carnationindex]

It's a carnation seedling. This one is bigger than all my others for some reason. I just took a picture of it straight, but I also want to show you a picture of it when it's falling over. I'm going to wait until it falls over (probably in a day). Please check back for the pictures.

I found out today that this seedling has another problem . It was 29 degrees in Toronto today. Extremely warm. This particular one looked like it was melting. I shaded it and it looks fine now. But why does this particular one keep falling over and then healing?

[Kisal]

My carnation seedlings tend to flop over from time to time, but they usually fix themselves. I consider it a sign that they need water. Mine aren't in the ground yet, however, still in their starter pots.

[carnationindex]

It's straight and beautiful here





Uh but it fell over with in 2 minutes of me taking it off the tooth pick!



This is the other one in the same pot for comparison

The soil is moist as you can see. So what's going on

[Kisal]

Um, yeah ... that's what mine do, too. I haven't worried about it. As I said, they tend to fix themselves. One or more will be flopped over like that one day, and within a day or two, they're standing up nice and straight, again. They usually only flop over when the soil becomes dry-ish. There are no signs of insects or disease on them, so I figure they'll be fine.

Do you think I should worry about them?

[carnationindex]

Do yours fall over that much or just a little? Mine is almost 0 degrees?

[Kisal]

I've had them fall over so they were lying flat on the surface of the soil, and then the tip would began to grow upward again, so there was a 90º angle in the plant. I sincerely don't know whether it's a problem or not. Mine are all standing upright and growing straight, at the moment. The 90º angles have disappeared. Now that mine are larger ... about 3" tall ... they don't fall over anymore, or at least they haven't in the past couple of weeks.

Maybe it just takes time for them to develop enough roots to hold them upright? Again, I'm not making light of the problem you're having. I honestly don't know if it means something's wrong. Especially since the plants appear free of insects or disease.

I know it isn't what's called "damping off," or my plants would be dead by now.

[The Helpful Gardener]

Carnations and pinks can crown rot easily and are best watered only after surface drying and let to dry again. I am not worried about a little drooping; the plant is encouraged to stretch roots if it gets a touch dry...

HG

[Kisal]

Oh,, thanks, HG! I was beginning to think I was drifting merrily through life ignoring a potential problem with my carnations. I've only grown them once before, and that was long years ago. Back then, I lived in So. Cal., and I just sowed the seed directly in the ground. I was such a newbie at gardening, I'm amazed I had sense enough to water them.

[The Helpful Gardener]

Yea, even a handfull of sand around the crown of the plant to keep it above moister soil helps a lot...

HG

[carnationindex]

I've had them fall over so they were lying flat on the surface of the soil, and then the tip would began to grow upward again, so there was a 90º angle in the plant. I sincerely don't know whether it's a problem or not. Mine are all standing upright and growing straight, at the moment. The 90º angles have disappeared. Now that mine are larger ... about 3" tall ... they don't fall over anymore, or at least they haven't in the past couple of weeks.

Maybe it just takes time for them to develop enough roots to hold them upright? Again, I'm not making light of the problem you're having. I honestly don't know if it means something's wrong. Especially since the plants appear free of insects or disease.

I know it isn't what's called "damping off," or my plants would be dead by now.

The same thing is happening to mine but they're not going back straight. The bottom of the stalk is really thin compared to the top of the stalk. You can definately tell that it can't support itself just by looking at it. At first it was just that one that was falling over, but now almost all of them are doing it. They fall over 0 degrees and then the tip straightens to 90 degrees. It looks so viny. It does get a lot of sunlight though, I think if the stalk was thicker at the bottom it would fix the problem but I don't know how I c an do that.How old are yours by the way? Mine are three months, and biggest is 6 inches tall.

[Kisal]

I went out and took a pic of my last tray of carnation seedlings. The rest have already been transplanted into my front yard. These are from seed planted about mid-March. (Yes, I use cat boxes as plant trays. I have quite a collection left over from my days as a wildlife rehabber. )

[carnationindex]

My goodness they're so beautiful but they look so different from mine. Do you think they're different species?

[Kisal]

Mine have been living outdoors since the middle of April. They get direct sun from 6 a.m. until about 5 p.m. The lower leaves turned a little yellow, because I forgot to water them for a few too many days. (Got busy with other stuff. )