seedling transplant

[jimmykx250]

I have a bunch of tomatos and peppers that I satrted from seed. They are all around 2" to 3" tall. I have 3 to 4 starts in each 1-1/2" square pod that sits on top of a wicking mat system. How do you know when it's time to transplant to the next size up container. I hope to save as many plants as possible when I do this. I didnt expect such a high germination ratio when I seeded the pods. This website is an incredible source of info. Thanks to you all!

[GardenJester]

my personal rule of thumb is 2 true leafs, and 3rd just emerging is the time to up pot it.

thin the seedlings to one per cell when the 1st true leaf start to emerge. obviously, you want to keep the strongest one.

[tedln]

If the plants have enough distance from each other, you may be able to split the cell and up pot both.

Ted

[DoubleDogFarm]

I like to sow my seeds in open flats. Prick and pot up when they have 2 true leaves like gardenjester's rule. This way I'm not sacrificing or culling seedlings. Gives you a chance to plant them deeper also if they are leggy.

[rainbowgardener]

Well, ordinarily I also like to wait until they have the second pair of true leaves; the seedlings are getting a bit sturdier then. But your little plants are very crowded. I might go ahead and get them separated and give them more breathing room once they have the first pair of true leaves opened up.

[garden5]

I agree with all of the above: wait until they have their first true leaves and then to do the up-potting. You may want to consider burying the plant up to those true leaves so that it will develop a stronger root system. Depending on the plant, the berried stem will send out roots.