Friday was a big day for the tomato seedlings. April 25 marks the average last frost for the Chicagoland area. Normally, this is not the day you jump out and plant delicate plants in the ground. Looking at the weather over the next 10 days, we are looking for abnormally warm days and lots of rain. If they didn’t go in the ground this weekend, it was going to be a while.
Tomato Seedlings going in the ground, April 24, 2009
The tomato plants started just over a month ago from seed indoors under a grow light. Pictured above, the seedlings are a little tormented from the trip under the warm grow lights to the outdoors. I’ve let them out during the day to start to acclimate to the cold weather over the past week, but today is going to be a rough day.
From above, the seedlings are about 4 to 6 inches tall. When you transplant them, you want only the top set of leaves above the ground. The rest of the stalk so far goes in the soil to help create a strong stem for the tomatoes to grow on.
Tomato Plant just planted in the ground, April 24, 2009
Above, the plant is almost completely in the ground except for those top leaves. Also at the same time, I put the tomato plant supports in the ground. That way I won’t damage the roots if I were to put it in the ground in a few weeks when the plant really needs it.
The little guy is a bit sad after moving from the warm heat lamps to the relatively cold outdoors. The next 5 days, the plants should get plenty of rain and warmer spring nights to give them a good start on their way to blooming.
I’m planting 9 different varieties of tomatoes this year. I’ll post about each variety in the coming days.
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Hi Farmer Jay
I just found your blog or site yesterday. Your information is just what I have been looking for. This is a first time for me on seedlings, flowers or vegies. I have been winging it so far.
Thanks for being there.
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