How not to be mistaken when choosing tomato seedlings on the market?

Not always and not everyone succeeds in growing tomato seedlings at home. Someone's houses have window sills too small to clutter them with boxes with seedlings, someone's children or pets have ruined the sprouted sprouts, someone just doesn't want to mess with the plants, it even happens that the owner himself ruined the tender sprouts by excessive care ... What to do? Do not be left without homemade tomatoes.

There is a way out - tomatoes can be purchased on the market. But here you need to be very careful so as not to fall for the tricks of cunning sellers who are trying to sell their goods by any means. To choose high-quality seedlings, it is worthwhile to shoe yourself on this issue in advance.

Preparing to buy

Before going to the market, it is better to decide immediately on the variety that will be purchased. In this case, it is better to give preference to traditional, proven varieties of tomatoes that will definitely not upset during harvest.

You should also immediately set yourself up to purchase seedling bushes from one or two sellers. This is due to the fact that each seller grows tomatoes in his garden, where the soil is infected with some kind of disease. By purchasing goods from different sellers, you increase the likelihood of introducing various diseases into your garden.

Advice

Before buying, you should prepare the beds in order to immediately plant the purchased tomato seedlings. Thus, the likelihood of rapid engraftment can be increased.

Quality seedlings

Everyone dreams of buying good sprouts that will take root quickly enough and will delight in the end with a good harvest. It is better to buy 1.5-2-month-old seedlings, preferably planted at the same time to ensure uniform development and simultaneous fruiting of the bushes.

Also, when buying, you need to pay attention to the following characteristics, which indicate that the tomatoes were grown correctly.

• The height of the bushes is no more than 30 cm.
• The number of leaves on the bush: at least 7 leaves for early ripe tomatoes and 12 for indeterminate ones. It should be borne in mind that the presence of a large number of leaves in a tomato indicates large nitrogen dressings that reduce productivity.
• Branches are branched, but not very long. The flower branch is clearly distinguished on early maturing varieties, but there are no flowers on it yet. Large twigs indicate high temperatures, which reduce the plant's ability to tolerate even small frosts.
• The color is a deep dark green, which indicates a sufficient level of lighting.
• The stem is thick, but not too thick, the optimal thickness is about a pencil or slightly thicker.
• The roots are formed, no damage.
• Leaves must be whole, without damage, elastic, raised up.
• The lower foliage shows no signs of yellowing.
• Cotyledon leaves are green and vigorous, like the rest.
• The absence of any signs of infection with infectious diseases or pests: egg laying under the leaves, deformation and wrinkling of the foliage, brown or blackened spots on the stem and foliage, mold.

Advice

If there is any sign of at least one plant, you should not buy seedlings from this seller, as there is a risk of contamination of even healthy-looking bushes or the soil under them.

In addition to the appearance, it is worth paying attention to the planting container: it is desirable that each bush is located in a separate cup with earth. By purchasing seedlings from a common box where there are many bushes, you increase the likelihood of damage to the root system during transplantation. This helps to lengthen the adaptive period of plants.Of course, the purchase of tomatoes along with the container will cost a little more, but the survival time of such plants will be much shorter than those purchased without containers.

Poor quality seedlings

You can often see beautiful seedlings that look lush and bright. Sometimes they are attracted by already flowering sprouts or even those with small fruits. It seems that buying such tomatoes is right, that this particular seedling is good. However, what seems good is not always true.

• Seedling with ovary

Considering that people go to buy tomatoes in late spring - early summer, it is likely that ovaries and flowers are on the bushes. From the abundance of flowering plants, it is better to choose those that have just begun to bloom. If there is no choice and you have to purchase seedlings with an ovary, it would be more correct to immediately cut it off. After all, sooner or later, it most often crumbles. By removing it, you can direct the forces of the plant on survival and subsequent development.

If the ovary is left on tomato seedlings, the forces of the sprout are directed not only to building up the root system, but also to providing the ovary with nutrients. Of course, this cannot but affect the development of the entire bush - it grows poorly and as a result gives a small number of small fruits.

• Lush seedlings

Nice, lush seedlings with thick trunks and bright green large leaves are simply pleasing to the eye. However, you should not choose just such tomato seedlings for planting. Indeed, thickened trunks and emerald foliage often indicate abundant nitrogen fertilization. Of course, such a tomato grows very well. But it blooms infrequently, and very few ovaries develop on it. As they say, it is beautiful outside, but empty inside - you should not expect a bountiful harvest from such tomatoes.

• Nondescript seedlings

Pale elongated bushes, yellowed sprouts - everything indicates improper cultivation, therefore, most likely, no one will covet such seedlings. Unless only in the absence of any choice on the market.

It is very difficult to find good and inexpensive sprouts on the market. This is due to the large number of goods and sometimes the discrepancy between the declared characteristics of tomatoes and reality. In order to protect yourself from possible cheating, it is worth getting from the seller as much information as possible about the seedlings: if he answers without hesitation, then there is a high probability that his information will be correct and the variety corresponds to the named one. To reduce the risk of buying weak and painful seedlings, you need to know what a properly grown bush looks like, which will take root faster and yield a larger crop.