60 days till last frost. Is it time? - Page 2

Dewayne mater · February 23, 2015

After they have a 3rd set of true leaves, I do keep the fan going all the time. When I first start using the fan, the air movement is light. After a week or so of that, I keep it turned up enough to keep the plants swaying all the time. They seem to reward me for stressing them with thick stalks. Only downside I've seen of this is that they dry out a little faster. As long as you don't ignore their water needs, the moving air of a fan has no down sides I've seen.

Dewayne mater

Myronr · February 23, 2015

I have tried a fan before but I didn't start it early enough and didn't run it long enough.

sdambr · February 23, 2015

Quote:

Originally Posted by shelleybean

Start 6-8 weeks before your last average frost. So, yes, you can start now, especially if you're going to keep them in a cool spot for a while. If they're going to be in a warmer location indoors, I'd wait a week or two so they don't get to tall or leggy.

I know everything says from last frost date which is around 4/15, but I can't plant out till at least 3rd or 4th week of May. Should I start 6-8 weeks before plant out date?

shelleybean · February 23, 2015

sdambr, you don't want them to get so tall they won't fit under your lights anymore. A lot depends on your growing conditions in the house but if I had to delay moving my plants outside, I'd start later. Hope that helps.

sdambr · February 23, 2015

Thanks Shelleybean, it does. I don't think I would be able to keep the all under lights if they were in bigger pots. I can't wait to start, but I guess I could start just a few move a few to a southern window.

greenthumbomaha · February 23, 2015

Myron, I'm in your area and I'd start anytime when its convenient for you. The counting back is a guide not a precise necessity I've been doing a gradual start over the past month and I'll finish next week. One of my gardens catches strong wind almost constantly, and the bigger tougher transplants do better trenched in there. On the flip side I know of a gardener near here that starts in MAY ! I would be much too impatient to go that route but the bottom line is they get wonderful tomatoes and that works for them.

As shelleybean mentioned, lights are important for constant growth until transplant. Remember about 5 years ago the spring it never stopped raining? I had to remove every other shelf of the light rack and the house looked like a jungle. Then there was the year before last when it warmed suddenly and the plants weren't delivered to the stores yet...

- Lisa

Myronr · February 24, 2015

Quote:

Originally Posted by greenthumbomaha

Myron, I'm in your area and I'd start anytime when its convenient for you. On the flip side I know of a gardener near here that starts in MAY !
- Lisa

I just noticed last night that my next door neighbor has 8" tall tomatoes in his kitchen window!

Gardeneer · February 27, 2015

I think 8 week for tomatoes is too early. I could be wrong.
Last year I started on FEB 28 and took my seedlings out around APR. 3. They were bigger than 8". This year I want to delay by one week.
In my case LFD does not mean that I can go ahead and plant out the dat after that. B/c temps will be on the cool side for a long while. Few years ago I was gardening in GA. Sometimes I would even plant out before LFD, after checking 10 days forecast. But not here in cool PNW.

lycomania · April 12, 2015

When you start depends mostly on your setup, how many plants you are growing, your space, and your patience for carrying plants back and forth from inside to outside. My last frost date is May 31st. 2 years ago, I started seed in mid-April, and had my first ripe tomato on July 8th. Last year, I started quite a bit later and had my first ripe tomato on July 31st.

This year I started seeds on March 19th. It remains to be seen whether or not that was a bad idea.

I just transplanted them tonight into 4.25" deeper-than-usual containers (bigger containers because I know I'm pushing it).

I do use a clear plastic ground cover in the spring to increase the soil temp. I'm not a professional grower so I don't have as many restrictions.

bughunter99 · April 16, 2015

If you are new to tomato seeds, start earlier than the rules indicate. It gives you cushion in case things go bad and will not hurt the plants any.

February 23, 2015	#19
shelleybean Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Virginia Beach Posts: 2,648	sdambr, you don't want them to get so tall they won't fit under your lights anymore. A lot depends on your growing conditions in the house but if I had to delay moving my plants outside, I'd start later. Hope that helps. __________________ Michele

February 23, 2015	#21
greenthumbomaha Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: Omaha Zone 5 Posts: 2,514	Myron, I'm in your area and I'd start anytime when its convenient for you. The counting back is a guide not a precise necessity I've been doing a gradual start over the past month and I'll finish next week. One of my gardens catches strong wind almost constantly, and the bigger tougher transplants do better trenched in there. On the flip side I know of a gardener near here that starts in MAY ! I would be much too impatient to go that route but the bottom line is they get wonderful tomatoes and that works for them. As shelleybean mentioned, lights are important for constant growth until transplant. Remember about 5 years ago the spring it never stopped raining? I had to remove every other shelf of the light rack and the house looked like a jungle. Then there was the year before last when it warmed suddenly and the plants weren't delivered to the stores yet... - Lisa Last edited by greenthumbomaha; February 23, 2015 at 10:42 PM. Reason: mis-spelled shelleybean, left out an "e" sorrry!

February 23, 2015	#16
Dewayne mater Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2008 Location: DFW, Texas Posts: 1,212	After they have a 3rd set of true leaves, I do keep the fan going all the time. When I first start using the fan, the air movement is light. After a week or so of that, I keep it turned up enough to keep the plants swaying all the time. They seem to reward me for stressing them with thick stalks. Only downside I've seen of this is that they dry out a little faster. As long as you don't ignore their water needs, the moving air of a fan has no down sides I've seen. Dewayne mater

February 23, 2015	#17
Myronr Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2015 Location: Council Bluffs, Iowa Posts: 42	I have tried a fan before but I didn't start it early enough and didn't run it long enough.

February 23, 2015	#20
sdambr Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2014 Location: Long Island, NY Posts: 421	Thanks Shelleybean, it does. I don't think I would be able to keep the all under lights if they were in bigger pots. I can't wait to start, but I guess I could start just a few move a few to a southern window.

February 27, 2015	#23
Gardeneer Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2015 Location: NC - zone 8a - heat zone 7 Posts: 4,912	I think 8 week for tomatoes is too early. I could be wrong. Last year I started on FEB 28 and took my seedlings out around APR. 3. They were bigger than 8". This year I want to delay by one week. In my case LFD does not mean that I can go ahead and plant out the dat after that. B/c temps will be on the cool side for a long while. Few years ago I was gardening in GA. Sometimes I would even plant out before LFD, after checking 10 days forecast. But not here in cool PNW.

April 12, 2015	#24
lycomania Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Apr 2013 Location: Zone 5b Posts: 179	When you start depends mostly on your setup, how many plants you are growing, your space, and your patience for carrying plants back and forth from inside to outside. My last frost date is May 31st. 2 years ago, I started seed in mid-April, and had my first ripe tomato on July 8th. Last year, I started quite a bit later and had my first ripe tomato on July 31st. This year I started seeds on March 19th. It remains to be seen whether or not that was a bad idea. I just transplanted them tonight into 4.25" deeper-than-usual containers (bigger containers because I know I'm pushing it). I do use a clear plastic ground cover in the spring to increase the soil temp. I'm not a professional grower so I don't have as many restrictions.

April 16, 2015	#25
bughunter99 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: zone 5 Posts: 821	If you are new to tomato seeds, start earlier than the rules indicate. It gives you cushion in case things go bad and will not hurt the plants any.