Am I watering to much or to little?

[MarineCorps]

My Geronimo has been a little wilty since yesterday. At first I thought I was just watering it to much and it perked up last night so I figured I would not water it for a few days but it was wilty again today and feeling dry. I've been giving it ~10oz of water a day except yesterday when I gave it 16 oz mixed with 1/8th cup of neptunes harvest. Am I watering it to much or to little??

[TightenUp]

sounds like too much water

[TightenUp]

carefully scratch the surface of the potting mix down about an inch to see if its dry. be careful not to disturb the roots if possible.

if its dry an inch down then give it some water

also do you have any supplemental lighting? the sun is not very strong at this time of year so you might want to get some florescent lights.

[MarineCorps]

Originally Posted by TightenUp

carefully scratch the surface of the potting mix down about an inch to see if its dry. be careful not to disturb the roots if possible.

if its dry an inch down then give it some water

also do you have any supplemental lighting? the sun is not very strong at this time of year so you might want to get some florescent lights.

Soil was pretty damp. I sadly have no supplemental lighting. All I have is the sun.

[TightenUp]

now that you know the soil is nice and damp go ahead and pick up the conainer and feel how heavy it is. it will weigh significantly less when it is dry and thats another way to tell if your plant needs water

[bower]

Tomatoes do funny things with their leaves depending on the light. A lot of them will curl their leaves down at dusk and then spread em out in the daylight. But I've also seen plants indoors that stayed 'curly' all day when they were not getting as much light as they wanted. It's strange it would perk up at night, but perhaps that's because you put the interior lights on? If I were you I'd move it as close to the window as possible and see if that makes it look happier. A plant that size can use a fair bit of water if there is sunshine, but if there's not enough sun to grow, it won' t use much water.

It is a nice looking plant anyway, and starting to flower, so don't forget to shake it a little to make sure it pollinates. I usually drum on the stems with my fingertips, or even on the stake, that will give the flower a shake.

[MarineCorps]

Originally Posted by bower

Tomatoes do funny things with their leaves depending on the light. A lot of them will curl their leaves down at dusk and then spread em out in the daylight. But I've also seen plants indoors that stayed 'curly' all day when they were not getting as much light as they wanted. It's strange it would perk up at night, but perhaps that's because you put the interior lights on? If I were you I'd move it as close to the window as possible and see if that makes it look happier. A plant that size can use a fair bit of water if there is sunshine, but if there's not enough sun to grow, it won' t use much water.

It is a nice looking plant anyway, and starting to flower, so don't forget to shake it a little to make sure it pollinates. I usually drum on the stems with my fingertips, or even on the stake, that will give the flower a shake.

Hmm, thanks. Though the watering is the least of my concerns as it appears I used to much compost so now the tips of the leave are a little burnt. Hopefully I won't kill it before spring.

[pdxwindjammer]

Do like most of us do. Plant hundreds of seedlings so when we lose one, we aren't as heartbroken.

Good luck with your plant! Have you started to harden it off yet? Mine are outside during the day now but still bringing them all in at night because it is still freezing at night.

[MarineCorps]

Originally Posted by pdxwindjammer

Do like most of us do. Plant hundreds of seedlings so when we lose one, we aren't as heartbroken.

Good luck with your plant! Have you started to harden it off yet? Mine are outside during the day now but still bringing them all in at night because it is still freezing at night.

I probaly should. But it's been in the low 30s during the day. Been getting into the 40s the last couple days though.

[TightenUp]

cape cod prob has a few more weeks before you can get those plants out. i know here in NJ the 10 day forecast has lows in the 30's every day. this is soooo diff from last year.

hopefully we'll have some warm days and tolerable nights early in May. i'm hoping to get my plants out in a few weeks