Plants in the Ground

Hah!!! I finally did it.

My seedlings looked so pathetic, I decided now-or-never.  Every year, my tomato seedlings look puny compared to the monster seedlings sold at just about every store.  But last year, for a little experiment, I purchased a couple of the biggish nursery-grown ones and pitted them (planted them at the same time) against my homegrown seedlings.  And they both grew and produced at the same time.  So I’m not worried that my runts can’t catch up:  small but mighty.

On Saturday, the only sunny day for the last week or forecast for the next week, I planted sixteen tomato seedlings:  three each of Brandywine and Cherokee Purple, two each of Yellow Pear, Stupice, Siletz and Black Prince.  Just prior to planting in the still damp soil, I added another inch of compost.  I used my Troy-Bilt electric tiller to mix it in.  Then I added a handful of wood ashes to each hole and buried the tomatoes up to the first leaves (about 6 inches deep).  I picked off the peat pots to ensure nothing inhibits good rooting.  I probably won’t use the peat pots again; I’ll stick to plastic which doesn’t dry out as fast.

Then, hoping the poor things didn’t sunburn, I got out the Wall O’Waters.  I had to fill them up quickly, before the sun went away, so the water would have time to heat up  and provide protection for the transplants.  Filling the Wall O’Waters is backbreaking labor.  I put a large pot over each seedling to protect it against a collapse.  Next, I arrange the Wall O’Water around it, and use a trigger sprayer to start filling the individual cells.  This takes a while.  After the cells are about two-thirds full, I remove the pot, allowing the Wall O’Water to fall in like a teepee. Keeping the top closed over the small tomato plant keeps the heat in like an individual greenhouse.  This was so much more effective than my cold frame last year, I am only using the Wall O’Waters this year.