When to Transplant Tomato Seedlings: Flower Truss Formation

Since I respect you so much, I just can’t bring myself to address you by just your first name this first time. I might get it wrong, but I’ll use your formal patronymic anyway.

Hello, Lyudmila Alexandrovna! I testify my deepest respects to you! That’s the main thing.

And the minor thing is a question.

It is known that from the appearance of buds to the opening of the flower truss, it supposedly takes 2 weeks (I haven’t tested this myself). It is also known that it’s undesirable to plant out tomatoes with an already blooming truss, because it’s too late and the plant won’t have time to form a good root system and foliage.

What is your take on this? How many days after the buds appear do you try to plant your seedlings out in the dirt?

Dear Valery, I don’t know if I’m just lucky or if it’s my conditions, but my seedlings always reach planting time in the exact same state—budding, but not blooming. Most often, the buds are just in their infancy. I’ve never actually had to plant out blooming seedlings.

But I think if we plant out seedlings with the first truss blooming and the conditions are perfect (soil temp, day and night temps, enough moisture and nutrients), there shouldn’t be any losses. But if the tomatoes hit a stressful situation (sunburn, lack of moisture, night frosts, etc.), then anything can happen.

Quote from Aleksan9ra:
Here in our region, if Thrips are present on the onion sets… the top 1 cm of the blade will suddenly bend at a sharp 90-degree angle… I immediately spray them.

Lyuda, what do you spray them with?

Galya, I watch the weather. If it’s very hot and dry and I can see the onion tops wilting before my eyes, I spray once with Actara (a systemic insecticide). But I do not harvest any greens from that bed until the final bulb harvest. If there are only a few pests, I use Fitoverm (Spinosad/organic).

But honestly, I stopped planting onion sets directly in the spring. I sprout them indoors into seedlings first. When everyone else is planting bare sets in the dirt, mine are already 18-20cm (7-8 inches) tall. I cover them with row cover at first, and when I remove it, the onions are big, fat, and Thrips don’t scare them, so no spraying is needed!

Quote from Dusya Kalyazin:
My primary use for root celery is a soup mix prep: I slice the celery root and carrots into thin little matchsticks…

Thanks, but that’s not for me. I have two massive freezers and still run out of space—we freeze over 40 kg (88 lbs) of chicken alone! The carrots go in the root cellar. And nobody here likes eating celery root; I just boil it in the broth for flavor and then fish it out and throw it in the trash. 😂

Quote from Aleksan9ra:
I sprout them in damp paper towel rolls in the light and immediately plant them into seedling cells.

Forgive me, it’s hard to search… I have to sift through so much parallel material on this forum… Do you have a link saved regarding your sprouting method? How many days after sprouting? Do you pot them into cells right when the cotyledons appear?

Valery, as an example, I pulled the exact dates from one of my growing seasons. I think this makes it very clear:

• Feb 26: Sowed seeds.
• March 7: Cotyledons opened. I immediately move them into individual cells at this exact stage.
• March 12: Growing in cells on the windowsill.
• March 27: Potted up (potted on) into 0.5L (16 oz) cups.
• April 17: Seedlings moved out to the greenhouse (still in pots).
• April 26: Planted into the greenhouse soil.

Quote from Aleksan9ra:
March 7: Cotyledons opened. I immediately move them into individual cells at this exact stage.

So that’s 9 days from sowing (if it’s a regular year). Which means if the little “hooks” first appeared after 4-6 days, your transplanting happens when they are realistically only 3-6 days old from emerging!

Thank you! This is incredibly valuable information for me!

But I have more questions: Is that toilet paper you use? Just one layer over the seeds? And do you plant them into the cells along with a tiny piece of that paper? Or do you free the roots from it? How do the sprouts cleverly lift the edge of the paper themselves… Do you specifically place the seeds so they lift the paper up?

Lyuda, hi! Quick question. I just sowed lettuce on March 3rd, and today it completely sprouted—mind-blowing. It used to take 2 weeks, but a friend advised me to just sprinkle a tiny bit of sand over the seeds and that’s it.

What do I do with it now? I’ve never sown it this early. Do I prick it out into cups? I have zero space for lettuce right now. And where do I keep it until it goes into the hoophouse (which won’t be until mid-April… well, maybe early April if the weather is lucky)?

Quote from Aleksan9ra:
April 17: Seedlings moved out to the greenhouse.

Wow, you are incredibly good at stunting/braking your seedlings with cold… and light…!

April 17th is 50 days from your Feb 26th sowing date (about 45 days from sprouting), and there are STILL no buds visible!

By May 12, the seedlings are flowering slightly. If they started blooming 4-5 days prior (May 7-8), that means the buds formed about 2 weeks before that (April 23-24). And you planted them in the ground on April 26th—just 2 or 3 days after the buds formed! Masterclass!

Yes, that’s exactly how it works out: I stunt them with cold and light. And I didn’t even do it on purpose—those were just the conditions I had, and they turned out to be highly productive for tomatoes. Once I realized this, I didn’t change a thing; in fact, I embraced it.

Quote from Valtwelve:
Is that toilet paper you use? Just one layer over the seeds?…

Yes, it’s toilet paper. I use a soft brand that turns into absolute mush when hit with boiling water. I fold it into 4-6 layers, place it on the bottom of the container, and pour boiling water over it. Then I lay out the dry seeds and cover them with a very thin, single layer of paper.

When it’s time to transplant, the seedlings pull out completely freely. The roots are still short. If a tiny piece of paper sticks to the root, it’s no big deal, though that rarely happens anyway.

Quote from Russi:
I just sowed lettuce… what do I do with it now?

Anna, you don’t need to do anything, just let it grow for now. When it looks like the one in my photo, you can prick it out. It doesn’t need much light, just cool temps. If you are out of space, prick them out into cut-off plastic bottles and hang them up high somewhere like hanging planters.

This morning I walked through the snow to my greenhouse. I could only open the vent, but a wave of warmth hit my face even though it was early (but sunny). That means the soil is warming up, and by late March it will be warm enough for lettuce and greens!

I want to do it like you! And many probably try. But they have different conditions! Not everyone can pull it off, and they end up with overgrown, leggy seedlings… I want to tell them: be careful, this is hard to replicate, find your own sowing dates so your seedlings don’t overgrow.

Thank you so much for the photos of the seeds in cups with paper. I’m adopting that method. For now, it’s the best way for me to avoid pricking out at the exact moment the plant is programming its flower trusses.

I won’t try to replicate your dates. I’ll plant later. This year I’m planning for March 17. With grow lights… With cool temps… The only thought nagging me is that artificial grow lights might actually reduce yield… I feel like we need to catch more real sun, IMHO.

Thank you for your answers. If you don’t mind, I will continue to be your avid reader.

Quote from Valtwelve:
The only thought nagging me is that artificial grow lights might actually reduce yield…

Good afternoon. If your grow lighting is set up competently, nothing decreases at all. For five years now, I’ve been growing all my seedlings in a converted bathroom with absolutely zero natural light (just a tiny window near the ceiling). Artificial light only.

My tomato seedlings are ready in 40 days. Early peppers already have buds in 40 days. All flower trusses are exactly where they should be. Yields—I won’t even list them, it depends on the variety (giants vs. cherries). I maintain the temperature using that tiny window.

There are nuances though: before taking them out to the greenhouse, I spray the foliage with a stress-relief product (“Vodosbor”) so they don’t get sunburned. The leaves are very tender. My husband built the light setup.

Anna, my seeds never sprout that fast, but the onion smell coming from the cups is horrendous! I’ve never noticed that before.

I just read through this thread.

I really respect Yuri Kuzminykh. He writes engagingly and knowledgeably—a true professional.

But regarding “helmet heads” (when seedlings emerge with the seed coat stuck on their leaves), he writes:

“COVER evenly with soil and PRESS DOWN VERY FIRMLY. (This ensures even depth and forces the stem to overcome the soil density as it emerges). But that’s not all. A DENSE surface allows the seed to completely free itself from the SEED SHELL. (EMERGENCE IN A HELMET)”

Not a single word about watering… He probably forgot. “Helmet heads” are only hard to remove if they are dry! For helmet heads, moisture is the main thing, IMHO. I just put drops of water on the dry helmets on my seedlings throughout the day, and the leaves eventually pulled themselves out. If the soil is moist, you don’t necessarily have to tamp it down.

To back this up, I quote Lyudmila from Feb 23:

“I practically have no helmet heads this year, even though I sprout everything without soil [on paper].”

Good morning Lyudmila and guests of the journal.

Could you (or other experienced growers) give me advice? Is it the right time to prick out my peppers and tomatoes at this stage of growth (see photos)? I’m doubting myself after reading in your journal about the programming of the first flower truss at a specific seedling stage. Honestly, I never thought about it before. I just pricked them out when I saw the tray getting crowded.

Do you think I should pot them up into bigger cups today or wait? Both hot and sweet peppers were sown Feb 14, tomatoes Feb 18-19. I didn’t record emergence dates because they were uneven.

Good morning, Valery! Each of us has our own method for growing pepper and tomato seedlings. I grow without any soaking, stimulants, pre-sprouting, etc. I direct-sow dry seeds into well-prepared soil (which means it already holds the necessary moisture). I tamp the soil slightly, lay out the seeds, cover to the required depth with soil, press it down well (but without fanaticism), and close the lids.

Each variety gets its own 250ml (8 oz) container, filled 5 cm (2 inches) high. THAT’S IT! There is enough moisture just from the condensation that forms.

During the initial stages, heat at the roots (“warm feet”) is more important than room temperature. At night, my seedlings sit behind a hot fireplace that I light in the evening, and during the day they are on heat mats. So they always have the comfortable temps they need.

Good soil, humidity, and temperature are the key to uniform emergence. In all my years of gardening, I have never met a “helmet head.”

Yuri writes correctly, he didn’t forget anything. Moisture is needed for the root, not the seed shell. I live in a completely different climate and grow in different conditions, but I learn a lot from him. Everyone is free to do what works best for them!

Good afternoon!

I agree that everyone chooses their own methods. But if you are writing for a wide audience of readers, I believe you cannot just forget to mention soil moisture. That is the only point I was trying to highlight for the readers of this journal.

Lyudmila, good afternoon! I also plant cucumbers exactly like that, and in the same quantities. What varieties do you use?

By the way, I became a new subscriber today, and I am so happy!!! I’m totally new to the site and a very young vegetable grower. My main hobby is roses (I have 70 bushes!). But two years ago I started growing tomatoes, and… I was lost! True love! Lyudochka, with my experience, grafting is out of the question for now. I’ll be searching for your methods and learning. It’s never too late to learn, right?

If you don’t mind, I have a few questions since we are from the same district. We only have 5 acres, filled with buildings, 70 roses, fruit trees, raised beds, and a 3×4 meter (10×13 ft) greenhouse. I grow tomatoes in the greenhouse and outdoors. I want to try peppers outdoors too.

I see you plant your tomatoes in the greenhouse very early—is it heated? I only sowed Dwarf tomatoes for outdoors so far, and planned the rest for mid-March. Everything starts under row cover. When is the best time to sow greenhouse tomatoes vs outdoor tomatoes? Do you sow early and late varieties simultaneously? And what is the earliest we can plant into an unheated greenhouse here?

Last year I planted in the greenhouse on May 6, and in the raised beds on May 29. But in June, Cladosporium (Leaf Mold) hit. Such nasty stuff! What varieties perform best for us here? Thank you!

Yes, that’s exactly how I plant cucumbers, is what I meant to say.

Quote from Siverka:
Do you think I should pot them up into bigger cups today or wait?

You’ll have to decide for yourself. Keep this in mind:

1. You didn’t know this was a “problem” before, and everything grew fine… Don’t overthink it, but it’s good to keep in mind for the future.
2. When programming flower trusses, the plant reacts to the conditions it is currently growing in. Therefore, maintaining excellent conditions during this period is vital.
3. I think the plant will program its first truss even in your current conditions—reproducing is important to it.
4. You could leave them as they are for another 10 days. If they took 4-6 days to sprout, they are currently about 9-12 days old.
5. Pricking out is a stress. Under stress, a plant won’t program anything, it will just try to survive. It will delay the truss formation—it won’t have time for it.
6. The first trusses are the most important to us because they are the earliest. But don’t think the later trusses are programmed any differently. If it takes 6-7 weeks from programming to flowering, count backward from August 1 (let’s say your last truss blooms then, anything later won’t ripen). That puts the programming period roughly in mid-June! During that time, it’s equally important to maintain good conditions—bright light, cool temps, and nutrients.

Lyudmila Alexandrovna, I’m sorry. I just wanted to help you answer. Not another word from me…

Quote from Siverka:
Is it the right time to prick out my peppers and tomatoes at this stage of growth…

Lyudmila, good afternoon. If you planned to prick them out, then definitely do it. These next few days are very favorable for transplanting. Try to move the seedlings into the new container with a clump of soil so they don’t even feel it.

For the future, regarding peppers: The absolute best time to prick out peppers is at the cotyledon stage (the two seed leaves). Exactly how your tomato tray looks right now. Why? Because at this stage, the seedling hasn’t grown lateral roots yet; there is nothing to tear, the pepper adapts perfectly, and it doesn’t stall in its development.

If you transplant your main peppers now (with true leaves), they might freeze and stall for 10-12 days. So when you prick them out, do it very carefully: scoop them up from both sides with spoons and transfer them to the new container. Three days after transplanting, feed them with Calcium Nitrate, and three days after that, a complex fertilizer like Fertika. If it’s sunny, put them on the windowsill without extra grow lights.

Boys and girls, when will you start sowing early cabbage for seedlings? Is it time yet, or too early?

We are having beautiful, sunny spring weather today! It’s so pleasant! The seedlings are basking in the sun. Right now, the sun can’t harm them, it only brings benefits: energy, heat, light, and nourishment!

I water little by little, but quite frequently. I don’t just look to see if the tray is dry; every morning I rotate the trays 180 degrees and physically lift them to see if they are heavy or light. I don’t overwater, because excess moisture leads to root diseases.

Out of what I sowed on March 3rd, the Napa Cabbage (Chinese cabbage) sprouted uniformly. 5 out of 6 emerged. I even missed it a bit; I should have put them under the light yesterday. Since I plan to grow this cabbage in the greenhouse, I sowed the Jazz hybrid.

My onion sets have been sitting in the dark; they’ve already grown roots and started growing, but I clearly planted them too densely. The little bulbs are crowding each other, I’ll have to separate them into two containers, but not today.

I put the early potatoes out into the light (chitting/greening).

Now I’m waiting for the lettuce to sprout, there are hints of it already. I checked the onion seeds today, no sprouts yet. Even though I watered them very well initially, the surface looked a little dry, so I misted it slightly.