What to do if pepper seedlings stretch out. What to do if, when growing from seeds at home, sweet pepper seedlings become very elongated? Why and proper care to prevent Pepper stretched out

Good afternoon, dear readers!

It's finally spring! Gardeners are already itching with all their might - the seeds have been purchased, the soil for seedlings has been prepared, fertilizers have been stored. We sowed seeds to grow seedlings and lo and behold, the sprouted seedlings stretched out and lay down.

Eternal questions

Causes

There are many reasons why seedlings stretch. Seedlings are stretched due to the fact that the proportion between lighting, heating, watering regime, frequency of sowing seeds and fertilizing is disturbed.

Insufficient lighting at elevated temperatures and dry air cause the plant stem to elongate, become thin and weak.
Sowing seeds too thickly causes seedlings to reach for the light, competing with each other.
Excessively applied fertilizers speed up this process.

What conditions need to be created for seedlings so that they do not stretch?

For sowing, prepare the soil, seasoned with complex fertilizers.

Nitrogen is essential for plant growth and development.
Phosphorus fertilizers will allow the root system to strengthen and develop.
Potassium will strengthen the plant's immunity.

Temperature

The seeds are disinfected, germinated and hardened. The sowing containers are kept warm until germination. Most crops germinate at a temperature of +20-25°C; lighting is not required.

But with the appearance, not even of shoots, but only of the first loops, the seedling container is transferred to a place with good lighting and a lower temperature. With the appearance of 2-3 true leaves, the temperature around the seedlings is reduced to +12-15°C. It will delay the growth of seedlings.

Athlete

With the appearance of 2-3 true leaves, you can spray the young plants with preparations such as Athlete. But this drug does not just slow down the growth of the plant, it affects the cells - stopping their division. It is unknown how this will affect the harvest in the future. Therefore, use such drugs with caution.

Watering

Another factor affecting the quality of the resulting seedlings is soil moisture. Even the presence of drainage holes in containers where seedlings are grown does not protect against excess soil moisture. It is impossible to definitely recommend. But we can say that the seedlings need watering if the leaves begin to droop slightly.

Densely growing seedlings compete with each other for food, water, light, they grow long, pale and frail. Transplanted into a garden bed, such seedlings get sick for a long time and are not able to bear a full harvest.

In dense plantings, the likelihood of fungal diseases is high, and the close proximity of seedlings allows the infection to quickly spread among all plants.

"Ambulance" for seedlings

No matter what the reasons, the seedlings stretched out. What to do with it? The answer to this question depends on the type of plant that has outgrown. What is suitable for tomato seedlings should not be used for peppers or eggplants; the method of planting overgrown pumpkin seedlings is not applicable for cabbage. Let's start with tomatoes.

Tomato seedlings stretch out greatly and fall - what to do?

There are two reasons why tomato seedlings may fall: the seedlings are overgrown or the seedlings are sick. Remedial methods depend on the cause.

If the tomato seedlings have become very elongated, there are several options for correcting overgrown tomato plants. A very elongated tomato bush can be cut into several parts and each piece can be rooted separately. Or just cut off the top and put it in water until the roots appear.

If the tomato stem is not very elongated, it can be planted at an angle. It is not worth digging a hole too deep to plant an elongated bush. When planting, it is enough to dig a trench, shallow but long. Place the tomato stem horizontally into it until it reaches a well-developed leaf and cover it with soil. With such planting, the roots will be at the required depth, and the stem buried in the ground will give rise to the growth of additional roots, which will bring additional yield.

Tomato plants can also fall due to damage by “blackleg,” an infectious disease that affects seedlings of densely sown seeds. In this case, the diseased seedlings are removed, the soil is shed with Fitosporin, a pink solution of potassium permanganate or any fungicide.

It is useless to trim and root the top or plant with the elongated stem horizontally positioned. You won't get any additional roots - this method is only suitable for tomatoes.

With a lack of light and heat, peppers stop their growth, and at the same time, root growth stops. At the same time, peppers are less likely to stretch out and are more patient with growing conditions. A flower growing in a fork can retard the growth of a pepper seedling.

If this happens in a permanent place of growth, the flower is urgently removed, and at the seedling stage it will stop the bush from stretching. Before planting in open ground, the flower or ovary is removed from the fork, and seedlings without a fork are pinched over 5-6 leaves.

The main crop is formed on the growing side branches. In addition, the stem of a pinched plant does not grow in height for 2-3 weeks, but thickens and branches more intensively.

If eggplant seedlings have stretched out, how to help?

Everything is very simple with them too. If, with the emergence of seedlings, the ambient temperature is lowered, the seedlings will not grow. When picking seedlings into separate cups, it is very convenient to pour a layer of soil not to the top edge, but a little lower.

If the plant stretches out, there will be a place where you can add soil. If there is no such space left in the glass, a separate glass can be expanded a little. To do this, wrap the top of the cup with a tape made of dense polyethylene or a backing for a parquet board. It is cut out 5-7 cm wide and wrapped around the top edge of the cup so that free space is created above the cup. It is convenient to secure the edges with a stapler or tape.

The soil is poured into this volume. Additional roots may not form, but the plant will stand straight and strong.

Cucumbers, zucchini, watermelons

All of these plants, as well as pumpkin, melon and zucchini, belong to the Cucurbitaceae family. By their nature they are vines. They have a very flexible stem. Their overgrown seedlings are dealt with in this way: the elongated stem is carefully rolled into a ring, pressed to the ground and sprinkled with soil.

Cabbage

Cabbage is most often grown through seedlings. It is not difficult to grow it, it is important to create the necessary conditions. The most important ones are temperature, lighting and watering.

Germination of any cabbage seeds occurs at +20 degrees. With the emergence of seedlings, the seedling boxes need to be moved to a colder room, where it is maintained at +10-12 degrees.

Keeping seedlings in such conditions with simultaneous sufficient lighting allows you to slow down their growth. The seedlings become rich green, stunted with a powerful root system.

If for any reason the seedlings of any cabbage stretch out, correct the mistakes made in the same way.

They start with a pick. Each plant is planted in a separate cup.
When transplanting, be sure to pinch the root tip of the seedling - this will slow down the growth of the seedlings.
When planting, the cabbage plant is buried down to the cotyledon leaves.
Elongated plants are provided with good lighting, if necessary, supplemented with fluorescent lamps, the air temperature is lowered to +10-12C, and nutritious soil is added to the stems of elongated plants.
After a week to ten days, the transplanted seedlings are fed with potassium fertilizers or ash infusion.

Flowers

Ornamental plants planted as seedlings can also stretch out. The reasons for this phenomenon are the same as when growing vegetables: increased temperature with insufficient lighting, too dense sowing, high humidity and too much fertilizing.

. At this time the day is short and there is not enough light. Seeds are sown in a hot, dry atmosphere in an apartment. The seedlings are hot, dark, and stretch out. It is possible to bring such seedlings to flowering.

To do this, when picking, it is necessary to plant young plants a little deeper, up to the cotyledon leaves, pinch the tops, improve the lighting of the plantings and lower the ambient temperature. Severely overgrown plants can be pruned, and the resulting cuttings take root easily.

And they sow seedlings very early. They have very small seeds and take a long time to germinate. The emerging seedlings suffer from excess heat and lack of sunlight; trying to compensate for the dry air, flower growers flood the seedlings with water.

When sowing, it is difficult to scatter small seeds evenly over the surface of the sowing container - the seedlings appear thickened.

You can combat this problem by pinching the tops of the plants, shortening the roots, planting them at a sufficient distance into the seedling box, illuminating the seedlings with fluorescent lamps until 14-16 hours of daylight, and lowering the temperature of the plants.

Preferably. so that the seedlings look like this!

It is possible to obtain viable schisanthus seedlings only by providing it with fertile soil, sufficient lighting, and moderate watering. With a lack of lighting and nutrition, the plant stem becomes elongated and there will be few flowers. For abundant flowering in the spring, it is better to plant the seeds in the fall and cover the crops before frost.

Plants sown in January can become very long. Friendly shoots sometimes become very elongated even with additional lighting. After the seedlings are planted in separate cups, the elongated seedlings are cut off. The remaining plants stretch less. The cut parts can be rooted.

They sprout easily and are undemanding to growing conditions. Seeds sown for seedlings sprout vigorously and easily tolerate unfavorable growing conditions - elevated temperatures, lack of lighting, uneven watering.

Even if the seedlings stretch out on the window, after transplanting to a permanent place, the seedlings take on a normal shape and bloom well.

Weak, elongated, pale seedlings are bad. It is impossible to get a full harvest from such plants. Even ornamental plants from overgrown seedlings bloom weaker.

Simple rules for growing strong, healthy seedlings:

For sowing, use full-bodied, disinfected and germinated seeds.
Fill the planting containers with disinfected, fertile, loose soil.
Sow the seeds at a sufficient distance from each other.
Place the seedling boxes in a well-lit area with moderate temperature.
Water with warm water in moderation.
Fertilize the seedlings in a timely manner.
Monitor daily and, if necessary, prevent viral and fungal diseases.
Gradually accustom the seedlings to the open air.

Try to protect the seedlings from being pulled out to get a rich harvest and beautiful flowers!

Best regards, Sofya Guseva!

Many vegetable growers begin planting their peppers in open ground quite early. They are in a hurry to get the harvest faster. However, it turns out badly. Elongated seedlings grow and spend time gaining strength. Only then does it form ovaries. Let's figure out why peppers grow and what to do to prevent seedlings from stretching.

Reasons for pulling pepper seedlings

There are many reasons why pepper seedlings stretch out. We will list the most basic ones.

Firstly, there is a lack of light. Many vegetable growers grow peppers on windowsills. At the same time, not everyone equips a source of additional light for the plant. And, as you know, this crop needs a lot of light, which is not so much at home.

Secondly, these are very early sowing dates. Pepper seedlings should be planted in mid-March - early April. In this case, the plant will be indoors for a month or a month and a half less. Still, she will be better on the street than at home.

The third reason is that the home environment is very hot and dry. Peppers need to be watered every day to prevent them from wilting. Therefore, the seedlings grow quickly. She does not have time to put nutrients into the stems, which is very bad. The optimal temperature for pepper sprouts is +20 degrees. Then you need to lower the temperature - harden the plant.

You can place the plantings on a glazed balcony if the temperature there does not drop below zero. Under such conditions, the seedlings will not stretch. All nutrients will be deposited in the stems of the plant. Naturally, at different temperatures (in the apartment and in the balcony) there should be different watering regimes. If the temperature is low, you need to water less.

Have the seedlings stretched out? This means that the reason may be dense sowing and lack of thinning. Beginner vegetable growers often sin with this. They plant all the seeds in one container. The sprouts begin to stretch immediately after emerging from the ground. They are fighting for their lives. This problem can be corrected by thinning. Leave a distance of three centimeters between the sprouts.

And finally, the last reason why the seedlings stretched out was late picking. The formation of leaves on seedlings is a sure sign that the plant’s root system has begun to form. Therefore, culture needs a lot of space. If this space is not enough, the pepper begins to stretch. We talked about the main reasons why seedlings stretch. Next you will learn how to correct the situation.

What to do to prevent seedlings from stretching

To prevent the plant from stretching, you need to plant the seeds correctly. How to do this correctly? First of all, choose a land. If you decide to purchase ready-made soil, pay attention to the composition of the soil. Peppers will not grow well in soil with a high content of minerals (especially nitrogen). Soil that is universal for all vegetables works well.

Seeds should be planted at a distance of three centimeters from each other. Try not to place many peppers on one windowsill. During the germination process, they will obscure each other and reach towards the sun.

In order for the plants to receive enough light, it is recommended to make reflectors: install a mirror opposite the window sill with plantings or place a sheet of foil that will reflect the sun's rays and direct them to the seedlings. This is necessary to ensure that all aspects of the crop consume light evenly. Otherwise, they will bend and turn, which will lead to damage to the seedlings.

If you pluck seedlings in a timely manner, you can stop their growth for a while. Typically, the plant can be planted in separate pots within 25 days from the moment the sprouts appear.

Please note that in prepared soil, seedlings appear much earlier. Therefore, it is better to be guided by the number of leaves on the seedlings. If at least one true leaf appears, the seedlings can be replanted.

You can start fertilizing after two leaves appear. Superphosphate fertilizers work well. The second feeding is done a week after transplanting the seedlings. The third time you need to feed the plant after transplanting the pepper into open ground.

If after transplantation the seedlings continue to stretch, it means that the place for growing is poorly chosen. Try placing the container of pepper in another room. The containers should not be close to each other. It also doesn’t hurt to reduce the frequency of watering. The optimal temperature for pepper during this growing period is + 16 degrees.

Pepper seedlings wither: what to do

Seedlings grow poorly for several reasons:

wrong soil
frequent watering,
dry air,
drafts.

Pepper grows well after plants such as onions, dill, carrots. It is not recommended to use soil for peppers after tomatoes, potatoes and eggplant. Purchasing ready-made soil is not a guarantee of quality. For example, some producers take soil from greenhouses where various plants have been grown throughout the year. Weed seeds and fungal diseases remain in such soil. That's why the pepper withers.

Do not overwater the seedlings. Abundance of water is a good environment for the development of fungal diseases. For preventive purposes, the land is treated with potassium permanganate. Peppers wither due to elevated air temperatures. Problems can also begin due to drafts.

However, the most common cause of wilting of pepper seedlings is a bacterial disease. In this case, the sprouts cannot be helped in any way. The only solution is to replant the planting material in the ground. Don't worry about planting the seeds too late. A little fertilizer - and the new seedlings will quickly catch up with their older brothers.

What does yellowing of seedling leaves mean?

There are several reasons for this phenomenon:

the roots are tangled or not sufficiently developed;
the plant needs nutrients;
water scarcity;
fungal disease.

If you plant the sprouts in separate small containers, the roots may become tangled or develop incorrectly. Due to lack of space, the plant also experiences a lack of nutrients. What to do? The problem can be solved by transplanting seedlings and untangling the root system.

Leaves may turn yellow due to a lack of nitrogen. Also, a similar phenomenon can be observed with a lack of water. By the way, pepper is 90% water. Therefore, seedlings do not tolerate drought well. Water for irrigation should be at room temperature. Otherwise, the leaves will begin to turn yellow and fall off.

Seedlings may turn yellow due to a fungal disease. For preventive purposes, treat the planting material and also treat the containers with disinfectants. If the plant is sick, then you need to carefully remove the infected shoots. Treat the remaining sprouts with a solution containing copper.

Pepper seedlings fall: reasons

There are several factors why seedlings fall:

lack of light,
incorrect temperature conditions,
abundance or lack of moisture,
frequent landings,
drafts.

How to solve this problem? First, identify the reason for the fall of the seedlings. If 1-3 sprouts are damaged, then natural selection is to blame. These seedlings could not withstand the competition.

Carefully examine the root system of the fallen sprout. You may notice signs of fungal disease, rotting from frequent watering or drying out. Place peppers that are oversaturated with water or dehydrated in separate containers.

Try to choose the optimal watering. If you notice signs of a fungal disease, do not waste your energy on healing the plant. It is better to start saving healthy sprouts. First of all, change the soil. Then, for preventive purposes, treat the soil with fungicides or potassium permanganate. Sprinkle wood ash on top of the soil.

Thus, we told you why seedlings grow poorly. You also learned about what to do if the seedlings wither, turn yellow, stretch out, or fall. We hope that you will not encounter such problems again. And if they appear again, now you know how to deal with them.

There is nothing complicated about sowing pepper seedlings. The seeds hatch within 14-20 days, and this is where the problems begin. The seedlings begin to thin out and the pepper seedlings stretch out.

Before answering the question, what should I do? The possible reasons for this phenomenon should be clarified.

Why are pepper seedlings stretched out?

For full development, seedlings require:

Lighting;
Moisture;
Comfortable temperature conditions;
Timely feeding.

Perhaps some point is not observed so carefully when growing and caring for young sprouts and the pepper seedlings are stretched.

Lighting

The plant's main need is sunlight. At the end of winter, when the sun still rarely peeks into the windows, many gardeners' pepper seeds have already sprouted happily. They are often sown so often that the leaves of the seedlings are pressed tightly against each other and are not able to absorb the required amount of ultraviolet radiation.

The most common mistakes that lead to pepper seedlings stretching:

Warning! Some varieties of pepper (thick-walled, late-ripening) cannot be grown without shelves equipped with lighting, since they have a long growing season. They should be sown already in the first half of February.

Hydration

Often gardeners themselves become the culprits when pepper seedlings stretch out. Excessive watering is harmful to young shoots. Damp soil does not allow oxygen to pass through to the root system, plants strive to make up for the lack of air from the environment and pepper seedlings stretch out, expending the strength required for the development of roots.

After the sprouts appear, the seedlings are not watered for several days; if the soil is too dry, it should be sprayed with a spray bottle.

Temperature

Constantly warm air temperatures during the day and night make pepper seedlings capricious. In order for the seedlings to grow strong and strong, you need to ensure a daytime temperature within 24-26 degrees, and a nighttime temperature of 18-20 degrees. Coolness at night hardens the pepper and prevents it from stretching.

A significant increase in air temperature slows down the development of the root system. Nutrients do not enter the plant stem and the pepper seedlings are stretched.

But too low a temperature can have a detrimental effect on pepper. The critical low point is +13 degrees. At +12.5, pepper leaves may turn yellow, die and die.

The same trouble can happen when the soil in a container cools down and the window sill is poorly heated. To prevent root rotting, it is necessary to lay thermal insulation material (foam plastic) between the cool window sill and the planting box.

Ideally, the temperature should match the light intensity. On a clear, sunny day, the temperature can be raised to 25 degrees, in rainy and cloudy weather - lowered by 2-3 degrees, and at night lowered to acceptable values.

Top dressing

Both purchased and independently prepared soil according to all the rules contains all the necessary substances for the initial development of pepper. You should not fertilize it immediately after sprouts appear. Excess nitrogen fertilizer will inevitably lead to overgrowth. The first time fertilizers are applied 12-16 days after picking (non-germinating) seedlings. It is recommended to combine complex fertilizers with growth stimulants (Epin) and give preference to foliar rather than root feeding.

If there is a lack of sunlight, experienced gardeners advise spraying the plants with Ferovit every week.

Warning! It is better to under-fertilize seedlings than to over-fertilize them. Excess of nutrients negatively affects the growth and fruiting of the crop.

Pepper seedlings are stretching, what to do?

Even at the landing stage, it is necessary to take into account some nuances.

Priming

When selecting planting soil, you need to carefully study its composition. It must meet all the needs of seedlings and meet specific parameters. Have good breathability, be light, fluffy and have moderate acidity.

An unacceptable option for pepper seedlings is soil with a high percentage of minerals (nitrogen). If the pepper seedlings are stretched out, what you don’t need to do is feed them with nitrogen fertilizers, although they provoke a rather unhealthy expansion of the stem. The first signs of an excess of fertilizer are curled top leaves; if, out of ignorance, you continue to “feed” the peppers with nitrogen, then the entire top “crumples”, but remains rich green in color.

To prevent pepper seedlings from stretching out, the soil mixture should be prepared from the following ingredients:

The process of mixing all the components of the soil mixture should be done in the fall. Over the winter it will settle and settle a little, and if you store it on a balcony, in a barn or in a greenhouse, it will be disinfected by frost, which will be very useful.

For 5 liters of humus, you should take 2.5 liters of peat, 1.5 liters of river sand and 1 liter of leaf soil. Add 0.5 liters of wood ash to this mixture and mix well. Then, it is recommended to pour the resulting mixture with a “cocktail” consisting of:

1 tablespoon of superphosphate;
1 tablespoon of potassium sulfate;
1 teaspoon carbamide.

Fertilizers are indicated per bucket of water.

If seedlings stretch out, even in the right soil, what should you do? Perhaps it is a matter of improper planting of seeds.

Sowing

It is better to sow already sprouted pepper seeds in prepared soil. This will ensure 100% germination, and it is much easier to regulate the distance between plants during such planting.

Sprouted seeds should be placed in the planting container at least 4 centimeters apart from each other.

What to do if it is not possible to equip additional lighting. Experienced gardeners have come up with a little trick. Opposite the window sill where the young plants are located, install a mirror or stretch a sheet of aluminum foil. These devices reflect sunlight and redirect it to the seedlings. This helps the plant receive a sufficient percentage of light from all directions. With this approach, seedlings do not stretch, do not bend to the side and do not turn towards the light.

Picking

Timely picking significantly inhibits growth. In most cases, plants are ready to be transplanted into a larger container at the age of 25 days.

But in high-quality soil, the seeds hatch faster, so relying only on timing, you can outgrow the seedlings. The little pepper itself will tell you when to pick; as soon as the first true leaf forms on it, it’s time.

If the seedlings stretch even after transplanting into individual boxes, it means that the conditions created for them are not suitable. It is worth moving the pepper to another window sill or room. If the weather is uniformly warm, without freezing temperatures at night, you can move the plants to a glassed-in balcony.

To summarize, to prevent the pepper from stretching out, what should not be done:

When seedlings stretch, many gardeners are wary of using growth regulators, believing that it has a destructive effect on the seedling cells. There is a reason for this, because a forced slowdown in growth cannot but have a negative impact on the further development of the plant and the future harvest.

How to fix the situation

Some tips on how to avoid overgrowing seedlings:

Healthy pepper seedlings grow strong and stocky. If the seedlings begin to stretch, it means that some condition of their cultivation has been violated. Measures to correct the situation should be taken immediately.

As the seedlings stretch out, they weaken so much that they sometimes begin to fall. Frail shoots will never grow into strong bushes. The fact is that peppers normally have short internodes. Subsequently, clusters with fruits will develop on them. If the stem stretches out, fewer clusters will be formed, and accordingly, the harvest will be poor.

There may be several reasons for pulling pepper seedlings. All of them are related to the conditions under which the seedlings are kept.

For this vegetable, it is desirable to create the climatic conditions of its homeland - Central and South America. That is, even warmth, humidity, plenty of sun during the day and darkness at night.

The main reasons for pulling pepper seedlings:

Early sowing. Pepper seeds for seedlings have to be sown early, in February - March. The days are still short at this time. The situation gets worse if the spring is cloudy.
Lack of light. There may be little lighting if the boxes with seedlings are placed on the north window. Those sprouts that are placed in the row farthest from the glass suffer especially. Such seedlings begin to stretch as soon as they emerge.
Temperature violation. If peppers are cold, they are unable to obtain nutrients. This applies not only to the above-ground part, but also to the roots. But if the peppers are too hot, they also begin to stretch. They also react to the absence of a noticeable difference between night and day temperatures.
Failure to comply with watering rules. Pepper does not like either waterlogged soil or dry soil. Air penetrates poorly into damp soil, and plants begin to take oxygen through their leaves. It is especially bad for seedlings if improper watering is combined with poor lighting and low temperature.
Planting density. The seedlings prevent each other from receiving enough light and nutrition if the seeds are sown densely in a common container. This also happens when peppers growing in separate pots are placed too close to their neighbors.
Pick Delay. In the phase of 2–3 true leaves, the growth of the aerial part of the seedlings accelerates and the rapid formation of the root system begins. In the common box, strong shoots begin to stretch, shading the weak ones and taking away most of the nutrients. Both of them suffer.
Incorrect soil composition. On depleted soil, peppers lack nutrition, which is why they weaken and stretch out. But overly fertilized soil is also bad for seedlings.
Diseases. Seedlings may become thin and weak due to disease. First of all, this is rotting of the roots due to waterlogging of the soil and fungal infection.

Sometimes the reasons for the pulling of peppers lie not in one violation of their growing conditions, but in several at once. These cases are the most difficult, but also removable.

How to improve the health of stretched pepper seedlings - what to do?

First you need to determine what causes the stretching of pepper seedlings. Then - take measures to urgently stop the active growth of seedlings.

Solving lighting problems

Plants need light for photosynthesis. Pepper is extremely picky about light intensity. Plants benefit from both direct sunlight and diffused light, the spectrum of which is dominated by the blue and red colors necessary for seedlings. In northern latitudes there are more scattered rays than in southern latitudes, but the intensity of illumination in the south is much higher.

First aid:

If the seedlings are standing on a dark window, they must be moved to a light windowsill.
The window opening must be freed from objects that create shadows.
To ensure that the sprouts receive more sun, reflective screens are installed next to the boxes. Foil, a mirror, a sheet of white paper will do.
Place in such a way that the plants do not stand far from the window - in several rows.

The lack of sunlight is compensated by supplementary lighting.

Pepper is a short-day plant, that is, it bears fruit better when its daylight hours last no longer than 12 hours. Those seedlings that receive light for 10-12 hours a day subsequently begin to form ovaries earlier and produce a bountiful harvest.

Based on this, the length of time for additional illumination of seedlings is determined. Fluorescent, LED or special phytolamps are installed above the sprouts that have begun to stretch. These lighting devices provide light of the required spectrum and do not heat the seedlings.

If the seedlings have stretched out, you can increase the additional lighting time by 4–5 days to 16 hours a day.

Peppers need to be illuminated only during daylight hours; at night, the sprouts need to be provided with rest in the dark. The lighting intensity required for good development of pepper seedlings should be 20,000 lux.

There are also chemicals that temporarily inhibit excessive growth of the stem - retardants. After treatment, seedlings grow compact, with short internodes. The ability for photosynthesis is not reduced. After transplantation to a permanent location, the ability to grow normally returns.

For seedlings of peppers, you can use “Athlete” and “Chunky”.

Peppers should not be treated with retardants at the cotyledon stage. These preparations should be used no earlier than the appearance of 3-4 true leaves and strictly according to the manufacturer’s instructions.

Temperature normalization

It is important that the roots are warm. Cold, especially in combination with excessive humidity, is the reason for the stretching of pepper seedlings and rotting of the roots.

What should be done:

raise containers with sprouts above a cold window sill, placing them on a flat sheet;
place polystyrene foam, blocks or other heat-insulating material under the boxes;
put plywood on the blocks in such a way that its edge protrudes above the radiator: then the warm air will not go into the room, but under the pots, warming the ground;
make holes in the foam construction insulation and install cups with seedlings in them, the foil side should protrude above the battery: when heated, it will transfer heat.

If the seedlings begin to stretch, the peppers are kept at a low temperature for 3-4 days. In this case, it is necessary to ensure that the night temperature (+15–17°C) is lower than the daytime temperature (+18–20°C). You can take the seedlings into a cool room or shield them from the warm air of the room with a protective screen.

Adjusting air and soil humidity

The humidity level required for pepper seedlings is about 80%. In a room with operating heating devices, this indicator is difficult to achieve. It is unacceptable to increase the humidity by additional watering of pepper plantings.

What can be done:

move containers with seedlings to the kitchen;
place vessels with water on the battery;
cover heating devices with a damp cloth;
place wet cloth around the boxes;
use the device to humidify the air.

If the soil is waterlogged, you should stop watering for several days until it dries out. Gently loosen the soil and sprinkle its surface with dry sand. You can also use ash.

In the future, the number of irrigations and the volume of water during irrigation should be reduced.

If the soil is dry, water the sprouts until the earthen ball is completely moistened. But this cannot be done in one watering. Water is poured in portions, each time waiting for the moisture to be absorbed into the ground.

If the sprouts become crowded

Immediately after germination, seedlings have a very high need for sunlight. If the seeds are sown frequently, the sprouts quickly begin to shade each other. At the same time, too high a room temperature aggravates the situation.

In this case, you urgently need to either thin out the plantings (if the seedlings are still at the cotyledon leaf stage), or pluck the peppers (if 2-3 true leaves have already opened).

When thinning, weak small shoots are removed, leaving the strongest shoots. The distance between plants should be at least three centimeters.

If peppers are grown in a common container and about 20 days have passed since germination, they must be transplanted into separate containers. This will give the roots the opportunity to develop, slow down the stretching of the stems, and allow the seedlings to receive more nutrients.

Soil enrichment

First of all, pepper seedlings react to a lack or excess of nitrogen in the soil. In both cases, it begins to stretch.

A sign of an excess of nitrogen is curling of the tips of the shoots with a bright green color of the leaves.

A sign of nitrogen deficiency is the pale color of the above-ground parts. You can saturate the soil mixture with nitrogen by fertilizing it with urea (30 grams per 10 liters of water). For some time, the seedlings can be moved to a cool place.

Seedlings on depleted soil are fed with Agricola Forward (1 tsp per 1 liter of water); it can be used at an early stage of growth. After 10 days - with drugs “Zaslon” or “Barrier”. These substances not only nourish the seedlings, but also protect them from diseases.

Disease Control

If the seedlings become sick in the early stages of development, the diseased shoots will have to be destroyed. Healthy plants are transplanted into another container, and the soil is completely changed.

In grown seedlings, fungal, viral and bacterial diseases are treated with special drugs designed to treat a particular disease.

Rules for caring for seedlings

Creating the necessary conditions and proper care of pepper seedlings ensures the growth of strong, healthy shoots.

The soil . Pepper requires soil that is neutral in acidity, breathable, and rich in nutrients. It is made up of a mixture of peat (2.5 parts), humus (5 parts), sand (1.5 parts), deciduous soil (1 part) and ash (0.5 parts). Add 1 tbsp to the soil mixture. l. potassium sulfate and superphosphate and 1 tsp. urea.
Sowing. It is best to plant the seeds immediately in separate containers. They are sown in a common container at a distance of 3–4 cm from each other. Before planting, it is useful to treat the seeds with Krepen.
Temperature . It depends on the time of day and lighting. At night it is advisable to maintain +16–18°C, during the day in cloudy weather - +20–22°C, in sunny weather - +24–27°C.
Lighting. Pots with seedlings should be regularly turned to the light on the other side so that the sprouts receive light evenly. It is advisable to shade the peppers from direct rays of the sun with a light cloth.
Watering. Water the peppers moderately, after 5–7 days, without getting on the leaves and stems. Take settled water, with a temperature of about +27°C. When using a tray, do not allow moisture to stagnate in it.
Feeding. Fertilize pepper seedlings at least twice. You can feed the third time a week before planting in a permanent place. Mineral fertilizers are applied in liquid form on damp soil. It is best to use modern biofertilizers: “Ideal”, “Planta” and others.

To increase the protective powers of seedlings, it is useful to treat them with growth stimulants “Epin-Extra”, “Immunofitsit” or “Zircon”. You can use microfertilizers “Orton-Fe” or “Akvadon-Micro”. “Biocomplex-BTU” not only nourishes and stimulates growth, but also protects against pests. Biostimulants “Shine” and “HB-101” are effective. They not only help plants, but also improve soil structure.

To protect against pests and pathogens, seedlings are treated with fungicides. For peppers, “Ordan”, “Fitoflavin”, “Aktara 25 WG” are allowed (soaking the roots before planting in a permanent place).

All medications should not be used at the same time; the interval between uses should be at least a week. In this case, you must strictly adhere to the dosage recommended by the manufacturers.

How to plant stretched pepper seedlings

Overgrown pepper seedlings should be planted in the same way as healthy ones. Adventitious roots do not form on the part that is located above the root growth point, so a deeply buried stem can simply rot.

Even in urgent cases, when the stems are very elongated, they can be buried no more than 2 cm.

If a flower or ovary manages to appear on the first fork, they are removed before planting the shoots in a permanent place.

The seedling period for gardeners is always a pleasant chore: it is necessary to prepare seeds for sowing, prepare soil, containers for seedlings, additional lighting lamps and combine all this into one “composition”. Weeks pass while waiting to receive high-quality seedlings, but, unfortunately, the end result is not always what the gardener would like to see: it happens that the seedlings stretch out quite strongly. Why does this happen, how to avoid stretching the seedlings and what to do if it has already stretched? We will try to answer these questions in as much detail as possible.

Reasons for pulling seedlings

There are several main reasons - non-compliance with the timing of sowing seeds, lack of lighting, too high a temperature in combination with dry air, thickened crops, improper fertilizing and untimely, abundant watering.

1. Incorrect sowing dates

First, you need to strictly follow the optimal timing of sowing seeds and not rush to sow them too early, because, firstly, you can grow seedlings, but it will still be cold outside, and you will not be able to plant them on the plot - they will simply die from the cold ; secondly, you should not rush to sow seeds if you do not have additional lighting lamps.

2. Lack of light

Lack of light is almost the main reason why seedlings stretch: the plants are drawn to the light source, as a result of which the stem becomes long, thin and fragile. Taking this into account, it is necessary to install additional lighting lamps and turn them on both in the morning and in the evening, and in cloudy weather - even during the day.

3. High temperature

Another reason is high temperature; you should clearly know that at high temperatures the above-ground part develops intensively, and the root system grows weaker, the plants become elongated. A high temperature (at 23-24 degrees Celsius) in the room can be maintained only until the seedlings appear on the soil surface, and immediately after that the temperature must be lowered to 14-16 degrees to allow the seedlings to develop fully and form as an above-ground part , and the root system. After 8-10 days, the temperature can be raised again, to an average of 19-21 degrees above zero. If you want the seedlings to develop at their ideal temperature, then imitate the external conditions (that is, at night, try to make the temperature 4-6 degrees lower than the daytime).

4. Overwatering

Excessive watering is a good reason for pulling out seedlings. Plants become especially stretched when there is a combination of high temperature and excess humidity. You need to remember that 5-6 days after seedlings appear on the soil surface, the seedlings do not need to be watered at all, then watering should be done once every 5-6 days, trying to soak the soil well. If you see that the earthen ball dries out faster, then watering can be done more often, and vice versa, if after five days the soil has not begun to dry out and feels wet to the touch, then you can wait a while with watering.

5. Thickened crops

Too frequent sowings - there is banal competition between plants: they all try to overtake each other, and that’s why they stretch out. If the shoots have already appeared, they are dense, but still small, although it is already noticeable that the stems are longer than they should be, then it is necessary to pick the seedlings, preferably into separate cups.

If you did not calculate the number of seeds correctly and the seedlings began to stretch out later, when they acquired real leaves, then you can carefully remove one or two lower leaves - this often helps. The fact is that the removal of leaves is a shock for the plant; it must stop growing in height and begin to grow, as they say, in width; as a rule, the root system develops more actively and the stem becomes thicker. After 6-8 days, the seedlings may begin to stretch again, then the procedure can be repeated and another leaf removed.

6. Incorrect feeding

It is necessary to clearly understand that at the initial stage of their growth and development, seedlings no longer need nitrogen fertilizers, but phosphorus and potassium fertilizers. Fertilizers containing only nitrogen should be applied after 10-12 days.

What to do if the seedlings have already stretched out?

It is quite acceptable to plant overgrown seedlings in the ground, but only after making the holes deeper and placing the seedlings in them at an acute angle (40-45 degrees), pointing the roots to the south and covering the plant with moist soil up to the leaf blades. This method of planting will allow the plants to form an additional root system on the stem immersed in the soil, then the stem will straighten and the plant will become stronger.

If the seedlings have stretched out, but it’s still cool outside and you can’t plant plants in the ground yet, then you need to reduce watering to a minimum and lower the temperature by 5-7 degrees. These actions will slow down the development of the seedlings, the stem will wilt slightly, become more pliable and can be very carefully bent into a ring and sprinkled with soil. It is also permissible to add soil to the container with seedlings, if the walls of the container allow it (up to the first leaves). This will also contribute to the formation of an additional root system on the stem, and the seedlings will be stocky and strong by the time they are planted in the beds.

In addition to the well-known agricultural techniques that we have described, you can also take advantage of the achievements of modern industry, for example, treat seedlings with a growth regulator, say, such as Atlet. This regulator stimulates the growth and development of the root system, makes the stem stocky, preventing it from stretching. Plants can be sprayed with growth regulators; watering at the roots is also allowed at the first signs of seedlings stretching.

Features of care for elongated seedlings of individual crops

These were general techniques to restore the normal appearance of seedlings, but a number of crops have their own characteristics, which you should also be aware of.

Tomato seedlings

Tomatoes are very good at forming additional roots that develop on a stem buried in the soil, so these seedlings can even be cut into pieces and rooted in moist soil or a glass of water. Usually, the crown of elongated tomato seedlings is cut off with a part of the stem 4-5 cm long and part of the remaining stem is separated from the root system. Both parts are rooted in water or soil - the result is normal plants.

Pepper seedlings

Pepper seedlings, unfortunately, cannot form an additional root system on the stem; therefore, the method of planting elongated seedlings obliquely or trying to root the crown will not yield anything. So that after planting the elongated pepper seedlings, they become stronger in a new place and begin to develop in width, it is necessary to pinch the top of the stem.

Eggplant seedlings

When planting or picking, elongated seedlings can be buried in the soil, which will allow the seedlings to stay firmly in the ground, and possibly form a new root system and develop normally in the future.

Cucumbers, zucchini, pumpkin, melon, watermelon

The stem of these crops is flexible; when the seedlings are pulled out and planted in the ground, you can easily roll it into a ring, press this ring to the ground and cover it with moist and nutritious soil.

Cabbage seedlings

When pulling cabbage seedlings, you need to pinch the tip of the root (approximately 0.5 cm) and then plant the seedlings in the ground, deepening the plant to the cotyledon leaves. After 8-10 days, the seedlings must be fed with potassium sulfate (8-10 g per square meter) or wood ash (150 g per square meter).

Flower crops

Elongated seedlings petunias And carnations You can safely dig down to the cotyledon leaves and pinch off their tops. If you pull the petunia seedlings very strongly, you can do the same as with tomatoes - cut off the tops and root them in water or soil.

At the stretched seedlings viols, lobelia, snapdragon you can pinch the tops and shorten the root system by ten percent, after which the plants can be planted in a permanent place.

Seedling stock roses and seedlings marigolds often stretches out even for no apparent reason, such seedlings can be planted without any action on them; as a rule, in a new place the seedlings continue to fully develop.

So, to prevent seedlings from stretching, you need to follow simple rules: use full-fledged seed material for sowing, preferably disinfected; use loose, nutritious and disinfected soil; maintain the optimal distance already when planting seeds and, of course, do this in the future - when picking seedlings; do not rush with sowing, place containers with seedlings on the southern windowsill and use additional lighting lamps for seedlings; maintain optimal soil temperature and moisture; Apply fertilizers promptly and correctly.

If you know other reasons why seedlings stretch out and ways to eliminate this phenomenon, then write about it in the comments, it will be useful for everyone to learn something new.