Raising seedlings in summer

[Eileen44]

All my seedlings are leggy.
I place the sown seed trays in a shelved, transparent plastic covered cold frame.Once germinated, each morning I take the seedlings out of this frame and place them on my large garden table shaded by my white parasol. I return them to the frame at night and leave the flap open if the night temperature is high. I shade the seedlings during the day because the sun is so fierce at the moment.

The seedlings seem to take a long time developing their first ‘true’ leaves and at the same time growing a leggy stem. All the seedlings, with the exception of lettuce which I prick out, are all in module trays. Charles, I see photos of of your module-grown beetroot plants with compact dense leaves and I despair.

This problem is across the board – Kale, PSB, Kohl Rabi, Fennel, Chard, Beetroot – so it must be my plant raising method that is at fault. This is my first year of veg growing and although I have had success with direct sowing, being able to raise plants in modules is crucial to getting the most out of my small veg garden.

Q1. Should I be putting seedlings in full sun as soon as they germinate?
Q2. Would planting the seedlings up to the junction of the cotyledons and ‘true’ leaves, burying the leggy stem be feasible when plant out?
Q3. Does the ‘true’ leaf need to develop before planting out?

[charles]

 So sorry to hear this Eileen. Although you are finding it frustrating, it is not stopping you having healthy vegetables. But I wonder, is your cold frame in full light or ithere a tall wall or tree nearby? Any light reduction tends to draw plants upwards or to one side, with longer stems.

All this is one reason I recommend pricking out because when doing that, you can bury any long stems and create a sturdy seedling. Then again, when you plant you can make a deeper hole and bury the stem again.

Your plants may be ok in the cold frame without being brought out every day, and at this time of year you don’t need to worry about night temperatures: I haven’t shut my greenhouse or polytunnel by night for well over a month.

One other possible cause of legginess can be nutrient poor compost which makes plants generally thinner. Do your young plants make healthy green leaves before being plantied?

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