Italophile

Runner bean quandry

Blotting paper, Welshonion? I remember that stuff. Is it still around?

Trouble germinating sweet corn

My sweetcorn has just germinated. Started the seeds in toilet roll tubes full of damp mix. Our daytime temps here have hit the mid-20sC. I left the rolls in a crate wrapped in bubble wrap for extra warmth on the terrace during the day, put them under cover at night. They all germinated within a week.

tomatoes

Transplanting deeply encourages strong root growth. Any stem that is buried will become root structure. When transplanting into their final home, I take off all branches and leaves up to the top foliage, the canopy. Plant so that the canopy is virtually sitting on the soil. Just lift the leaves a tad when watering until the canopy grows up clear of the soil. It won't take long.

Runner bean quandry

Hi Wendy. For the bean (seed) to be truly viable it needs to be mature which it isn't straight from the pod. Beans for sowing are left on the plant to dry out completely before harvesting for sowing. Given your time-frame, your best bet is probably to buy some dried beans, take the fresh bean (seed) from a pod, show them the difference and explain it. The fresh bean (seed) will, eventually, turn into the dried one. Then plant the viable dried one.

tomatoes

You can afford to let the mix dry out providing you don't leave it bone dry. Permanently damp roots can cause more problems than underwatering.

Trouble germinating sweet corn

Jay, cukes and corn need the most warmth of just about all veg to germinate. It's the soil temp that's key. Where are the cuke and corn seeds sown? If in cells or pots, try putting them into plastic bags to generate a mini hothouse.

tomatoes

Lizzie, how much water are they getting? Seedlings need minimal watering. Permanently wet roots do them no good at all. Curling is usually a sign of overwatering.

Growing tomatoe's indoors

saltski, a friend of mine used to use an electric toothbrush. Goodness knows why.

how often should i water new seedlings

Jak, it's the light that goes straight through the bubble wrap. The light is the crucial thing. Clear bubble wrap, obviously. Before I put them outside I had them under a couple of bright desk lamps inside, the globes about 2" above the seedlings.

How big are the leggy seedlings? If they're not ready to plant out yet you can try resetting them down deeper and giving them as much light as possible.

how often should i water new seedlings

Leggy is usually an indication of a lack of light. Even when the temps were relatively low here, I put most of my seedlings out on the terrace wrapped in a couple of layers of bubble wrap for what sun there was. The wrap generated sufficient warmth inside, the sun provided the crucial light.