This Transplanting Tip BLEW MY MIND and Saved Me From Killing Plants! 

An elderly lady I knew showed me from seed pack to transplant , her method for growing tomatoes: She broadcast an entire pack of seeds across the topsoil of a styrofoam ice chest, cut down to 10 inches, filled with about six inches of potting soil. The seedlings sprang up like a dense miniature forest. She pinched the top first leaves after the secondary leaves appeared. She said this triggers the plant to focus new growth in the thickness of the stem instead of its height. When these tomato plants were around eight to ten inches high, she seperated them and transplanted into individual containers. I could see that they had strong stems and thick hearty tap roots. She said starting them like this allowed them to generate much stronger taproots that prepared them better for withstanding the outdoor garden environment. She put a wooden match stick, chemical end down,in the soil of the new container right against the stem. This would deter cutworms, because they can't activate the body muscles for full penetration of the skin of the tomato's stem if there is something interfering with any of the cutworm's sucking apparatuses' along its body to make full contact. What an amazing lady.

You don't want to pull your seedling out of the cell. Give it a gentle squeeze and if it feels mostly solid it's probably time to take it out. Tip the cell to a 45 degree angle and let the seedling gently fall into your open hand. If it's stubborn give a gentle push to the bottom of the cell. Never pull on the stem. Been gardening 40 years.

Starting seeds indoors for the first time this year, and good grief, is there a lot to learn! 😣 Just have to keep telling myself it’s okay to be a beginner and make mistakes! Thanks for the info!

Great information! Somebody should make clear seedling trays so that we can watch the root development!

And then just as the plants are ready to go out, you get a surprise ice storm... :)

Who else thinks "seedling" is an adorable name for a baby plant? I smile every time someone says seedling lol.

I had a couple peppers stay in their seedling tray most of the summer cause I ran out of places to plant. They both produced a pepper. 😮

Loved the hermit crab shedding its shell and the plant growing in the crack of a sidewalk metaphors - these make your propositions totally relevant, understandable, and memorable.

Thanks for this video! I did all the things im not supposed to 😂 and now know what i did wrong because you explaoned it so well. You gave me hope to try again 😂😊 yaaaaayyyy!

Happy to learn this lesson now, as so many have said when they have their first true leaves, I was going to move so many seedlings today. I am leaving them now.

I usually can tell by just looking at my plants when they need to be planted to a larger pot. I think it is just something that comes with experience.

😂winter sowed in milkjugs today ...tomatoes, onion seeds, and lettuce. Wait and see what happens. Cucumbers, chards and tomatoes planted in early Feb are growing in milkjugs. We are in zone 6. Have a fun time gardening everyone.

This is SO helpful. I’m growing seeds for the first time and I’m really thankful you have so many videos for us newbies

I love ALL MIgardener videos!

Wish I would've known this a week ago. Live and learn. Thanks for the helpful information.

This video came at such the right time!! Got my pepper seedlings growing and was wondering when to transplant, great information ty.

Great tips, appreciate you pulling out the underdeveloped seedling to compare roots.

I definitely transplanted too soon. Most of the seedlings are doing well, but several are in a state of shock and probably cursing me under their breath. I've gardened most of my life, but new to starting from seed. Thanks so much for this video!

I really learned what to do when, and stop stunting my plants. By the way I love my bootstrap product’s and seeds from you!

Excellent information I'm not hearing anywhere else. Thanks.

Thank you for the tips! God bless all!

It really depends on the seed starting medium. If you use only coconut coir, then your seedlings will need to be either up-potted to a grow medium with compost in it or be given a little liquid fertilizer after the first set of true leaves appear. The seed has only enough nutrients to produce the first pair of true leaves.

I grow everything in 3" square pots as 18 fits 1it 1020 tray and with 4 trays of tomatoes and 3 of peppers transplanting would be so much work. i can last until they go outside in these pots and so ony one pot... i do this method every year and never have any issues...

I absolutely adore the idea of thinking of the seedlings as hermit crabs 💛

Very interesting. I was feeling guilty about leaving my plants in the small trays, so I already moved them. I hope I remember this!

Wow! This is super helpful. Thank you so much!

Potting up. I learned my lesson the hard way. Used to overwater and transplant into wet soil. My transplants are doing great this summer. Thanks for the lesson.

It feels like you are teaching me something that I already knew, when I know for a fact I didn't, which makes YOU an excellent communicator. I was not a good student, but I know a good teacher when I see one 😊

Great advice! You're a wonderful teacher and I appreciate your videos. Thanks!

Thank you! I feel more confident knowing when to transplant!

🥺Awww, i gave up trying to start plants inside because they all got the root rot thing and/or whatever fungus wilts them (sometimes my soil went moldy too) and ALSO, my "hardening off" didn't work and they would die once i put them in my garden (somehow i got lucky once though and SOME things were fine) but the whole "they're not ready and don't worry about the roots showing" part is also a BIG thing i was messing up with, apparently... i always was SUPER worried for my plants when i noticed the roots trying to run away, and when i tried to plant them they...definitely weren't ready, but i didn't know that either. But next year maybe i will try again, i was SO sad and shamed of myself for all my plants dying that i just couldn't bring myself to try again, but now i know better how to treat them. Lucky my huge garden has alot of perrenials and it is laughably easy to grow radishes, but without them, i would have NOTHING, plus, half my dirt SUCKED the last 2 years and things were turning yellow and all sad except for a few exceptions, but this year i am getting more compost made, and i am FINALLY done actually planning and putting my garden together, so i have more time...i am just OUT of soil though...but, with the compost, i should have SOMETHING next year.

Smart tricks you are teaching us about seedlings - let them grow up before u plant them .. thanks ..

Thanks Luke! Very helpful

This was very helpful! I have had years where I transplanted my peppers and they were stunted for weeks!

Thank you. Perfect timing for this video, you just saved my seedlings😊

Soooo helpful! Thanks, Luke!!

Great video, Luke! Thanks

I love your channel, bonus that I’m not too far south of you took me a bit to find some zone 6 gardeners. I have learned so much this winter watching your content and for the first time this year I’m starting a ton of my own plants! Of course I watched this video and realized I transplanted too soon…live and learn. All the transplanted things are doing okay but this explains some lack of growth for a good stretch (longer than I expected) after transplant. Now I know and seed starting will go even smoother next year.

Very informative. Thank you!!

Great information, Luke! Thank you very much!

Seattle soil is still too cold to transplant my seedlings. 3yrs ago we had a nice early spring in March but last two yrs its been so cold in evening that ive had to wait till june. Im really impatient at this point. Can't wait till evening is atbleast 50 degrees. Thanks for your info.😊

I wish I would have learned this sooner. I've been transplanting way to early. Thanks Luke!

I have always found the best indicator for the time to pot up is a slow down in growth of the seedlings.

I did learn something, bud. I learn something every video you put out. Thank you.

Excellent information Luke, thank you 👍🧓

Thank you! God bless you!

Love your enthusiasm!

That was super concise and helpful. Thank you!

Thank you! I was just about to transplant my seeds way too early ! Now I know there’s no rush just because I see a tiny bit of root coming out the bottom- great timing . I am determined to get some success this year after failing dismally last year to damping off ! My seedlings are so far doing great - my nerves not so good!

Thank you Luke

Thank you. You have changed my up potting.

Thank you! I have been learning slowly the last two years and have made so many mistakes. It’s any wonder I keep trying to grow stuff.

I. Just. Learned. So. Much!

Thank you so much for sharing this!!!

Sir, yiu and your channel are the best gift the YT algorithm brought me in ages!! Thank you so much!

Good information. Thanks Luke!

Thank you, great information!!!!

I've been sharing all of your videos with my daughter.

Wow. I just stumbled upon this and it was sooooo helpful! I have tried to sprout inside, and transplant many things, only for them to die within two days. They look great, get an upgrade and then poof! Gone. I thought I wasn’t acclimating them enough and they got shocked, trying to do the in and out for a couple hours a day, that didn’t work. Finally these peas I was trying to grow, I decided to just start outside.. they’re growing and I’m terrified lol this was really helpful to know! Thank you! 🙏🏼

Very informative! I'm glad I came across this channel!❤

Learned about aerial roots- thanks!

Great info! So helpful and timely Thank you

Thanks, this showed up just when I needed it!

Amazing video! Thank you so much for the knowledge 🙌❤️ Love your channel and your content 👍

Very informative and helpful, thank you.

Very helpful! Thank you

Thanks, you just saved me. I was about to transplant two week plants! 😅

Thx Luke

So helpful. Thank you!

Thanks for sharing!💜🙏🏼

Thanks for sharing!!!

Thank you for this !! I do this so I’ll re-adjust what I do

This was so helpful and uses so much horticulture common sense. Sometimes I think us gardeners put too much stress into our gardens instead of just sitting back, being patient and enjoying the process. Thanks for the license to ‘chill’ that you inserted into your video in such a nice way.

Hi Luke, Another excellent video. Very helpful information. Thank you for sharing your knowledge to help us make better choices. Have fun, Mark : )

I learned so much - thank you!

Awesome info, Luke!!

Thanks for the info!

I tried to start plants from seed last season and overall had an epic failure. This vlog helps me understand that I did not wait long enough for root development before I transplanted them either in larger pots or directly into the garden soil. I see I did everything wrong with my seedlings. TY very much for helping me see where I made mistakes. I hope this year will be much more bountiful than last. PS... I'm in southern lower MI.

Very useful information. I've been doing it all wrong and you showed me the solution. Thank you!!

I needed this advice. 🤦‍♀️ Thank you.

Ours get so many scraggly roots comming out the bottom. Thanks for your help my good friend

Did you just.... name drop Bob Iger in a gardening video? Like.... Disney CEO Bob Iger?

Great info at the PERFECT time for me! Just saw this. I miss MI dirt - moved to GA in 1983. Can't wait to get my flower and carrot sprouts out in the garden!!

This is great information! As a veteran of growing pumpkins and giant pumpkins, I can say that you shouldn't sleep on those. They can become root bound in 10 days in a four inch pot. They really want to expand quickly. But sometimes I'm too quick to upsize the others.

very helpful, thank you!

Thank you.

This year i ised the 4" seedling pots. I knew i wouldnt be ready when they would normally go outsde. Still working on the garden. This way they could get bigger in the pot, with a larger root ball for stability. Almost ready for it. Had problems with extremely aggressive weeds in previous years so im spending more time preparing to guarantee success for the short growing season. Also ill be more than ready for a full growing seaon next spring.

I have found my new favorite trays. The reusable pop-out trays are awesome. You don't have to pull on the plant or dig out roots. Also harden off your plants before transferring outside. Especially at the start of the season.

so appreciate this channel Greatful its here for information n your kindness

Loved the video. So interesting, greatful i now know how roots should look before transplanting. Thank you so much. Subbed. 💜

Wow...learned so much and perfect timing too.

Awesome, thanks!

Well, that was interesting. Interesting. I guess my mind is blown for sure.

Always learn something new! Thanks and shared

That was very informative ! I was thinking of transolanting my peppers and tomatoes out in the garden when they are just six weeks old and bear true leaves ! just checked two of them each kind...u r right.... still need a couple of more weeks...thanks Luke 🌹🌹🌹

This really helps a lot. Thanks much🎉

I start my plants- seeds in my window in toilet paper rolls filled with potting soil. They all stand up in a milk carton cut open on a long side. I get about eight in one milk carton. Once there are levels of leaves & weather is free of frost, I put each whole toilet paper roll (paper towel roll cut into 3 sections too) in a pot or card board box with soil (my garden) in my yard. Oh I forgot, I did put plastic wrap around and over the carton for humidity/heat. They have always done great.

From my experience, atleast with tomatoes and peppers which are indoors for a while before moving outside, I just put them straight into large yogurt tubs as seeds and found they've done far better than with repeated transplanting and constrained roots. Takes out the guesswork as long as I'm careful with watering and drainage.

thank you

super helpful.