Tomato transplants not growing properly

Growing great tomatoes is every gardeners dream. But this is full of problems. One of them is transplants not growing properly. There are many reasons for transplants not growing properly, some are discussed here.

Crowded seedlings

If your plants are very close to each other, they will fight for nutrients, sunlight and water. This affects there growth and plants may even die. You need to put the tomato plants at least 1 foot away from each other. Here are some parameters that should be kept in mind:

1. The usual way is to stake them higher: make them more vertical so they sprawl and tangle less.
2. Tomatoes need to be about 24" apart. They should be staked or caged in a heavy-duty cage (most of those ring cages are pretty flimsy - but they do make heavier ones, or you can make your own from concrete reinforcing wire). They need very sturdy supports because the fruits get heavy on those plants.
3. Keep them separated for good airflow to help prevent diseases and pests. Prune them aggressively.

Diseases

Small tomato plants are very much prone to diseases. Diseases affect their growth and may even kill them. As they small,they cannot fight with disease as long plants.

To know about tomato plant diseases, click here.

Insects

Insects also feed on young tomato plants leaves and stem. Click here to know about insects.

Nutrient deficiency in soil

If the soil is not fertile, the plants will not grow properly. Tomato plants like very fertile soil which is rich in nutrients. To know how to prepare soil for tomatoes, click here.

Not meeting the requirements

If your tomato plants didn't get the requirements they need, they will start dying. We have made page which tells everything about managing tomato plants requirements. To visit it, click here.

Temperature and weather problems

If tomatoes didn't get enough temperature, they will stop growing. Minimum temperature they need is 20'C (70'F) and the required temperature is 33'C (90'F). But in some places, India for example, the temperature in summers is so high (nearly 50'C or 120'F) that tomato plants die, the people here must grow in winter.