Myths about transplanting seedlings

Tomatoes

Pricking out is a controversial step in seedling cultivation. Some gardeners urge abandoning it as a useless step, while others are trying new methods, resulting in more healthy planting material.

To determine whether transplanting is necessary for a particular crop or variety, it is necessary to understand its real benefits and existing risks, and to separate misconceptions from proven facts.

Myths and facts

One common misconception is that pricking out damages the roots and slows subsequent growth. Fact: with the right timing of transplanting, damage to the central shoot is minimal and even necessary. It's important to choose a time when the plant has already established its above-ground part but hasn't yet developed lateral roots. There won't be any intertwining within the root ball that needs to be dismantled or torn apart. By thoroughly moistening the soil beforehand and using tools to extract the sprouts, you can completely avoid damage. However, one of the goals is to develop a strong root system by stimulating the growth of offshoots. To achieve this, the central shoot is pinched and bent. Therefore, pricking out will only be harmful to the roots if done at the wrong time.

Note!

It is recommended to pick most crops no later than 10 days after mass emergence.

Some believe that pricking out slows growth, meaning that without it, you can get stronger seedlings earlier. However, in practice, most gardeners face the problem of overgrowing: plants become stretched, weak stems bend, and then the seedlings fail to establish themselves in the garden due to underdeveloped roots. Pricking out solves these problems. After pricking out, the seedlings stop feeding the above-ground part, devoting all their energy to root restoration, root growth, and stem strengthening. The result is a not too tall plant with a dense, elastic stem and a strong base. These plants are easier to transplant into the ground, establish quickly, and don't require constant staking.

It is believed that after treatment, seedlings will become diseased, and the percentage of dead seedlings will increase. Indeed, treatment can cause infection and even complete wilting. However, this is most often due to:

failure to meet deadlines;
incorrect technique;
incorrect subsequent soil treatment.

Benefit or harm

Pricking out seedlings shouldn't be considered a mandatory step in growing seedlings or a panacea for all planting problems. The procedure has a number of undeniable advantages: it can eliminate the weakest seedlings and significantly improve the performance of the remaining plant mass, even increasing the overall yield. However, it's important to remember that pricking out also has its drawbacks and limitations. Among the advantages:

space saving;
growth control;
ease of sorting plants;
the ability to change characteristics.

Initially, planting in boxes rather than pots simplifies care and reduces the space required. Later, during transplanting, gardeners can easily spot plants with rotted roots, diseased stems, and weak leaves. Removing these promptly significantly reduces the risk of spreading infections, bacteria, or fungi to the entire planting stock. Only transplanting can change the shape of the future plant. For example, tall tomatoes can be trained to have double stems, thereby doubling the yield.

Disadvantages include the risk of significant losses due to an incorrect transplanting period, as well as the initial risk of infection for all seedlings due to growing them in a single container. You'll also need to stock up on soil in advance and then find space for individual pots. Growing early-ripening, southern crops often doesn't involve transplanting, especially if they're transplanted early into the open ground or grown in a greenhouse or hotbed.