On Tue, 06 Apr 2004 12:29:49 GMT, "Brigitte J."
wrote:

Hi group,
I am new to this gardening thing and it appears I may have done something
wrong. Several weeks ago I started some seeds indoors, as I'm in zone 5 and
still getting frost at night. All of my seedlings are up but some are
getting very long and leggy looking. Some of them are starting to droop and
fold-over. Are they supposed to be this way? If not, what did I do wrong?
Anything I can do to correct the problem?

The seedlings are brocolli, brussels sprouts and various kinds of lettuce.

Thanks in advance for advice and/or comments.

Brigitte


The ones that are already all etiolated (the term for lengthening
stems trying to find light..not positive I remembered the spelling but
it's close ;-) they're not going to shorten and get sturdy stems that
make it stand up straight. They may at some point get thicker stems
from the new growth. You can try to get the enough light for future
growth to thicken and green up, but I'd plant some more, and get some
grow lights, or one cool and one warm white tube..but the warm whites
are hard to find at times. Get them down there and keep them 2" from
the growing point of the plant and they will form sturdy seedlings.
Rotate the plants at the ends of the tubes to the center, and the
center ones out to the ends of the tubes, because the light is
stronger in the middle.

Drop a couple lettuce seeds here and there around the yard, and then
a few days to a week later, drop a couple more here and there. Use
fresh seed as it seldom retains good viability past the year it's
packed for. The broccoli seed lasts longer, but lettuce and parsnips
and many other seeds like Orach and can't recall enough others that
are papery and don't have a lot of stored food for the seed to last
long need to be grown out every year and seed saved, or purchased most
every year. Some folks may manage to get some of them to sprout the
next year, but not meeee ;-)

I used to start hundreds of sees each year and I would come home from
work and put the flats out for a little while, then a little longer
and longer, working up to enough time that I could leave them out and
plant them. Lettuce I've seen volunteer on the north side of the
house, and a grand rapids plant would literally freeze so it was
crispy in the morning.. and in the efternoon when I came home .. it
was just fine, no sign of being frozen! Wish it worked like that in
the fridge when it gets too far back in their and freezes. That thing
must have had some natural antifreeze!

So, drop a few seeds here and there, plant some mache.. aka corn
salad. Never eaten it but it's supposed to be an earlier green than
lettuce.

Happy Gardening!

Janice