Hi guys, I planted the seeds to my plants on 1/31/11, and now they are fairly big. I planted them into a clear cup that is about 3 1/2 inches in diameter and 2 1/2 inches in height. The plant itself is about 5 inches tall now, and is very leafy. So today I tried to transplant one of them into a larger container. I squeezed the sides to loosen the soil, and i flipped it over, and a bunch of soil came out, and i was worried about the plant's health, so i stopped, and put it back. Does anyone know a good way to transplant seedlings without having soil go everywhere? Also, one of my plants is very tall, and is pretty big at the top. I have a pocket fan going on the plants 24/7, to try and build good stems. However, one day, this plant fell over! it was just too big at the top, and the stem was too thin. So i got a twist tie, and formed to to support the plant upright. It looks great now, but the stem is thick at the top, and thin at the bottom, so i can't remove the twist tie. I don't know how to get the plant more sturdy and be able to support itself. Here are some pictures Photo Album - Imgur Thanks for the help guys! -Gary
Ok, as far as transplanting make sure the soil is a little moist. This will help the soil to stay compacted as you are trying to transplant. As for your stem problem, this is caused by not enough light intensity. Either you don't have enough light or you don't have your lights close enough to the plant and it's causing it to stretch excessively. If it was my plant, I would transplant it and bury the stem a couple inches lower into the soil. This will help sturdy the plant. Keep the fan going and move the lights closer. Hope this helps.