In case you missed last weeks update, go read it here.
Long story short, the kids helped Alyse plant our seeds. We ended up getting between 4-7 seeds per seed cup with a 90% growth rate. So, things started getting pretty crowded in those seed cups.
Knowing that I wanted to try and recoup some of my investment, I had planned to sell some of the plants all along. Knowing that, I thought that the best plan was transplant some of the sprouts into new cups. But, I had worried about damaging and killing both the transplantees and there rooted brethren.
So, instead of going wild and thinning out all 100 or so sprouts, I started with a small selection and gave the process a trial run. Sure enough, I had great success by using great care. How did we do it? Very gently.
Anyway, we started out by transplanting a host of Cherry and Romas last Sunday.
Yesterday, we continued our transplanting effort and transplanted a host of Juliets, Beefsteak, and Arkansas Traveler.
That gives me, and potential buyers, a good selection of different tomatoes to choose from. If you want tart little salad tomatoes in bulk, buy the cherrys. Looking for a nice thick cut for your hamburgers? Beefsteak is all you.
However, there are some questions that we faced this week that we didn't have to face last week. Last week, the root system for each sprout was no more than half an inch long with little to no tendrils snaking off of the tap root. That isn't the case this week, as the root system is much longer and features multiple tendrils. I wonder if the process of digging them out will kill them as some of the tendrils are undoubtedly broken. We did the best we could, but it may not have been good enough.
Additionally, some of the sprouts have threaded their roots into the biodegradable cups themselves, making them impossibly to transplant. As a matter of fact, many of the cups need to be planted in a much bigger bowl, or in the ground itself. The former isn't an issue, as I have a lot of larger plant bowls. But, I have yet to do anything with my gardening space, mostly because we are trying to sell our house and don't' want to waste our time and money. But, I am going to have to make a decision quickly.
Most of the transplants will give me a pretty good indication of their vitality by this afternoon. If most of them look good, I will transplant a few more of the larger tomato (fruit size, that is...IE beefsteak) and hope for the best. I have plenty of cups and I don't' want to toss out any sprouts. The name of the game is maximize, right? I want to maximize these seeds, whether that means in my own personal plants final production or the ability to make a little cash.
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