Stretched Seedlings - But Light is Close...what to do?

Ok so I know that if your light is too far from the seedlings that they will stretch way out...

But...my T5 light is merely 4-6 inches circa from the seedlings

I have 5 Alaskan Ice and 4 Lavender seedlings

The Lav are all looking as they should, but two of my AI are stretched out...one real bad

The leaves are green, and they are looking good except for being too strectched and the stems on these are looking pretty thin/weak

These suckers are only 3 days out of the Seed Starters that they are in

So my question.,...

Aside from trying to prop them up forever with toothpicks or the like ....


I read once that you can cut open a Roto Rooter Seed Starter Plug and then take out the seedling from the one its in, and replace it into the new one, ...

...but with most of the stem essentially "buried" as if I put more soil in it, if that was the medium I was using....

In other words, I pull the seedling down essentially so that most of the stretched stem is pulled back under the medium...


Can anyone comment on this?

I don't want to do the wrong thing here and kill my baby girls.....


Please advise

Jay

you can bury a plug in a deeper pot and cover the stretched stem, but i wouldn't try cutting the plug open and removing it.

fdd2blk said:

you can bury a plug in a deeper pot and cover the stretched stem, but i wouldn't try cutting the plug open and removing it.

Click to expand...

i did this once, worked fine =)

The problem with just "burying it" is - I am doing this Hydroponically...no soil (as mentioned)

I am using Rapid Rooter Seedling Plugs and the plugs are sitting in 2 inch Net Pots; soon to be transferred into a Bubble Ponic system to establish roots...

So I can't "bury the stem" unless I put the plug into a muich bigger (and deeper) pot and then fill the space....which frankly cannot be done...

Any other ideas?

Notchibald Johnson said:

i did this once, worked fine =)

Click to expand...

You did what exactly?

I would never try to move a seedling this young. You are either going to break the taproot (kill the plant) or rupture enough of the smaller roots (if there are any at day 3) that the plant will spend the next two-three weeks trying to live and not grow properly.

A post above is correct--you can bury your plant in another larger container. For example, an aerogarden grow plug (basically a thimble shaped sponge) can be placed into a slightly hollowed out/larger rockwool cube, etc.

brace the stem it will get sturdy eventually

jaekriel said:

The problem with just "burying it" is - I am doing this Hydroponically...no soil (as mentioned)

I am using Rapid Rooter Seedling Plugs and the plugs are sitting in 2 inch Net Pots; soon to be transferred into a Bubble Ponic system to establish roots...

So I can't "bury the stem" unless I put the plug into a muich bigger (and deeper) pot and then fill the space....which frankly cannot be done...

Any other ideas?

Click to expand...

I hadn't seen this post before I posted my other reply. I don't have experience with rapid rooters, but aerogrow sponges are about 1/2 wide and 1 inch deep--these can by placed into a slightly hollowed out rockwool cube (1 inch x 1 inch) and still fit in a 2 1/2 netpot.

Next, even if you prop up a plant this young, this if often a temporary move--as the plants grow they will often be able to sustain themselves (especially if you add a little breeze to strengthen them) I have done this often and about 95% of the plants can later support themselves--the other 5% tend to be 'bad sprouts' that don't live past week 2.