Do you know if you Feed this to Your Tomato Seedlings, they’ll grow like crazy? Find out the secret ingredients in this article.
With these two unconventional, homemade items you can gently coax your tomato seedlings to sprout well and become productive plants.
What Nutrients Tomato Seedlings Need?
Besides warmth, the right seed mix, moisture, and the correct amount of light exposure, baby tomato plants need the proper balance of nutrients once they start growing.
Initially, seedlings use the energy stored in the seeds they come from, but once the set of true leaves appear and they develop their tiny roots, they become all ready for a milder dose of fertilizer.
This is where our two secret natural ingredients can help. Continue reading to find out what those are.
Grow Best Tomato Seedlings with these Ingredients
It might sound a bit strange, but you can use milk and rice water to ensure that your tomato seedlings grow faster after they germinate. You can start feeding as soon as you see two true leaves and a bit of growth in your young tomato plants, just like in the picture above.
Both these natural products provide calcium, but apart from that, these two are super rich in potassium, phosphorus, and many other trace elements. Milk is antifungal and saves the seedling from diseases. On the other hand, rice water increases the good bacteria like mycorrhizae and lactobacilli that already exist in the soil.
1. Milk
To save your tomato plants from diseases like mold, rot, and powdery mildew, spray one part milk mixed in 10 parts water once in 10-14 days.
Apart from that, you can also feed the seedlings by diluting one part milk with four or six parts water (1:4 to 1:6). Apply gently by using a glass, pour carefully around the seedlings, making sure the solution reaches the roots without disturbing them.
Fertilize with this solution every two weeks for best growth. The calcium in milk strengthens cell walls and makes the plants more robust, proteins boost overall health and speed development, and natural sugars encourage beneficial microbial activities in the soil.
One more thing that milk contains a lot is potassium, which helps in water retention, boosts chlorophyll production, and increases energy transfer within plant cells.
2. Rice Water
This simple yet unbelievable kitchen leftover will have your tomato seedlings growing in no time. Something that goes down the drain often can be collected from the water used to rinse rice, but note that the water left after boiling rice is richer in nutrients.
The biggest secret ingredient in rice water is Niacin, which is available in very large amounts, especially in brown rice.
This trace element increases photosynthesis, reduces oxidative stress, promotes shoot growth, and makes plant ready for more production due to increased metabolic efficiency.
Apart from this, rice water also contains Calcium, Phosphorus, and Iron in good amount, to discover about its uses on plants, read our article.
Once it cools down, pour it around the base of your plants or feed by bottom watering with this for better absorption–once in two weeks, and watch the magic unfold!
Note: When the plants are young, dilute 50 percent water to make it easier to absorb.
Apart from tomatoes, you can use rice water and milk for other vegetables as well. Don’t stop when plants become mature, keep fertilizing 2-3 times in a month for great results. Either use one or both of them and enjoy the great results.
