Transplanting Vegetable Plants

Well it’s been a few weeks now since I last showed what our little vegetable plants looked like. First I showed how to plant the seeds, and then I showed their progress as the seeds came up.  Well, they’ve outgrown their egg carton and over the weekend I transplanted them into styrofoam cups where they’ll continue grow until it’s warm enough to set them out in the garden.

This is what they looked like before transplanting.

The Early Girl tomatoes had grown quite tall, about 3 inches.

And the Celebrity tomatoes are shorter and stockier at only about 2 inches.

The Black Beauty eggplant seems to be a slow grower and had only reached about an inch tall.

But all of them were ready for larger homes. So I got some 16 oz. cups and pierced holes in the bottom with a knife to allow for drainage.

Then I filled each with potting soil right up to the top.

Then I watered the soil with warm tapwater

and allowed them to drain in the sink.

Next, I removed a cell containing 2 tomato plants. I had planted 2 seeds in each cell thinking only one of them might germinate, but they both did so now I have more plants then I need. I then very carefully separated the 2 plants by pulling them apart from the top down.

(In case you’re wondering, I’ve not grown a 3rd hand. Harland graciously offered to take pics of this momentous occasion.)

Next, I dug a hole with my finger about the size of the rootball in a cup,

and popped the plant into the hole.

I packed the soil gently around the plant.

and then watered it in.

Next, I potted the other tomato plant. I only need 2 plants of each variety of tomato, and 2 of the eggplant. I’ll try to find someone to give the other plants to.

Then I transplanted the eggplant.

Then I put the cups at the edge of the sink to drain. Later I inserted each cup into another cup to protect my windowsill from drainage.

Whoa. I’m being watched.

You see folks, Kitty studies everything we do so that when she moves out and gets her own place she’ll be able to cook and clean to transplant tomato plants without asking for help.

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