![]() ![]() As the seedling gains height, it sacrifices in girth and strength, resulting in thin, pale, fragile, stretched-out stems.Įven if seedlings are situated on a sunny, south-facing window, the average amount of sunlight in late winter to early spring generally does not meet the 12 to 16 hours required for strong seedling development. When the light source is too dim or distant, seedlings grow quickly in height to get closer to that light. The most common cause of legginess is an insufficient or uneven access to light. “If you’ve got a plant that wasn’t getting enough sunlight they’re not going to be able to withstand the rigors of sun and wind.” What causes legginess in seedlings “The other things that happens with the leggy seedlings is that they aren’t storing as much carbohydrates,” said David Graper, South Dakota master gardener coordinator. Legginess is often an indication that your seedlings will fail to thrive once they are transplanted. In this case it looks like the coriander seed was sown in regular garden soil, somewhat clayey, which can be lumpy and clumpy, settling irregularly, leaving fragile roots exposed.If these conditions are not met, seedlings can become “leggy,” which is a term used to describe seedlings that have long, thin and pale stalks and small leaves. If they are up and away fast and then their pants fall down they are left feeling a bit awkward. Sometimes ebb and flood irrigation, through the holes in the bottom of the pot, keeps more fluff in the surface medium. If germination takes a long time, by the time it happens perhaps the soil has settled. So it comes down to how much we tamp down the soil when we sow, when and how we irrigate, how deeply we sow and how long germination takes. Plants may recover but have suffered a setback. Roots are not designed to have structural strength and so the plant flops over. As we top water, the loose soil starts to settle down and as it does so it goes to the bottom of the pot and around the lower roots, leaving the growing point stuck up in the air. The seeds germinate and start needing more water. One way this can happen is if the soil is overly loose when we add seeds. If we look closely at the seedlings in the lower left quadrant of the posted image we can see that there is almost a centimetre of light tissue between the growing point and the soil surface. One thing to keep in mind in this situation is sowing in loose soil. I wonder if the nest building of the ants is creating some air pockets and introducing fungal infection or something. There are black ants that used to use the bottom area of the pot as a storage location for their eggs, and they seem to have created their nest in the mud in the pot. The curry leaf plant in the middle seems ok. They grew fine for a few months and now all are listing and withering off. Now a year later, even garlic plants are dying off. Update Nov 2019: All the coriander plants eventually died. I've seen this answer and etiolation, but since some of the coriander seedlings are growing fine and some aren't, I thought I'd ask. It's happening only in this flower pot, and it's the same soil I've used in the other grow-bag. But even pouring more water didn't help, as today few more of them are flat on the ground. On examining the flattened seedlings, I noticed that the portion of the stem that just emerges from the soil, appeared to be a bit squeezed, as compared to the rest of the stem, so I assumed it could be due to there not being enough water and the soil drying up. They are getting a good amount of sunlight too. I've been watering them every morning and evening, with just enough water to moisten all the soil. ![]() ![]() And so on until everyday a few more were getting flattened. Next day another clump of seedlings were flat. I figured a cat or bird must've stomped it. I planted some more seeds in another larger, wider pot, and after germination, a small clump of seedlings in a 2 sq cm area were suddenly flat on the ground one day. I had planted a grow-bag full of coriander seeds and they grew into plants with no problem. ![]()
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