Seedlings turned into triffids over night!

[posie]

Since moving my seed trays indoors during the frost, they seem to be getting alarmingly large in a very short space of time!  Day before yesterday, most of them were about a quarter of an inch tall, last night I had to take the lids off because they were all touching the tops!  The sprouts seem to have grown the most.  What I want to know is a) is this normal and b) should I be repotting them just yet or wait til they bulk out a bit - think I read somewhere about sprouts getting too leggy?   ???

[posie]

[Blue Bird]

Oh Posie - I had the same thing when I put my tomato seeds in airing cupboard and forgot them for a few days.  They were about 6" long.

I had to start over again !!

[princescruffster]

Mine are the same.  A whole tray of different brassicas that are now 3 inches tall with skinny stalks and just seed leaves.  You can repot them up to the leaves, but that would mean a fairly big pot and I'm not quite ready for that.  I'm just going to leave them and hope for the best.  If they keel over, there's still time to start again  :(. 

[tim]

Don't mean to be a wet blanket - again - but is it not a bit early for Brassica??
A few quotes:

Brussels Sprouts 
Where to sow  Outdoors in a seed bed



Site/Soil  Unshaded - rich, moisture retentive - not freshly manured (best done previous Autumn) - lime soil if acid.

Avoid planting in an area where the previous crop was of the brassica family.

 

Sowing time  Early March under cloches

Late March to mid April



How to sow and after care  Sow brussel sprout seeds very thinly in drills 1.2cm (½ inch) deep with about rows 15cm (6 inches) between rows.

As the brussel sprout seedlings grow, thin them out to about 7.5cm (3 inches) apart.

Once the brussel sprout plants are 10 to 15cm (4 to 6 inches) high (late May/early June), transplant them to the final growing position. Water the rows in the seed bed the day before lifting. Plant the brussel sprout seedlings in rows with their lowest leaves just above the soil level and spacing the plants about 75cm (2½ ft) apart.



Time from sowing to harvest  About 28 weeks (early varieties)

About 36 weeks (late varieties)

These mini-Brassicas grow on long stiff stems, vaguely resembling Martian walking sticks. Faithful fans love them, particularly when their innate sweetness is brought out after a frost. The sprouts make ‘antifreeze’ to cope with the cold, and the antifreeze happens to be sugar! Raise as transplants, sowing Brussels sprout seeds in a cool greenhouse or in a protected growing area, planting out into the garden 12 weeks before the first fall frost. Resist the temptation to grow giant sprouts! Enjoy them young and tender, harvesting while small and tightly-wrapped low on the stem, allowing the higher ones to remain. Or, pinch the growing top and harvest the entire stem.

http://www.farm-garden.com/growing-vegetables/brusselssprouts

Know little about it, but I would start again??

[posie]

Well I did follow instructions for sowing on packets honest!   :'(

[morton]

You did until you fetched them into the warm.

I do not sow any brassicas for at least another month and then they go in an outdoor seedbed.

[manicscousers]

I've sowed some greyhound cabbage, idol cauli and early half tall sprouts in the cold greenhouse, should be showing in about a week,  :)

[posie]

Well I guess there are two options:  pop them back into unheated greenhouse now the frost appears to be over or scrap them and start again.  Answers on a postcard please!

It's all a learning curve I guess, never grown anything before so bound to make mistakes.

[manicscousers]

never mind, posie..we always start our brassicas in jiffy's, then plant into a fibre pot..just in case of club root..not how it says in the instructions but it works for us  ;D

[tim]

Start again!

[Tee Gee]

Well I did follow instructions for sowing on packets honest!

In general terms forget about what it says on the packet.

Think of it this way; most of the British seed merchants seed merchants sell the same stuff all over the world how can the little info they put on the packet cater for everyone?

I wish the seed merchants would sell packets of 'patience' as opposed to Impatiens some times called impatience.

An extract from my web site;

Decide what you want to grow then consider "do you have the facilities to grow them?"

Establish if what you want to grow is hardy, half hardy, biennial or perennial plants, this will determine which varieties require heat.

Decide on how many plants of each variety you require, there is not much point in growing more than you require.

Establish when you are going to sow your seeds, note that later sowings reduce the caring period prior to planting out,then sort out your seed packets in order of sowing.

Consider your source of heating, e. g. Hotbed, Propagator, Windowsill, Airing cupboard.

Note; the more half hardies you grow the more heat you will need.

Establish where you are going to put your seedlings to harden off until planting out time

Edit; Sorry I pressed the wrong key and uploaded before I had finished.

My suggestion is use the information you get from sites such as A4A before the packet.

Invariably the people there have been there before have done that! and have the Tee shirt to prove it, plus they have no commercial interest.

[sarah]

i would start again Posie. i made the same mistake the first year i did brassicas. they went leggy and teenagerish (sulky and flopped about all day).  I'm pretty sure it was Tim who put me straight on that accasion as he has so eloquently this time with you and he speaks wisely.
I start mine off in modules in a cold green house in about a month (or a seedbed as others have suggested).  threat them mean keep them keen.  frost free though.   ;)

[posie]

Ok the seedlings are no more - now who am I going to talk to in the wee small hours?!  ;D

I have been informed today absolutely not to plant seeds directly into the lottie because the mice will dig them up and eat them all.  Apparently there is a huge mouse problem up there, but I would have thought mice are a problem on most lotties.  I should point out that this is 2nd hand info from the grandmother!

If this is the case, then houston I have a problem because I have no greenhouse (thanks to the wind) and my shed is running out of space rapidly.  :o

[star]

Mice are a big problem, but I think its more pea, bean and sweetcorn. The bigger seeds they go for, They probably wont find sprout seeds as they're too small ;)

[kt.]

Well I guess there are two options:  pop them back into unheated greenhouse now the frost appears to be over or scrap them and start again.  Answers on a postcard please!

I would start again.... in 3-4 weeks ;)