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Looking for recommendations on how to water soil blocks and what type of trays to use. I plan to plant tomato seeds in two inch blocks. After the are big enough I’ll put them in deep into cups for further root development

MackM
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Perry Thomasson
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1 Answers1

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Any tray without openings in the bottom should work - seedling trays are the most commonly used and most widely available. You can water them by pouring water into the bottom of the tray - enough so that there is still a little left when the soil is saturated. Two-inch blocks are small enough that they should wick enough water up to the roots, but keep an eye on how moist the soil is near the top. The reason for bottom-watering is two-fold:

  • The soil blocks will have more moisture towards the bottom, which encourages the tomatoes to grow roots downwards rather than near the surface. This is beneficial once they are transplanted to the field, where there is more moisture deeper in the soil.
  • Top-watering a soil block will wash away some soil, unless you use a gentle mist, which is quite time-consuming without a permanent misting installation.
Eonema
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