[gardengalrn]

With the care my tomato plants have received, it is a wonder any at all have survived. I potted up my tiny plants before leaving for Alaska to see my new/first granddaughter. So it was kinda a critical time for them. Anyway, gave DH strict orders on care but I think he was so worried he wouldn't water them enough that he OVER watered. And he admitted to at least a few nights of forgetting to turn off the grow lights. All that coupled with the fact that it was a little too warm in the room where my grow operation is located....you got it...I've got some kind of dampening off or similar problem (some moldy looking stuff on the top of the dirt). The plants are actually good sized now but failing and some look way better than others.

So, today I potted them up yet again into the bigger 16 oz cups and some were so leggy that I put them in cut off 2 liter bottles. I took the top layer off the original containers that appeared to have the moldy stuff on them, realizing that the mold spores or whatever it is will still be present in the remaining soil. I removed all the sick looking leaves and buried the remaining plants as deep as I could. Most of the stems seemed intact but there were a few that had that typical shriveled look at the base. Oddly, one that had the worst stem problem actually had one of the best looking plants/leaves. I took hope that maybe if I buried it it could somehow make some other roots above before the plant died.

I guess my question is: Has anyone survived this? I would hate to think of all the work and time that went in to all this and (gasp) then not have any delicious maters?!!

I'm giving them today/tonight to rest and recover and hopefully start to harden them off tomorrow since it is supposed to be overcast. I think I need to get them out of that room. Thanks