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Buffalo,Minnesota

I couldn`t get my plants in the ground over the weekend, nothing but rain(2.5"). Now my plants have at least 6" long shafts on them. They are falling over from their own weight. I don`t think they will live, so I`m gonna start my last two seeds. What causes this? Two much light, or two little? I have had the grow light turned off the last two days so I`m guessing the latter.

Dan

5/11/2003 10:14:17 PM

North Ga

Definately, not enough light Trapman7.

5/11/2003 10:17:42 PM

Western Pa.

It's the latter trapman, but there still may be hope if you plant them a little deeper and cover all that stem. The wind loves to wreak havoc on those long, spindly stems.

5/11/2003 10:52:56 PM

Buffalo,Minnesota

Do I have to keep a light on it 24 hours a day? I`m still gonna plant these, but will have to dig a much deeper hole!

5/11/2003 11:12:06 PM

Mastic Beach, New York

no,8hrs ahould be fine.. just place it closer to light source...BUT NOT TO CLOSE that it will burn the plant



billy

5/11/2003 11:56:49 PM

Chico, Ca

I run my lights 16 on 8 off... 8 on is too short. We have passed the vernal equinox so days are longer than 12 hrs up until the longest day, the summer soltice in june.

Robert

5/12/2003 12:21:35 AM

KENTUCKY

trapman, don't give up on those leggy plants! Read this artice in the how to section of this site. You might want those leggy plants! Good Luck!!

address http://www.bigpumpkins.com/ViewArticle.asp?id=65

5/12/2003 6:43:10 AM

Garden State Pumpkins

Hey Dan dig it deeper bury to the cotes..will do fine..the outside sun will stop the leggy look! Grow em Big! Chuck

5/12/2003 7:01:21 AM

Utah (Wolfleym@aol.com)

In reference to the above link:
I had read this last year and thought it would be a great idea if it works. So in February, I conducted some experiments. I let several plants get 'leggy', then planted them up the the Cote leaves. Starting in April, I started checking the plants.

I have not seen even one root take from the stalks. I still have a couple left that I will check in a couple weeks and will post the results.

While I agree a plant will do fine planting deep, my experiments did not show a rooting advantage. And I saw no reason to intentionally make a plant 'leggy'.

Have any of you tried this with good results???
Brent W.

5/12/2003 11:47:39 PM

Deer Park WA

I leaf my shop lights on 24/7 and keep the light about 1 inch from the Cots, never had a "leggy" plant. Plant the seedlings a little deeper up to the Cots and they will be fine. Best wishes Gads..

5/13/2003 12:28:45 AM

Usa

I planted a test seed and my daughter pulled out the plant. It had started getting roots all the way up and it was a very leggy plant. Maybe it has soil conditions or chemical conditions. Because I did use rooting hormone on the seeds.

5/13/2003 12:58:54 AM

I leave mine on 24/7 also plants are 4" tall snd second true leavrs are coming

5/13/2003 7:42:00 AM

Western Pa.

BrentW,

Someone on this site last year was convinced that by burying the long stem, it would produce roots. I've never seen this happen either, just goes to show you can't always believe everything you read!

5/13/2003 9:36:42 AM

Cologne / Germany

It won´t work because the stem itself doesn´t belong to the root system. I only saw additional roots from the stem when I used cuttings to propagate that were not buried in soil.

5/13/2003 10:01:53 AM

Key West, FL

I've seen roots try to come from a leggy seedling, I had a practice seedling that I put in a pot and about a week or two I noticed root tips, I geuss you could call them, forming like you would see under a leaf node on a vine, I believe if they would have been covered with some dirt and watered they would have formed roots.

5/13/2003 2:24:56 PM

Usa

Two people and myself witnessed my roots growing out of my leggy seedling stem that was planted to the cotes.

5/13/2003 6:46:16 PM

New Brunswick

Well, I too have leggy plants....I was some worried that they were going to be too tall....we had snow flurries today of all things!...so planting outside is not yet an option. Oh well, if I have to I will put them in gallon pails and keep them inside! LOL

5/13/2003 10:25:37 PM

Appalachian Mtns.

My 10" leggy plants had to be transferred to 15+" PVC tubes, too cool and windy to plant.

I too have seen some roots coming from the lower stems. Not much, but definitely some rooting action.

5/14/2003 4:57:46 AM

porterville,california usa

maybe this is dumb question but i`d be even dumber if i didn`t ask the obvious. if stems can`t, or won`t,grow roots then why do some of you go to the trouble to bury the vines. the vine is just a long stem that is laying down. identical cell structure and cell purpose and niether can grow roots. NONE. however, there are root producing cells on the vine located at the juncture of the leaf nodes and can extend for some distance along the vine.(usually less than 1/2 the distance to the next leaf nodule in both directions) AND on the stem. environmental factors cause the plant to release an enzyme that triggers a change in these cells to start root production. without this enzyme these cells will NOT make roots. they would stay unchanged and look like the vine/stem cell that they are. extremes in water,light,heat,nutrients and other factors govern the release of this chemical. left uncovered the vine probably won`t have roots on it. covering the stem, same thing.

5/14/2003 5:02:06 AM

Ctpumpkin@optonline.net

I wonder if the AH plant thinks that the juncture of the cots is a node. If so, roots will grow there if the plant is buried all the way to the cots. I would dust with Rootone just to make sure.
Steve

5/14/2003 5:55:00 AM

Garden State Pumpkins

Hey Booth, I was under the impression that burying the main vine was for protection. Some from SVB and some to help hold it down while the roots at the nodes et established. I'm not an expert but I wasn't under the impression it was to promote extra root growth like in tomatoes. Maybe we'll get some big guys to chime in on this...Chuck

5/14/2003 6:35:46 AM

Appalachian Mtns.

I bury my vines,with horse manure, for the sole purpose of feeding the tap roots.

U-hooks will hold a vine in place.

5/14/2003 7:07:12 AM

syracuse, ny

last year, i had really long (8"-10") plants from the window light of day and night. i had to bury the main stem deeper and at a 45-degree angle, and keep them covered with plastic clear containers until they outgrew them.
there is no need to bury the stem, but it will protect it from the environment, keep leggy seedlings from whipping around in the wind (which shouldn't be a problem with PROPER sheltering!) and if there is rooting from the long stem, then so be it. tomato plants produce roots from the stems, so burying up to the first real leaves creates a huge root system. pumpkins are OCCASIONALLY the same. i tried the make-it-leggy-and-bury-it-and-see-what-happens experiment, and there were no roots formed from the stem. one plant. lousy experiment, huh? but i'm sure it happens. and we only HAVE to bury the vines at the leaf/vine junctions, but it will be much easier to dig trenches all around the plant before it gets
there, and selectively lay the growing vines into the trenches, to be covered with the soil that was dug-up to make the trench. thus, enabling the plant to put down some nice secondary roots. wherever we can get rooting from, well, we want it! mmmmmm....s e c o n d a r y. .....'pal

5/15/2003 7:57:21 PM