Bob, you sure have more experience than most of us. I am pleased to say that I don't have your problem.

After a couple months normally one would have started using some fertilizer. But you got no leaves. Are they under watered? Are you re-using old cell trays from previous years? If so perhaps toss the trays out. I use black plastic trays. Do you have any walnut trees around? Have you tried putting a fan in the room to get airflow over them?

Not sure what zone you are in. Normally, if you have 2 month old seedlings, the weather should be good enough to start putting them outside a few hours on the back step or patio on nice days.

I'd say get them out of the house asap and see if they perk up. Are you growing anything else? Is it growing good for you? Maybe there is something else going on in your house... New carpet, different furnace, repainted walls?

I have been told that it takes "3 things" to have a problem: (1) susceptible hosts, (2) pathogen, (3) favorable environmental conditions. I had an arborvitae with what may have been a black fungus. I had thought of removing the plant. But getting "dead leaves" out from near the trunk and pruning off branches near the ground improved airflow. The problem is gone. I am thinking you have to do something else to change the environment.

Hi, Bob!

I have about a quarter of the experience you do, but maybe I can help.

The seedlings look very, very purple from the picture. This usually indicates a deficiency in phosphorus. Seedlings will occasionally have a purple tinge no matter what, but the purple on these these looks very pronounced. The lack of growth also make me think that the plants are simply not getting enough nutrients, nitrogen included.

I would try a different mix of soil or giving them a (weak) shot of some fertilizer. I had a seedling that looked like those literally a week ago. I took it out of the little cell it was in and put it into some enriched soil from one of my outside planting pots. It immediately started to look better and to grow. try putting even just a couple of them in a more rich soil and see if they improve within a week.

I hope you're able to figure it out! :)

I think it is your seed starting mix. I would get them out of it into some small plastic 6 packs or pots with potting mix.

They look like they have been burnt by too much exposure to the bulbs. Even florescent bulbs radiate quite a bit of heat. Back off a few inches and drop the time to 12 hours per day until you get true leaves. Take some fertilizer like Miracle Grow and mix it up about 1/20 strength. Put it in a spray bottle and spritz everything (plants and mix) until they are damp or slightly dripping. This will act like a foliar feed and should green them up. Primary thing though, is to back off those lights.

Think of it this way. How much light would they get if they were in the garden. 16 hours of intense light will burn most plants.

Ted

You say "definitely not over-watered," which makes me suspect under-watering. If when you pick up the tray it feels light, I'd give them a really good soak and see how they react.

I have the old T-12 lights and put them just above the seedlings, but apparently the newer, narrower tubes should be higher than that -- the narrower they are, the farther from the plants. This thread gives distances:
http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/load/tomato/msg0422065826594.html?2

Your problem is a mystery to me. A couple thoughts first: these seedlings are 2 weeks (not 2 months old), so planting outside is probably not called for. Second, you are using 4 2-foot long 4100k lights, so it's much more likely that the plants are getting too little light than that they are being burned by too much light. The only thing you are doing differently than what I think of as best practice is that the 70 degree temps are a little low in the first few weeks (are night temps a lot lower?) and seedling mix is difficult to keep evenly moist (is it made of coir? Does it have nutrients?)

But since you are an experienced grower and this problem has occurred in the past couple years, I'm wondering if the cause might be something unusual. For example, could you have a leaky furnace or some other source of indoor air pollution? Maybe new carpeting giving off formaldehyde fumes?

First, thanks for all the replies!

1. 4, 2 ft long T8 bulbs seems quite bright for a small tray of seedlings. The lights give off very little heat, much less than a sunny window.

2. I bottom water so it does wick up to the soil surface, which to me looks like evenly watered soil.

3. The temperature is about 70 day and night.

4. The seed starter mix is Burpee and does contain some small levels of nutrients.

5. I have read many times that 14-16 hours of artificial light is reommended.

6. I have not replaced any carpeting in the house, no new painting, nothing has changed in over 5 years.

Now two days ago I planted these same seeds in 3 containers using the same Burpee seed starting mix. One container is going to go in my home's south facing window with the triple thermal-pane replaced by plexiglas. The next container is going in my outside cold frame, and the third container is going in my standalone garage's south facing window.

I live in PA so the days are going to be 60-70 degrees, and during the nights I will bring the plants indoors.

If nothing grows at all this year, I'm very stumped after being successfull for 25+ years and will just give up starting seedlings in the house. I purchase 98% of my plants in a nursery anyway. I just have a hard time finding Super Sweet 100's in a nursery and I also like Burpee Long Keeper storage tomatoes which no nursery ever has. So Ilke to start these two from seeds.

I'm stumped. Your plan sounds good. Please let us know if you get different results in a different environment. Inquiring minds want to know. Good luck.

I hope you figure it out, Bob, that would be a bummer not having any of those tomatoes for that many years. At 70 years old +, I can't afford something like that, hence, I always buy live plants.

I was in fact harvesting maters in February this year till my dumb gardener sprayed in the tomato area to kill grass, well it did kill the grass but maters too!

I used to buy all my plants at the "Fullerton Arboretum" (Part of Cal State University), but this year I bought from Laurel's Heirloom Tomatoes and the plants look great.

If you do need a "Plan B" Bob, click the helpful link below.
4 plants for $5.99 and their supplier is in Ohio.
Maybe Ohiofem knows about this nursery.

I did recommend the same vendor to another poster here for another mater, "Olpaka" I think, Maybe she can tell us how the tomatoes arrived and the quality of the plants?

Good luck with you maters, (Plan A or B), Bob

Gary

Here is a link that might be useful: SuperSweet 100 tomato plants

Change the potting mix. It isn't the lights.

Bob,

Have you changed your seed mix between 2010 and now? You've tried different lights, different waters but you don't mention different mediums.

Nothing to lose at this point, so I'd try transplanting a handful of them. I am no expert at seeds or tomatoes but I always transplant my seeds early. I use seed starting mix or peat plus perlite normally to start seeds but this year tried 70% perlite fines to 30% coir and peat based potting soil. They've been up about 7 days now, so I transplanted them into their own pots with 5:1:1 -- bark-based mix with perhaps a bit over one part peat.

Using anything much airier and porous than what it's in right now would probably be beneficial.

I don't know anything about lights but some look salvageable -- so perhaps try transplanting 4-6 and then placing in sun outdoors (bringing in at night, of course) and placing under the lights indoors. Soil being equal, perhaps gauge what else is amiss.

Good luck. That must be disheartening!! I'm irate when one doesn't sprout never mind having them die on me after all the waiting.

Grace

PS - I have two sets (4 bulbs) of grow lights. 2 "blue" and 2 "yellow" to hit both sides of the spectrum above and below green. I keep them on 18 hours a day. The tomatoes are fine, but the peppers are getting a little leggy. It's still not enough light... It is very difficult to simulate the sun in light intensity. IMO.

Look really dry to me. I keep my starting mix moist. You're not growing cactus. Give them some water.