[A Reyt Tayty]

I bought a a very nice (cheap) little gardening book today. It says you should feed tomato seedlings. Then it states not to fertilise until first truss sets. Am I missing something here or what?

[JohnB47]

I wonder if they mean a general purpose feed first then a specific tomato feed when the first fruits set. That works for me. If i dont do that, the seedlings just stop growing because the small amount if nutrients in the compost becomes exausted.

[morbidia]

I was just wondering about this earlier today, my rescued tomato plants are looking quite good today after only one day of being watered, they have all got one small tomato each on them so do you think I should feed them, they are on my kitchen windowsill at the moment but when is it ok to put them outside

[love-my-plot]

I've never fed seedlings other than what they get
from the compost they're sown in.
Then if/when they get potted on they get fresh compost, so whatever nutrients they get from that's their lot till planted out (which doesnt seem to be happening any time soon with the current weather)

If the plants had flowers or fruit (depending on what they are) I'd start feeding but usually can be planted out by that stage.

[morbidia]

I should be able to plant mine out then because they have flowers and fruit, I wasn't sure if I needed to wait for better weather as its turned quite cold and windy here this week

[love-my-plot]

Same here weather wise, it's been chilly and windy too, so I'm keeping mine safely inside and warm till we get better weather

[mumofstig]

If you go through the traditional sowing in a seed tray, then pricking out into modules/small pots, then pot on each time the roots reach the bottom of the pot, there should always be enough new compost for the plants to grow well.

If you sow in modules or small pots and expect them to stay there til they're planted out - then they will need a dilute general feed, just to keep them healthy
It's also a good idea IMO if they get big and still can't be planted out, because of the weather, or potted into bigger pots -like this year 

[savbo]

my toms were in 2" pots for a bit too long, and got a bit cold. When I repotted to 3" they sulked for a bit, so I gave them a liquid general feed and not they're looking great. Whether that was the feed or the warmth I don't know...

[aelf]

my seeds are started in any cheap compost in modules as all they really need to germinate is the right temp and the right amount of moisture. After that, in the case of tomatoes, I pot them on into a better quality compost then into their final position in a compost/well rotted muck mix.

There is lots of discussion on this site about when best to feed tomatoes and lots of opinions  My approach is to feed them with liquid feed when I feel they need it or when I remember, so not very scientific. Crops are usually ok so it works for me