Leggy Swede Seedlings Nightmare (QUICK Solution)

Growing swede can be satisfying. However, just like other vegetables, swede seedlings need attention. Leggy swede seedlings may result if you don’t ensure that the right environment needed for swedes to grow is in place.

Well, it is usually a common mistake most home gardening beginners and even seasoned gardeners make when they set out on their home gardening journey or try to grow new vegetables or plants for the first time.

Everyone is prone to having their seedlings grow leggy because they forget to provide conducive environments for the seedlings to grow healthy into plants.

The good news is that leggy swede seedlings can be fixed when detected early. All you need is to apply the fixes that are discussed in the preceding paragraphs.

Swede plants are not the only vegetables or plants that tend to have leggy seedlings. If you have tomato plants in your garden, you might have come across some leggy tomato seedlings among your nursed tomato seedlings.

You may have experienced your celery, radishes, mint, kale, zucchini, basil, etc. growing leggy seedlings.

As mentioned earlier, leggy seedlings are just signs that your plant either lacks adequate sunlight, is over-watered, overcrowded in the seed starting medium, and/or excessive fertilizer application, etc.

In this article, we will talk about how to identify leggy swede seedlings, what causes them, and how to prevent or fix leggy swede seedlings, so you can ensure the healthy growth of your plants for a bumper harvest.

Table of Contents

How to identify legginess in swede seedlings.

A leggy seedling is quite easy to spot. The only way to tell if the swede seedlings you have are lanky is if the stem appears stretched.

As a result, as the seedling reaches out for a light source, it grows tall very quickly.

The stems of lanky swede seedlings are also thin. This is due to the fact that the seedling concentrates its attention and energy on looking for sunlight or light rather than on developing thick and sturdy stems.

Leggy swede seedlings can also be recognized by their tendency to appear to be leaning over after some time.

All of these symptoms are definite indicators that you have leggy seedlings that need to be taken care of.

What Are The Causes Of Leggy Swede Seedlings

Leggy swede seedlings are undoubtedly a red flag that something is wrong. There are several factors that contribute to swede seedlings growing leggy or spindly.

These include not providing the proper quantity of light for your seedlings to germinate throughout the day. Additionally, planting several swede seeds in the same area results in crowding.

Also, excessive heat might cause your seedlings to become leggy. Leggy swede plants can also result from inconsistent soil moisture and excess fertilizer which are contributing factors.

Lack of Adequate Light For Germinating Seeds

For seeds to germinate successfully, they require nutrient-rich, moist soil or potting mix as well as enough light (natural light, preferably sunshine).

To undergo photosynthesis and grow well, swede plants like other vegetables and plants need sunlight to do so. Most plants including swede need a fair amount of sunlight every day to grow well. Usually on average 8 hours a day.

The seedlings will grow tall and bend in the direction of your light source if they receive no or little exposure to light.

Once this symptom is recognized, you should be aware that your seedlings are becoming leggy and require immediate attention.

Excessive Fertilizer Can Result in Leggy Swede Plants

Overfertilizing seedlings is a prevalent cause of them growing leggy. Low levels of fertilizer are needed for seedlings.

Even while it’s not totally accurate, the saying “too much of anything is bad” definitely holds true when it comes to overfeeding your plants with fertilizer.

Additionally, too much fertilizer might cause your swede seedlings to grow lanky and quickly, but at the end of the day, they will just produce a lot of foliage and no fruit.

Overcrowding of Swede Seedlings

When starting seeds for seedlings, most inexperienced gardeners commonly overcrowd seed trays with their seeds.

Not all seeds germinate or sprout at the same time, rate and pace. Overcrowding your seeds in the starting tray will cause some seedlings to shade out others because they will grow taller blocking the sun rays from reaching the shorter seedlings.

This will result in those swede seedlings becoming leggy as they scramble for sunlight and if care is not taken result in stunted growth.

Leggy Swede Seedlings Due To Poor Ventilation

Stems of swede seedlings will grow strong, thick, and sturdy when they are exposed to some amount of airflow or wind.

Without proper ventilation among your seedlings, your swede seedlings will grow up weak and might suffer shock during transplanting.

How To Fix Leggy Swede Seedlings.

No one is interested in spending time and resources in starting seedlings that turn out to be leggy or spindly and eventually die or result in stunted growth along the way.

Can you save leggy swede seedlings? Yes of course. Leggy swede seedlings are not a death sentence for your plants. When the seedlings becoming leggy are noticed early, they can be saved and the next few paragraphs will show how to fix your leggy swedes.

To fix your swede seedlings that have grown leggy, expose seedlings to the right amount of sunlight or light, check your drainage, add organic matter or fertilizer to the soil if the soil lacks the right nutrients for your swede seedlings, and control the temperature and re-pot when need be.

Unless you are able to tell the exact reason for your swede seedlings becoming leggy, try one fix at a time so you are able to tell the exact cause of the problem. But preferably, start with exposing your leggy swede seedlings to the right amount of light first.

Increase the amount of exposure to light

The first culprit to look out for as the reason why you might be having leggy swede seedlings is whether your swede plants or seedlings are being exposed to the right amount of sunlight.

If you are growing in an open space, make sure that where your swede seedlings have the required amount of sunlight during the day.

Vegetables like pepper, tomatoes, etc. just like swede require great exposure to sunlight or light. Swede seedlings or plants however are also shade tolerant as they can grow in cool, and moist climates but not in waterlogged soil. Ensure that they are well exposed to it.

Avoid starting your swede seedlings in areas where there are shades for the greater part of the day that prevents sunlight from reaching your seedlings.

If you are growing indoors, ensure your grow light provides sufficient light to your swede seedlings to prevent legginess in the swede plants.

Ensure you are using grow lights so that you can control their temperature in order to have just the right amount of exposure your seedlings need at every stage.

You may need to get a brighter source of light when starting your seedlings indoors or bring your light source a little closer to the seedlings to give them adequate light so they don’t grow leggy and tall.

A simple caution; too much exposure of your seedlings to heat can also lead to your seedlings dying as they will become stressed out.

Repot Leggy Swede Seedlings

When you have too many seedlings in one grow tray resulting in leggy swede plants or you have leggy seedlings, you can save the seedlings by repotting them.

In repotting your spindly swede seedlings, bury the stem of the leggy plants or seedlings very deep in the soil of the new pot up to the lowest sets of leaves.

The new container or pot should be big enough to accommodate the full-grown swede plant if you are practicing container gardening.

If you realize it very late and your seedlings are due for transplanting into your garden bed, you should bury the stems in the ground also up to the lowest set of leaves referred to as cotyledon leaves.

There should be enough space between your transplanted seedlings. The space between seedlings transplanted should be at least 28 to 38 cm apart to cater to the size of the mature swede.

Ensure however that the leaves do not touch the soil as it may result in the leaves picking up diseases that may damage your plant in the long run.

Planting your seedlings deep in the soil will prevent the stem from breaking when the wind blows and also the part of the stems buried will start growing extra roots that will aid the plant to become more sturdy.

Tact is required in removing and repotting your leggy swede seedlings. You can read further on repotting swede plants by clicking here.

Avoid Excess Water in Your Soil

If your seed starting soil does not retain the right amount of water or retains too much water, it will result in your seedlings being under stress because the soil will be dried for the most part of the day.

At the early stage of your seeds germinating into seedlings, this is not a good condition for your seedlings. Ensure that there is some moisture in the soil but not waterlogged.

The best way to retain moisture in your soil if you will not be available in the house throughout the day is to apply mulch around the stem of your plants or use an automated smart drip irrigation system such as the DIY Micro Automatic Drip Irrigation kit which is sold on Amazon.com

There is the need for the moisture in your soil to be consistent throughout the period the seeds germinate till the time of finally transplanting.

You should develop a routine for watering your seedlings and try as much as possible to follow through every day.

There are smart gadgets that can assist you to know when your seedlings need to be watered. If you want to have a smart garden, and also have the resource to afford it, you can make good use of same.

However, as a beginner in gardening, your eyes and your timing should be enough to tell when the soil looks dry and needs watering. You can use an automatic drip irrigation system where necessary.

You should avoid over-watering the seedlings as it may result in dampness and result in roots rotting, disease to plants, and ultimately death of your seedlings.

Add Some Fertilizer or Organic Matter

Your germinating seeds need nutrients to be available in the soil for you to have strong seedlings and plants. A good pot mix soil will be sufficient to use for starting your seeds into seedlings.

If you are adding fertilizer to your soil because the soil lacks the right nutrients the seedlings need to grow well, ensure you do not add too much fertilizer. This is because over-fertilization of your seedlings can cause more damage to your plants.

It is best to use a diluted liquid fertilizer for your seedlings. In other instances, you will need to add some organic matter to your potting soil.

Adding organic matter to your soil is another way to improve the growth of your leggy seedlings. Instead of purchasing pre-made amendments, you can easily make your own by mixing in manure or compost.

This will improve the soil texture and provide your plants with the nutrients and minerals they need to grow. This can be done by adding a little bit of the amendments to your soil or by mixing it in with your soil when you re-pot your plants.

Good organic amendments for garden soils include wood by-products such as sawdust and bark mulch, peat moss, rotted manure, grass or wheat straw, and compost.

Control the temperature

As a general rule, you want to keep your swede plants in their optimal environment. Low temperatures prevent leggy swede seedling growth by slowing the metabolism and preventing the cells from growing and dividing.

It is advisable that temperatures should be between 65°F to 80°F to reduce the chances of leggy swede seedling formation because high temperatures equal high levels of heat and moisture in the soil, which can lead to leggy swede seedlings.

Allow Proper Air Circulation

Prevent your swede seedlings from forming leggy stems by providing adequate air circulation among your seedlings so they can grow strong stems.

You can turn on a fan that blows air on the seedlings to get them to experience the conditions that pertain outside so that your swede seedlings will be able to withstand when transplanting is finally done in the garden beds outside.

Final Words

So there you have it. Lack of adequate light, high temperature, over-fertilization, poor soil drainage, and overcrowding of seedlings can cause leggy swede seedlings.

Expose the affected seedlings to adequate light, and separate seedlings into individual pots if they are overcrowded in the seed starting tray.

Add fertilizer or some organic matter when needed or necessary, and don’t forget to keep an eye on your plants.

If you are starting eggplant, tomatoes, pepper, and other vegetables and their plants are leggy, you can read about their fixes below.

Fixes For Other Leggy Vegetable Seedlings

If you have other vegetable seedlings in your garden that are becoming leggy such as pepper seedlings, tomato seedlings, etc. these resources below are great read.