unhappy tomatoes - purple leaves

[Jimmy]

I started my Alicante tomatoes in my heated propagator some while ago.
They started out OK but my propagator started to get full.
So I took them out and put them on the greenhouse bench.
The propagator provides some warmth to the greenhouse as the top is normally open.

However they are now purple underneath the leaves and look decidedly unhappy.
Well I would be unhappy if I was purple!
But I suspect in their case it's due to the drop in temperature.

Any one experienced similar problems ?
Do they grow out of it ?

Jimmy

[Tomatoking]

Hi Jimmy

Sounds like the cold might have affected them, but purple leaves usually is a sign that they could do with a feed, best to do it half strength on young plants. It could be that they need transplanting, so maybe that's the reason for lack of nutrients.

Mr TK

[vixfinn]

My young plum tomato plants sound similar, plus decidedly yellow to boot.
I will try a little feed and see if they behave like tomatoes again.

[gypsophelia]

Some of mine too- though the ones in the ground in the polytunnel are knee height, the ones in pots are 4-5 cm tall, yet they're all from the same batch planted at the same time,obviously a crappy seed compost which i wont buy again. I repotted and fed them a week ago ,so I will just have to see how they go.

[Flobalob]

Just had a look at mine out of curiosity. It seems I also have a few with purple on the leafs. Does'nt seem a problem as they have tomatoes growing on them.

[LolaLou]

Had the same thing with my plum tomatoes - hadn't grown them from seed before so thought perhaps it was normal They had also gone a little yellow so I fed them and two weeks later they look healthier than they ever have and they've even put on a few more leaves, although still amazingly small (no taller than 15cm).

[SarzWix]

Hope you don't mind Jimmy, I've just slightly changed your thread title - it sounds like other people have had the same concern as you, and so it will be easier to search for the answer if I put 'leaves' in the title

[Jimmy]

Hope you don't mind Jimmy, I've just slightly changed your thread title - it sounds like other people have had the same concern as you, and so it will be easier to search for the answer if I put 'leaves' in the title

OK by me ...

[taff]

normal, they do tend to go a bit purple if it's really cold. they grow out of it.

[crazii_c]

my little toms too look purple on the underside of the leaves. the plants seem healthy tho apart from that.

[Jimmy]

After all the comments I decided to perceiver with them.
I potted on into a slightly bigger pot ( those tubs you get choccy snaks in from M&S ). Eventually they went in the grow bags in the GH.
They are looking quite "dapper" now. See attached picture.

The white on the floor is from when I limed my windows.
A good tip .. instead of buying expensive cool glass buy a bag of garden lime.
A cup full or two in a bucket and mixed to a runny paste. Paint on the inside of your windows. It will wash off next year. Water off any that falls on your plants.
Probably only need to paint the sunny side.

In the recent hot spell I had to take a pane of glass out to get some extra ventilation. To scrooge like to buy a louver vent.

Thanks for the assistance etc.

Jimmy.