Watering tomatoes and other plants, how do i know whens not enough/too much?

[Irish-Veg]

Even though my tomatoes are doing well and growing/flowering fast, i still think im off with the watering and i want to make sure im doing it correctly before they start setting fruit.

The tomatoes in their final positions have 500ml upturned bottles.

if you poke your finger in the soil, should it feel wet (ie stick to your finger?) or just damp at the bottom :s

yesterday my gardners delight started wilting (they are in 50l containers) iquickly watered them and 10mins later they were back to normal but that time i used the rose nozzle on the watering can whereas normally i just give an amount in the upturned bottle to water directly to the roots. will watering "on" to the plants as well as to the roots cause any harm?

Also instead of posting a seperate threads with reggards to my pepper/chillis, they are painfully slow at growing although recently they appear to be starting to get a move on.

Im thinking of potting them on anyway as a few are starting to get yellowish tinges on their leaves (pic attatched) I was going to try feeding them first?
and btw i have no idea which are the chillis/peppers. . the peppers are hungarian hot waxes and the chilis were free with a magazine and are called jalapeno M.... im gonna have so many chillis it seems as i never read what type of peppers i sowed i thought they werent hot -_-

I have one which earlier one which is a belly boy and is starting to flower i think although still fairly small i think.

[Potstubsdustbins]

Moist would be the word I would use for toms. Don't let them dry out as this could cause blossom end rot. As the plants grow you will need to up your watering/feeding regime.

Potty

[Irish-Veg]

okay but should just the bottom feel moist or most of it as yesterday with the sunny day we had, the tops of some of the soils went bone dry really quickly even though bottom was moist.

[Potstubsdustbins]

I grow in 12 ltr pots so like to keep it moist from the top down. Some people like to water from the bottom but being idle I don't bother when they are in their final pots.

I leave at least an inch from the top of the compost to the top of the pot so I can fill this with water at one go.

One sure sign its to dry is if as you water the water runs straight through the pot and out the bottom.

Potty

[Tripmeup]

I am doing much the same as Pots at the mo, but then most of my Toms are in their final pots.. The pepper you mention is called Bell Boy not belly, but that's where it ends up alright!!

[Mr Bones]

Your yellow-leaved chillis look like they could be suffering from nutrient deficiency (most probably magnesium). Possibly low light levels and cold temps are preventing the plant from absorbing sufficient minerals. I'd try watering with a teaspoon of epsom salts in your watering can and then after a few days feed with seaweed extract. Both can be absorbed by applying to leaves or roots.

[darcyvuqua]

Give this chillies/peppers a dose of Epsom salts they will soon pick back up

[rustylady]

Even though my tomatoes are doing well and growing/flowering fast, i still think im off with the watering and i want to make sure im doing it correctly before they start setting fruit.

The tomatoes in their final positions have 500ml upturned bottles.

if you poke your finger in the soil, should it feel wet (ie stick to your finger?) or just damp at the bottom :s

yesterday my gardners delight started wilting (they are in 50l containers) iquickly watered them and 10mins later they were back to normal but that time i used the rose nozzle on the watering can whereas normally i just give an amount in the upturned bottle to water directly to the roots. will watering "on" to the plants as well as to the roots cause any harm?

50 litres seems a HUGE container for a single tomato plant.

I don't use bottles sunk into pots for watering - these are better used when plants are in open ground.

Watering the soil/compost with a rose attachment is fine, just try not to get the foliage wet.

When the tomatoes are first potted into big containers you need to make sure the compost is kept evenly moist throughout the pot, otherwise the rootball will dry out before the roots get chance to grow out into the new compost.

[SlugLobber]

Only thing to add from me is to be careful watering onto the plants if they're under cover. If we DO get a summer, you'll get scorched leaves/fruit.

I put mine directly into the ground in the greenhouse, as it's on soil. I have noticed my potatoes are much better this year witha straw mulch, so I don't know if it's a crazy idea to do a 'mini-mulch' in pots or ground, to help stop the soil from drying out?

[Irish-Veg]

Well the chillis have been in those pots since they were first pricked out :S and are only now starting to put some growth on an the roots starting to show at the bottom of the pot so im going to pot them on too, they are in a greenhouse, Ive been hearing great things about epsom salts, must pick some up tomorrow after work! I also fed them with a seaweed tonic too.

LOL i cant believe I typed Belly Boy haha oops!

with the toms, yeah I know 50L is big, Im just worried im not giving them enough space :s It was from an archway planter we had years ago that broke, we just have the 2 "planters" now like this one http://images.lookagain.co.uk/is/ima...44E710FRSP.jpg

only an estaimate at 50L but it took one 40L bag of compost, It's about 80%full I have a gardeners delight in it and it is really thriving since Its been in there. I have another gardeners delight in a 15L bucket, mainly for comparison

The thing is over here DIY buckets and the like are all around 6-7 each and for the amount of toms I have isnt cost-efficient. Think Ill go with growbags/ 15L mayonaise type buckets instead instead.

Im gonna end up having to have some in a sheltered spot outside as its crowded as it is in the greenhouse lol

will putting some outside after being in a greenhouse hurt them, if we get any decent weather, hardening them off obviously..