Seedlings

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We start our plants from seed around the end of January.  Sometime in February we begin transplanting them into their own cells.  All of this is done in our basement using an array of shoplights and a tomato "incubator" 

Here is a slideshow of our seedlings and transplanting process:

Seedlings and Transplanting

This is a view of our tomato "incubator" which is heated underneath with lightbulbs
We start 25 seeds per cup then transplant each to its own cell when they look like this
First, we mix up potting media
The cup of tomatoes must be seperated into individual plants
They come out as a plug
The plug is put into a shallow pan of water
and seperated out
Getting them untangled is a careful process
They are kept with the roots in the water...
...so the roots don't dry out while they wait to be transplanted
a cup or cell pack is filled with soil
A slot is made with a pencil
Carefully get the roots and stem into the slot
bury the plant as deeply as possible
so that new roots will form off of the stem
pack them carfully
and the job is complete
the plants live in the basement under lights for about a week...
...then are taken out to the little greenhouse
holes in the bottom of the containers allow them to soak up water when watered

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Toby Brown

Toby is the owner of Lingley Bros. Sweetcorn since 2000. A 1989 graduate of Hoopeston East-Lynn High School, he began farming in 1993, the sixth generation farming the ground he lives on. He and his wife Paige have four children:  Jenna, Katie, Josh and Megan. Together they raise 48 acres of sweet corn, 900 tomatoes and a half acre of green beans. In addition to farming, Toby is an Elder at Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Hoopeston, an officer on the Rossville Area Fire Department, assistant 4-H leader of Hoopeston Boosters 4-H club and a beekeeper.

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