i made a mistake in my first question about tomato seedlings my question is if any body out there knows for shure why my seedlings ( about 2 1/2 weeks old ) have purple stems they look very healthy there are about 4 inches tall and about the same width they have many true
leafs thanks les matzek

Purple stems on seedlings are okay. Sometimes the leaves will be purplish too. They will green up as they get older and warmer. I forget what it is, but purple means it's not getting something (either P or K) because it is in a cool environment. Someone will chime in with the science, but it is not a problem at the early stage. Don't try to do anything to correct it.

All of my seedlings do that because I start them in the cool basement to keep them growing slowly rather than shooting up and getting leggy.

Thick stems and true leaves are an excellent sign. Keep up the good work.

i made a mistake in my first question about tomato seedlings my question is if any body out there knows for shure why my seedlings ( about 2 1/2 weeks old ) have purple stems they look very healthy there are about 4 inches tall and about the same width they have many true
leafs thanks les matzek

It is entirely normal for the stems to have soem purple in them in early phases of seedling growth. Most varieties do. The purple is anthocyanin.

If after a few weeks you start to notice purpling in the veins or the undersides of new leaves that could indiciate a phosphorus (P) defiecency.

If thats the case make sure the rooballs are warm (cold slows phosphorus uptake) and provide some kind of soluble P in a mild fertilizer solution. It should correct itself after that.

I'm a hydro grower and I grow tomatoes and strawberries in perlite.

I have a "Strawberry Symptoms & Cures" chart on my Website right now and am working on one for tomatoes. I'll drop a link to the strawberry chart so you can see what I'm talking about.

Check it out in a week or two and you should be able to look up just about any symptom to see what the cause and cure is.

Here is a link that might be useful: Strawberry Symptoms & Cures