The Beaufort rootstock I am using is driving me crazy. Spotty germination, uneven growth.  When you pay 21.2 cents per seed I think germination in the 70 percent range is spotty.  And when the seedlings do emerge, they are all over the place — some take off as I would expect them to, while others struggle and look as though they are just hanging on.

Grafting tiny tomato seedlings requires that the stem diameter of the rootstock and scion plants match pretty closely.  I mean, we’re looking at a 1.5 mm stem diameter here, so a fraction of a mm throws everything off.

The last batch of Beaufort seed I sowed has yet to germinate. They need light to germinate, so I have them very lightly covered with superfine horticultural vermiculite — just enough cover to maintain a thin film of moisture.  I am waiting, but not patiently.