my stem on my plant is bent over

My tomato plant has not long germinated and I took it out while we had some sun and it looks like it's snapped in the middle and bent over to one side. Luckily, the stem hasn't broken, what do I do?

Many tomatoes have the ability to make new roots out of any part of the stem, so you could simply add more soil to prop it up straight. As long as it's not actually snapped right off, it will bend back and recover if you turn it every day to make it lean towards the light.

It's important to gradually acclimate them to being outside, so this doesn't happen. If you can give them a few minutes a day at first, and gradually they'll get stronger. This is called 'hardening off' and is an crucial procedure that helps them get used to the conditions outside without getting completely shocked.

Once the plant is used to being outdoors for a few hours a day, you can probably leave them outside, but cover them with newspaper, an old sheer curtain or some row cover if it's going to be really cold (like a frost) or if there is hail in the forecast. You can't imagine the damage that hail can do to tomato plants.

Happy Tomato Gardening!
Jacki