![]() We gardeners feel pretty proud of ourselves – and rightly so – when our seed-starting skills result in some nice-looking seedlings. It’s a great skill to learn, you can grow varieties that are hard to find in garden centers and it’s quite economical. ![]() Seed-starting is one of my favorite gardening activities. I even provide an alternate method in case you work full-time, since the standard method can be challenging if you’re not home much. You’ll learn how toughen up your little seedlings. It’s really important to acclimate them to the intensity of sunlight before transplanting them in your garden. If you’re not familiar with the concept of hardening-off, this applies to any plants you’ve started indoors from seed. For this week’s garden column, I discuss why hardening-off seedlings is so important. You Can Do This.Last week, I wrote about the correct timing of starting tomato plants from seed. Winter Seed Sowing Vegetables Pro and Cons.How do you harden off your seedlings? Have any tricks? Similar Posts: I always put some water and fertilizer in the planting hole.ĭon’t forget to toss some egg shells in your tomato holes. Plant them in the garden on a cloudy day or late in the day so they don’t have the sun beating on them first thing after they are planted. I cover my raised beds with warm weather plants if the temperature dips below 50 degrees. On the seventh day, you can keep your plants outside, provided that the temperatures don’t dip below 50 degrees for your summer plants like tomatoes and pepper. Place a box or taller outside plants in front of them for the first couple of days to buffer the wind.Ĥ. I should have just kept them under the lights to get them to grow a couple more inches.ģ. The weather wasn’t warm enough for them to grow. For two weeks they went outside but didn’t grow. This year I had some peppers which were about 2 inches tall. They will struggle especially if the weather is cold. Watering below the pot helps to encourage deeper roots.Ģ. I have them on a large tray and add water in the trays. It is a delicate balance and to be honest, I veer on the side of watering. They can wilt since they will be getting use to real life conditions outside. Make sure your plant soil doesn’t go dry. (If you don’t have shade, bring them back inside.)ĭay 2: 2 hours in the sun and the rest in the shade.ĭay 3: 3 hours in the sun and the rest in the shade.ĭay 4: 4 hours in the sun and the rest in the shade.ĭay 5: 5 hours in the sun and the rest in the shade.ĭay 6: 6 hours in the sun and the rest in the shade.ĭay 7: All day in the sun and you can leave them outside at night provided the temperature doesn’t dip below freezing for cold crops and 50 degrees for warm crops. ![]() In the video I show you how I use my outdoor table as shade. You can get a sneak preview of all the plants that I grow from seed.ĭay 1: 2 hours in the shade. Watch my video below as I explain how I harden them off. So there are days they didn”t go outside. This year it took me about 10 days to harden off my plants. Don’t put your plants out at the beginning on days that are really windy or raining. Although most articles will tell you that you can harden off your plants in seven days, they fail to mention it isn’t that straight forward. Start two weeks before you anticipate planting your seedlings in the garden to get them use to being outside. Tip #1 How to Harden Off Seedlings Schedule. Here are tips to make sure they grow up to be fruitful plants blessing you with high yields. But now it is time to introduce your seedlings to the big bad world to grow into strong plants. You have watered them, re-potted them, and generally fussed over them like a mother hen. For weeks you have nurtured your seedlings.
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