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| Seedlings hardening on porch |
Sunday, March 27, 2022
With the arrival of fruit and vegetable plants at the garden center and indoor seedlings ready to start their new life in the garden, there are a few things to keep in mind to have successful transition to the outdoors.
Prepare the planting spot
SMake sure your garden bed or pot is ready for your transplants. In the garden, do a soil test and add your fertilizer and compost then cover with mulch. You don't want to be trying to mulch around new plants. For pots, refresh the potting soil, adding fertilizer and compost or use new potting soil for the season.
Plant at recommended time and plant size
Some of the transplants coming into stores may not be ready to plant before your last frost. Most of the transplants are ready to plant now, but check before you plant. Invariably, stores will put out summer herbs and vegetables like basil and tomatoes before your last frost date. Just check the label for when it is safe to plant. It is typically given in terms of your last frost date.
For the seedlings you have started indoors, let them get at least 3 sets of leaves and a sturdy stem before transplanting. Since it is chilly right now, waiting a week or two before transplanting won't delay your harvest time. Growth really revs up once it is nice and warm.
"Harden off" your transplants
If you are buying your transplants, they have undergone some treatment to make them strong against current conditions so that they survive outdoors on an unprotected rack. For those that you have grown indoors, you will need to ease them into the outdoors. Begin this process after the time the seed packet says you can start the veggie or fruit outdoors. Start by putting them out during the day in a shady spot and increase the amount of sun they get gradually. It is the sun as much as it is the temperatures that your indoor babies must get used to.
Handle with care
Store bought transplants have sturdy stems as they are grown under conditions that promote stocky plants. The ones that we grow at home can be more spindly with weaker stems. If possible, don't handle the plant at all. If you do, you will need to handle with care as you remove the plant from its temporary pot. Grab by the lowest leaves, not the stem when you need to handle the plant itself.
Before removing from a pot, take a butter knife and go around the inside edge of the pot to make it easier to remove. Push the bottom of a plastic container upward to move the plant out of the pot if possible. Lift the transplant the rest of the way from the pot by the soil. Put on a spoon or trowel to move to final garden spot or pot.
If you grow in a peat pod or peat pot, handle just the pot or pod itself. If you grew several in a single pot, use a tablespoon or trowel to dig out the seedling and carry to its final home in the trowel or spoon.
One trick I learned recently is to brush your newly sprouted seedlings with your hand, gently, every morning. This will stimulate the plant to strengthen its stalk. You can also put a small fan, blowing gently towards your seedlings to do the same.
Pick the right weather conditions for transplanting
The best weather conditions for transplanting are cloudy, warm and still. I always look for a cloudy day to transplant. If you have a few forecasted, all the better. Even though you have hardened off your transplants, moving them is stressful for them.
Make sure the soil is moist before transplanting. I like to mix in fertilizer, worm castings, mycorrhizal and biochar in each planting hole. Water in the new transplant with a weak seaweed solution. Make sure they keep moist, but not waterlogged for the first week after transplanting.
Provide protection if needed
Keep an eye on the weather. If there is a sudden, unseasonal cold snap within the first couple of weeks, you can provide some cover to give the plant some protection. If for just overnight, an upside down pot or box will do the trick. Just be sure the cover is secure. If for longer cold snap, you can use cloche's or row cover. Remove as soon as the weather returns to normal.
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