09/29/2019 / By Grace Olson
If you are just starting your gardening journey, here’s an important tip. Before planting your seedlings, they need a bit of toughening up. This process is called hardening. Hardening off your plants is key to helping them survive and ensuring a healthy, bountiful garden. (h/t to OldWorldGardenFarms.com)
Hardening is the process of taking your seedlings outside in increasing lengths so that they become strong enough to live outdoors. Outside, plants will be constantly exposed to the forces of nature, like harsh winds, scorching heat, and beating rains. You run the risk of having your plants wilt, burn, or die. There are also other factors that can affect your plants’ health, like the soil and their access to water. As their gardener, it is crucial that you take the time to let them adjust to the outside world.
Here are some things to note before beginning the hardening process:
Before you harden your plants, remember that different seedlings have different needs. Some seeds only need one week of hardening while others might need a bit more time. It also depends on what kind of seedlings they are because different plants have different preferences in temperature and other factors. Make sure to do your homework on your plant’s needs and preferences before beginning. (Related: How to test seed viability before planting in the garden.)
For gardeners who grow their own seedlings indoors, the hardening process should begin around three or more weeks before planting day. Homegrown seedlings are usually more delicate than others, so they need more time to adjust.
Store-bought seedlings are generally hardier than their homegrown counterparts. They are also often larger and more robust. Nonetheless, they will still need to be hardened off to help them adjust to outdoor conditions. For these seedlings, about a week or so before planting is enough to harden them.
In the course of the hardening process, if you see your plants wilting, bring them back inside to rest. Try again the following day. Before long, you will have a blooming garden and vegetables to harvest.
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