How to Harden Off Your Plants
Have you ever planted new transplants that you bought or grew into your garden and had them shrivel up and die immediately after planting? Before you plant your garden this year, learn how to harden off your plants.
Many people forget this important step when starting a garden and end up with shriveled dead plants. Don't be a victim of this mistake. Hardening off your plants is easy to do, and your plants will thrive once you plant them.
What is Hardening off?
Transplants that have been grown indoors need time to adjust to their new environment outside. Whether you buy your plants from a nursery or you grow your own, every transplant must be hardened off prior to being placed into the harsh sunlight and weather conditions of your garden. Hardening off a plant simply means exposing it to its new environment slowly, much like acclimating a fish to a new aquarium.
How to do it:
Once it's time to begin planting in your garden, it's time to start the process of hardening off your plants. This will take approximately 7-14 days to accomplish, but don't worry. It doesn't require a lot of work.
Pick a warm, calm day to start setting your transplants outside. It doesn't have to be sunny because you will want to avoid direct sunlight for the first 3-5 days. Make sure there is no wind outside and your plants have been well watered.
You will want to pick a shady spot to place your plants in. On the first day, let your plants spend about 1-2 hours outside in that shady spot and then return them to the indoors. You should keep a good eye on your plants during this time to monitor their exposure. If your plants begin to wilt or the tips of the leaves curl, then bring your plants inside.
The next day, you can set your plants outside in the same shady spot for a longer period of time. Try to set them out for 2-3 hours. Continue each day increasing the length of time your plants spend outside until your plants have been exposed to at least 8 hours of daylight. I like to go until I reach 10 hours before I finally plant these into my garden.
On about the third or fourth day, you are going to start exposing your plants to increased sunshine while increasing the length of time outside. Find a spot that has dappled sunlight, or low light area. Gradually increase the sunlight your plants get over the next one to two weeks. If you notice that your plants begin to wilt, move them back to the spot they were at the day before and allow them to spend the rest of their allotted time there to recover.
Continue exposing your plants to a gradual increase in sunlight until your plants can tolerate being exposed to direct sunlight, and have spent 8-10 hours a day outside. Once this is complete, go ahead and plant your garden.
Tips to ensure success:
There are a few things to help you avoid any mishaps while your plants are hardening off:
Don't let your plants dry out. Always make sure they have been well watered prior to setting them outside for the day.
Morning sunlight is less harsh on your plants. I like to set my plants outside on those first few days early in the morning. This helps avoid burning your plants.
Make sure it isn't windy when you set your plants outside. If the weather is bad outside, simply skip the day and keep your plants indoors. The next day, set your plants out for the amount of time and exposure that they would have had on the day you skipped outside. If you need to keep your plants indoors for more than a few days because of bad weather, then start the process over at the beginning.
Do not leave your plants outside overnight until they have been hardened off. Not only will this help you avoid pests attacking your plants, but if the weather turns colder than predicted overnight, your plants will be safe indoors.
Don't rush the process. If you notice your plants are wilting, then you need to take things slower. Decrease your length of time outside, and the amount of sunlight.
I hope this helps you be successful this year with your garden planting.
Good luck!
