2025 Mid-Atlantic Garden, Lawn, and Other Green Stuff Thread

[dailylurker]

11 minutes ago, IronTy said:

I screwed up and set my tomato and pepper seedlings outside I nthe shade for 2hrs one day last week and I guess it was too dry and windy, they shriveled up and died.  So now I have to start over.  Argh.  

Lol we all make that mistake. I like to harden off my seedlings. You need to keep the soil cool. I put straw around the pots. Even on a cool day the sun can heat the soil and fry the delicate roots. 

[IronTy]

1 hour ago, dailylurker said:

Lol we all make that mistake. I like to harden off my seedlings. You need to keep the soil cool. I put straw around the pots. Even on a cool day the sun can heat the soil and fry the delicate roots. 

That's what I thought I was doing but I guess I underestimated how dry and windy it was outside at the time.  Lesson learned.  By the time my new seedlings are large enough luckily it'll be warmer and more humid outside.  Hopefully.  

[MDSnow93]

5 hours ago, IronTy said:

That's what I thought I was doing but I guess I underestimated how dry and windy it was outside at the time.  Lesson learned.  By the time my new seedlings are large enough luckily it'll be warmer and more humid outside.  Hopefully.  

The two main things the hardening off process is for are sun exposure and wind exposure. As well as adapting to a broader range of temps. The sun part is obvious, but the stems and roots are really not equipped to handle any real wind. A calm day is best, and I also usually start with one hour on the first day. Then slowly add on a couple more hours before gradually adding time in slightly sunnier spots. It's tedious, but I put a lot of time and effort into my seedlings. So I make sure they all make it through the home stretch! Good luck with the next batch! At this point it seems like ground sowing might be a safe bet for a lot of things! But I know more about plants, and less about weather.