-
Do you need help identifying a 🌶?
Is your plant suffering from an unknown issue? 🤧
Then ask in Identification and Diagnosis.
Planting Out?
- Thread starter inolan22
- Start date
Ok, that was what I was thinking. The only problem I am having right now is finding the time to harden off my plants. I work 8-5 every day, and with the weather lately, I don't want to leave my plants out all day since they might get rained to death. They do get alot of time outside during the weekend, but the time on weekdays is limited.
Make a simple lean-to against the side of your house. Use plywood or whatever you have laying around and secure it so it doesn't blow away. Even though they won't get any direct light, the exposure to outdoors will harden them slowly and safely. Don't let the lean-to collapse on them while you're gone. That would be bad.
i grew mine from seed indoors, and the only hardening off i gave them was setting them on my patio as soon as the threat of frost was gone. they only get light sun if against the window or alot of sun by the railing.
TO experiment with this, i put my overwintered black pearl right out into the sun and it's got a ton of new growth and lost a couple leggy branches as well. They were just too weak. Not a total loss though, as i was able to take 3 good cuttings from this mother plant. One is planted in the ground at my off-site garden (the in-laws) and the other two are in my cloner. There was a good bit of sun scorched leaves, but the new growth is promising.
Not knowing your schedule, i would slide them out in the am and right back in when you get home for a week or two and than just plant them out. it's not like you couldn't start again. If you have 3-4 good sets of leaves they'll probably make it.
TO experiment with this, i put my overwintered black pearl right out into the sun and it's got a ton of new growth and lost a couple leggy branches as well. They were just too weak. Not a total loss though, as i was able to take 3 good cuttings from this mother plant. One is planted in the ground at my off-site garden (the in-laws) and the other two are in my cloner. There was a good bit of sun scorched leaves, but the new growth is promising.
Not knowing your schedule, i would slide them out in the am and right back in when you get home for a week or two and than just plant them out. it's not like you couldn't start again. If you have 3-4 good sets of leaves they'll probably make it.
fineexampl said:
Most of my plants are in the midst of producing their third set of leaves if they have not already opened up.
I will probably end up leaving them all day in the shade to start out with then slowly ease them into the sun. I do have a bunch of plants, so even if I lose one or two plants it won't hurt my crop
.
bigt said:
Wow are you serious? I thought the plant had to be 4-6" minimum before they would be able to go outside?? I guess I have to verify info online first next time. I ordered 12 plants and each one is already 3-4", but I've been keeping them inside under the light. Should I go ahead and start hardening them off? I don't have much room with the new sprouts so being able to put them outside would be a huge plus.
LGHT said:
I've got seedlings that are a half and inch tall that I'm hardening off. There's not set time when you shouldn't do it.
LGHT said:
If you got those from Cross Country, I'll bet they are already partially hardened. They've been in a greenhouse. They are ready for some real light again, just start with shade be sure. I have a one inch Gold Bullet in a cup getting hardened right now. Still on it's 1st leaves, but 2nd one's are coming. Those Bullets really grow slow and natural light speeds them up IMO. Some CC instructions
bigt said:
Yeah they where from CC. I read those instructions, but it didn't say anything about the size the plant needs to be or when to put it outside. So I was going by another website instead that said only put plants outside when they are 4-6"
I'll start getting them outside in a shaded area that gets about 2 hours of direct sun a day. Then move them to an area that gets about 4 hours then again to an area that gets about 8-10 hours.
