Safe to plant outside, or not.

Scuba_Steve

Scuba_Steve

Sorry, I'm on a phone so forgive the rough copy/paste.

Some temps are showing below 55°. I'm antsy though lol. Can I plant outside, or should I wait it out?

Today
Mar 11
85°F 63°F
20%

Thu
Mar 12
72° 55°
20%

Fri
Mar 13
70° 61°
80%

Sat
Mar 14
79° 63°
50%

Sun
Mar 15
79° 52°
20%

Mon
Mar 16
72° 47°
0%

Tue
Mar 17
77° 51°
0%

Wed
Mar 18
73° 48°
0%

Thu
Mar 19
69° 46°
10%

Fri
Mar 20
69° 50°
10%
 
To really thrive they need to be above 55... they will survive high 30s.  The argument is usually that you would be better off waiting to plant out when the temps dont go below 55.  However, I think they really like to stretch those roots out, so the sooner you can get them potted up or planted outside, the better.
 
If I had to wait before the daily lows were above 55F here in Seattle, I'd have to wait until the middle of June to plant.  I try to wait until the lows are above 40 degrees. 
 
Ill admit, usually I plant alot later than just after the average last date of frost.... The past 3 years I havnt been able to get things in the ground until more like the first fo June, but that is too late.  This year I am going to gamble on spring coming on strong and plant out in late April.   But, as Chis points out, May is the safest bet.
 
Are you hardening them off (ie.: acclimating them to outdoor sunlight [indoor lights and greenhouses have little or no UV], wind, and temperatures) so they're ready for this?

Failing to do this probably won't kill them (sometimes it can...), but it can set the plants back a month if they get really 'shocky'. Morning sunlight, sheltered (away from strong breezes) locations, for 1-2 hours per day at first -- then raising their exposure time, is ideal.

If this isn't practical (most folk can't stay at home all day to pamper their plants), covering them with that gauze-like crop-row cover fabric (or similar fine netting) for the 1st week will really help. Noonday sun, stiff breezes and cold temperatures combined can pretty much defoliate plants that have no TLC at this stage. Heavy rains can be the last straw... killing them.
 
Scuba_Steve said:
With this weather I am not worried about frost anymore. I thought peppers needed to be kept above 55° though.
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IMO, the extra light from out local star outweighs the warmer evenings the plants would enjoy inside.   Go for it!
 
One good 80+ day in the sun is probably worth 2 or 3 days under lights.
 
As mentioned ^^^, be sure to introduce them to Mr.Sun and Mr. Dry Wind in a gradual manner.
The roots will struggle to keep up with the extra metabolism and sharply increased water loss.
The leaves seem to 'tan' fairly quickly, but even they will burn if abruptly exposed to a full day of sun.
 
W/o knowing how bright your lights are, I'd go with full shade for 2 days.  Then either an hour or two of morning and evening sun (got a tree to put them under?) or a shade cloth.
 
It's Mothers day here, but that is still no guarantee. If you are able and have the room, I would wait.they will gain more growth where they are vs.where they will go.
 
Thank you for the advise.  My lights are decently strong.  The have been under 2 18x3w LED bulbs @ 14" through the first half of their life, and then a 300w LED fixture @ 24" for the second half.
 
I do realize that they need to be hardened though.  They have gotten a few hours outside occasionally.  They need more though, at a more consistent rate.  I will probably wait at least a week+ and get them some exposure.  I will also see what the weather forecast looks like then.
 
As far as Mother's Day goes though, I respect your advice.  I am however going to pass on it though.  The weather is quite a bit different here than it is up north.  I will be at the beach by the middle of April, no matter the middle of May.  Again, I am not the type who posts a question even though I already have my mind made up and refuse to follow the advice given.  Those people drive me nuts.  Mother's Day is just way to long for my climate.
 
Also, the weather may say 47 as a low but in your spot it may be 44 or 53. In my case my garden is half surrounded by a rock wall, so they are protected from the wind, and I'm up on a hill, so I usually don't have a problem mid May when average temperatures here are in the low 50s. Plus the fact that low 50's will only slow down growth and not cause any harm, no?
 
Scuba_Steve said:
Thank you for the advise.  My lights are decently strong.  The have been under 2 18x3w LED bulbs @ 14" through the first half of their life, and then a 300w LED fixture @ 24" for the second half.
 
I do realize that they need to be hardened though.  They have gotten a few hours outside occasionally.  They need more though, at a more consistent rate.  I will probably wait at least a week+ and get them some exposure.  I will also see what the weather forecast looks like then.
 
As far as Mother's Day goes though, I respect your advice.  I am however going to pass on it though.  The weather is quite a bit different here than it is up north.  I will be at the beach by the middle of April, no matter the middle of May.  Again, I am not the type who posts a question even though I already have my mind made up and refuse to follow the advice given.  Those people drive me nuts.  Mother's Day is just way to long for my climate.
Click to expand...
Oh, I know full well what the weather is down by you. I have lived in Fla, Ga, Ala and SC. My ref to Mothers day was for here in the great un white now north. When I was in SC I got my wife snapdragons to plant in her flower bed. They had blooms all year long.
 
 
In your location Steve, I would get them out asap and start hardening them off while the sun is mild.
 
We almost hit 90 today and will in the next few days.  Still haven't put all my plants out.  I'll likely do the rest this weekend because outside temp/sun is going to be about the same as inside.  Its very hard out here to "harden them off" I've found.  I try to mimic the outside environment in the grow room instead.  We don't see much of a Spring and this year there just isn't one.  I moved 45 out last weekend of the commons and they are doing fine except for 2 that had pods forming (just common bells) they turned tits up.
 
You weather has also been all over the place this year but in a different direction.  I think I'd wait a while honestly.
 
Steve,,sup man,,they definitely need to be hardened
 
we are neighbors,,so let me tell ya a story
 
ONE time i put em out early,,got in the 40s one night ,,a few nice sized seedlings,,,didnt die or burn,,just a tad bit of wilt
 
a few weeks later i planted more beside them...those poor guys were stunted thru the season,,while everything else took off,they grew half the size
 
BTW our "mean freeze" date here is April 5th
 
I been eye'in the 10 day too!  :P
 
Kevin
 
Last year I took one of my Choc bhuts and put it in my poly tunnel a few days before spring leaving the others under lights.After one week the indoor ones were noticeably bigger and healthier looking.
I believe keeping them under good lighting(20 hrs or more) with a nice temp is better than putting them out prematurely.This year I will keep them under lights longer.
 
Those temps look better than mine in June when I plant out. That's jealousy talking!

I would not be in any hurry to get them outside. If you were to plant out first week of April,that would give you 7+ months in your zone. You could direct sow chinense seeds and get two flushes in that amount of time! Jealousy talking again!
 
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