Ready to Plant? Vegetable Transplant Care 101

Thursday, March 28th, 2019

There are quite a few types of vegetables that benefit from an early start. Seeds from tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, celery, cabbage, and artichoke can be started indoors (or in a greenhouse) several weeks before your last frost. This helps extend your growing season and gives you healthy, established plants to put in the garden. (If you want to learn more about starting seeds indoors, check this post!)

Gardening Seeds

Other veggies like onion, broccoli, lettuce, squash, and cucumber can also be started indoors to get a jump on the growing season. These can also be sown directly in your garden if your zone has enough frost-free days. (Check your growing zone here!) Don’t try starting vegetables like beans or root crops indoors, those will need to be planted directly in the garden after the last frost.

Seedling Sprout!

How can you tell when your seedlings are ready to be planted out in the garden? Rather than size, you should judge the plant’s readiness by the number of true leaves it has. (The first leaves on a new sprout don’t count.) When there are 3-4 true leaves, that’s a good time to start hardening off the plant.

First Set of True Leaves Coming Up

Give yourself a week to harden off your plants before setting them in the garden. Start by moving them outdoors to a sheltered spot that gets morning sun for a few hours before bringing them back inside. Then each day for a week leave them outside a couple more hours until the 7th day when you leave them out overnight. Now your plants are ready to be transplanted into the garden!

Try to plant your seedlings on an overcast day, or in the late afternoon to lessen transplant shock. Once they’re in the garden, your new plants will need consistent moisture. Soaker hoses or drip irrigation are effective water-saving methods and can prevent disease by keeping the plant’s leaves dry.

If you’re planting tomatoes, don’t forget to place tomato cages or other supports while they’re small. And after all your time and hard work, you won’t want critters to come and feast on your plants! Fencing, netting, and repellents are all options that can be considered.

Lastly, it’s a good idea to mulch around your new plants to retain moisture and keep weeds at bay. Sawdust or straw are good organic choices, or for heat-loving crops like tomatoes, a plastic mulch helps hold in warmth. Now your new plants are all set and ready to grow! Happy growing!

 

Copyright 2019 Everwilde Farms

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