Beautiful day: 50°F+ (10°C) in the shade, over 60 (15°C) in the glorious sun! Couldn’t resist putting SOMETHING outside, so out went the first three trays of Red Wing red onions. Set them out around 10 am for a couple of hours, on a stack of lumber (the plywood is for re-flooring the upper barn), just outside the seedling room door, facing east.
This isn’t regular hardening off, just a kinda day trip, because I’m not sure when the greenhouse will be up. Normally, the plan is to get the hardy seedlings ready for moving out there sometime in April, but depending on the weather, they may stay indoors longer than usual. So, I dunno if back and forth between full-on SUN and WIND, and then the pale, fan-stirred world of the fluorescents, will freak ’em out a bit, but I don’t think so. It hasn’t done in the past! And I’ll keep putting them out every nice day from here on in…
This is the inquisitive, kinda impatient gardener at work, more than any sort of pro market grower on a rigorous production schedule (dunno if I even really have one of those anymore)—I like seeing indoor-started seedlings get outdoors, meet the real world, even for a minute, even if it’s arugula in the snow… Fun with tiny farming!
I’ve been taking mine out as well on any sunny day we have. They seem to love it! Soon enough they’ll be out in my mini greenhouse, but it will be after this coming cold snowy weather.
Organic is the way to go! The vegetables taste the best.
Hey! I’ve just started reading and so glad to have found you! We’re a tiny farm too. I’m using your seeding schedule to guide my own NO PRESSURE! :D
What a great blog. I’m glad to see to see someone succeeding at something that’s been a dream of mine. I look forward to checking in regularly.
In the meantime, c’mon Spring !!
I also put my seedling out in a sheltered spot on mild days 45F+ – except for eggplants when I wait for warm days (60F +). It does them good!