Comments on: Hardening Plants http://bifurcatedcarrots.eu/2006/04/hardening-plants/ Heirloom gardening and the lives of Pat 'n' Steph Fri, 10 Feb 2012 02:50:31 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: joe smith http://bifurcatedcarrots.eu/2006/04/hardening-plants/comment-page-1/#comment-21372 joe smith Tue, 21 Oct 2008 14:26:01 +0000 http://www.patnsteph.net/weblog/?p=28#comment-21372 to get my plants to harden i put them in a deep freezer...it makes them wayy flippen hard!!! =] to get my plants to harden i put them in a deep freezer…it makes them wayy flippen hard!!! =]

]]> By: lilymarlene http://bifurcatedcarrots.eu/2006/04/hardening-plants/comment-page-1/#comment-66 lilymarlene Sun, 09 Apr 2006 21:39:29 +0000 http://www.patnsteph.net/weblog/?p=28#comment-66 Thanks....I'll try that. We live at the highest point for some distance here so catch a lot of wind, but we do have fences all round which offer some protection. Thanks….I’ll try that.
We live at the highest point for some distance here so catch a lot of wind, but we do have fences all round which offer some protection.

]]> By: Patrick http://bifurcatedcarrots.eu/2006/04/hardening-plants/comment-page-1/#comment-65 Patrick Sun, 09 Apr 2006 18:42:49 +0000 http://www.patnsteph.net/weblog/?p=28#comment-65 It's not just the temperature, but it's the exposure to fresh air, wind, direct sunlight and so on. I would say yes you probably will need to harden them, but I'm not completely sure. Depending on how your polytunnel is constructed, you may be able to harden them partly or completely by just opening a flap to let outside air in. If you have a plant or two that you could afford to lose if something went wrong, you could let them sit outside for an hour or two. Watch the plants over the next 24 hours, and if they are wilted or show other signs of stress, it's a pretty good indication you need to go through the whole hardening procedure. If it were me, I would harden them just to be sure. My garden is too windy for a polytunnel, so I've never used one. It’s not just the temperature, but it’s the exposure to fresh air, wind, direct sunlight and so on. I would say yes you probably will need to harden them, but I’m not completely sure. Depending on how your polytunnel is constructed, you may be able to harden them partly or completely by just opening a flap to let outside air in.

If you have a plant or two that you could afford to lose if something went wrong, you could let them sit outside for an hour or two. Watch the plants over the next 24 hours, and if they are wilted or show other signs of stress, it’s a pretty good indication you need to go through the whole hardening procedure. If it were me, I would harden them just to be sure.

My garden is too windy for a polytunnel, so I’ve never used one.

]]> By: lilymarlene http://bifurcatedcarrots.eu/2006/04/hardening-plants/comment-page-1/#comment-64 lilymarlene Sun, 09 Apr 2006 17:08:27 +0000 http://www.patnsteph.net/weblog/?p=28#comment-64 I have lots of plants in my polytunnel. The temperature at night is really not much better than outside it....it has been down to freezing a couple of times. Would I still need to harden stuff for a week, given that they have already survived those low temperatures? Thanks for your attention! I have lots of plants in my polytunnel. The temperature at night is really not much better than outside it….it has been down to freezing a couple of times. Would I still need to harden stuff for a week, given that they have already survived those low temperatures?
Thanks for your attention!

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