Ya'll, I was in a grumpy mood so I went to my community plot to plant lots of zinnias. I was waltzing on my way out all happy and full of vitamin D and garden therapy when I saw some free rescue plants. I casually walked over and THERE WAS A BRAD'S ATOMIC GRAPE. I don't know where I will put it or if it will live. But part of me was like "I think when Jess asks God to bless gardeners, this is what happens". So thanks :)
I put my seedlings in wagons and roll them outside during the day and then roll them back inside, it takes up floor space in the house but only at night!
That’s a great idea. I don’t have a lot to plant - but I do have a cat! And she kind of destroyed a few of my seedlings last year, which was the first time I tried growling from seed!
Years ago I rooted some tomato plants in the house. When they had enough roots, I stuck them in dirt and put them outside. couldn't figure out why they died. Now I know!! Actually, I think the amount of knowledge I've been gaining the past year or two is down right AMAZING!! Thank you.
You read my mind with this video 😂 I was this close to saying “meh” and planting my seedlings without hardening them off 😅😅😅 I’ll do the steps and have patience.
First year growing seeds and I so needed this! Each of these videos is giving me the confidence I need! If I only get one successful plant, my soul will sing!
It's definitely annoying, but being a first time gardener, having that task when it's a season of just watching things grow and seeing them get stronger brings an unexpected joy
My little sister is growing her first started plants this year. She was planning on transplanting them this weekend, so this video came in the nick of time!
I just gave some herbs to a friend yesterday and told her to be sure and Harden them off and she didn't know how. Now I have the perfect video to send her!
I work outside the home, so I typically leave before 5am and don't get home until after 6pm. What I do to harden off my seedlings is to put them out on the screened porch for a few days after all danger of frost has passed so I can leave them out overnight. Then I move them out onto the deck, right against the railing where the bars make shade stripes, for a few days. Then pushed back out of the shaded stripes that the railing makes. But it's still not full sun there, it gets sun between 10 and 5. Then I move them out into the garden. It's a process, but I don't have to bring them in and out every day. And it seems to work pretty well.
This totally explained what I was messing up!! This is my first year starting seeds indoors and my plants were tall, skinny, weak, and failing to thrive when I was trying to do what I thought was hardening them. THANK YOU!! Just three days into the method you described and they are drastically better!!!! Your videos make a difference!!!
🌻I am just now hardening off our plants and planting some of them in our raised beds. Some of my seedlings are looking a little rough. I have lost some because I get antsy and want to plant them in the ground so badly. Thanks for sharing your videos they brighten my day every day to learn and listen to you Jess. 🌻
Thank you for saying what the steps *are*. I'm very new and naive. I'd heard of "hardening off" just in general terms, getting your plants used to being outside, .. but I didn't know how to do that properly, and I killed a lot of them by leaving outside too long, or putting in direct sun. Having details like this helps so much!
Jess, do you have suggestions on hardening off, if you have to work a 9- 5 job? Is it better to just wait a little later in the season, and start seeds directly in the ground, if a work schedule prevents doing this process?
@@Korkythegardenslayer Being my first time starting seeds indoors, yep, never even thought about sun exposure....always bought plants to plant in my garden.
Man my tomato and peppers were such a pain to harden off for me. They do not like it one bit. My advise is definitely be patient with those. I lost a couple plants and a few stunted for the rest of the year.
I started my seeds in seed trays and everyone's favorite red cup....started with hauling them in and out every night, and then taking them out one morning, my dogs tripped me(I saved my seedlings!) and took a chunk off the side of my ankle....I then decided I was going to start leaving them out. We have been up in the 80's and then into the high 40's to 50's overnight. My seedlings have thrived! No hardening off for me! Two kinds of green beans planted on my trellis, all my squashes planted, up-potted my tomatoes so they are bigger going in the ground.....my peppers are my nemesis! Only one if each type sprouted and they are taking their time. Thank you for all your inspiration! I have a much larger garden space than I did last year and don't feel overwhelmed. I just keep trying. 😁
I put mine beside the house where they get a couple hours of early morning sun which isn't that bright then leave them there in the shade. They've been in that spot for 5 days now I think? Doing great.
I have a unheated greenhouse. I had some trays of the cabbage family in it. Well one night it got cold enough to freeze the water in the trays. It affected them some, but they were already used to the cold. On another day I had some Pepper seedlings outside on a warm overcast day, then came some unexpected strong winds with rain. The strong wind was not expected. That wind lowered the temp and harmed some of the seedlings. Some survived the shock while others got their stems broken by whiplash. Nature can be so rude. I used to heat my Harbor Freight 6x8 greenhouse until it got to the point I was heating up the world when the autovents didn't close when the heater came on. I also don't keep cabbage family seedlings in it for to long because it can encourage them to bolt from getting 100F during the day.
This was super helpful. I’m a newb. I always assumed hardening off was only to prepare the plants for lower temps at night. It never even occurred to me that it be for sun exposure too.
I am so glad that I found this channel. You speak my language! Every time I get a question in my thoughts, you must hear them. Your timing is perfect with the video posts. Thank you for the inspiration, and the time you take to explain everything so well....I wish you were my neighbor!! 😂
I hate hardening off plants so much that I stopped growing seedlings indoors for the most part. I now do almost all my plants by the winter sowing method. I might be a couple of weeks behind at first, but the plants are tough and take off right away without hardening off.
Florida gardeners, be careful... Our 4:00pm sunlight is violent for brand-new little plants. Morning mottled sunlight is a little easier on tender seedlings. ♥
My grandfathers garden at that time of the year was my favorite when I was a kid he had panels he would put up in the evening or noon sometimes and I would run behind them pretending I was in a jungle maze , I never understood what he was doing because it didn’t happen for a long time , he called it tanning them so they wouldn’t get sunburned once they started living outside. We are in Florida he even had orange trees
Your growth as a teacher has been a joy to watch! That was an excellent video describing the process. Your knowledge & joy of teaching shines through! Bravo sweet Jessica! 😁💖
We are going to use a wagon this year to bring plants in and out. We tried putting them right outside the door on a greenhouse shelving unit, but not enough air circulation or light was there. We also put plants on the porch with a sheet on a clothesline on porch to protect from bright sun. Cloudy days are the best.
Okay, I love the paint color of your garden seat. I see mine in a real pretty shade of pink this weekend. And it will stand out in the garden. Btw, in my relatively small backyard garden I’ve managed to plant 56 tomato plants! That’s just about half. It’s raining buckets here, so I’m snatching moments to run out there and put in seeds, I.e pole beans and vining plants on my cattle panel trellises. God bless you for sharing. You are so inspiring and keeping my mind occupied while I sit here getting chemotherapy (yippy, dippy, skippy!). But I’ll be outta here soon and headed back to my garden. God bless you, sweet girl!
@@melissasullivan1658 last year I had twice as many and a lot of fruit, but the pests were so bad my harvest wasn’t that good. I still have more to plant, but I’m still cleaning up the back yard from sally damage.
My first starting from seed, too! It was my goal this season so I can save money. But space is limited and I find myself planting a ton of extra seeds so that I can learn how to care for different types of seedlings since practice makes perfect! Now I don’t know what to do with all the extras. I can’t bare the thought of trashing them 💔 and most people I know don’t garden. Good luck! I hope your plant babies are doing well! 🌱
This was so helpful to this newbie! Thank you so much! My mom surprised me with your book- it looks like a textbook- marked, highlighted, underlined :). It’s been a big confidence builder to read up before I make purchases. Thanks again!
I bought a mini greenhouse low tunnel with clear plastic to transition my plants outside a few weeks before my last frost comes. As long as my temps are above 40 I leave them out. New York has been having pretty pleasant April weather so I would say for the days that have passed I haven’t had to bring them inside ones yet in April. But my frost tender plants that I have outside with your peppers basil and sweet potato growing slips, I’ve been able to harden those all off well before my frost date, so long as I’m willing to bring them in on nights when it’s Coming close to frost
Omgoodness I’ve been gardening off the last 3 days and my anxiety has been crazy!!!!! Thank goodness for my gazebo and the shade part to harden off!!!!!
I tried a few different hardening off techniques this year. The sunflowers and peppers did not like the tough love, but the tomatoes and eggplants did fine! I sped it up, leaving them out for about an hour day one, 2 hours day two and all day day three. I did move them when they were outside to partial shade so they got dappled sunlight. Some of the poor peppers got some sun burn...but they're coming back, putting out new growth. The sunflowers are growing slowly 😑 But the tomatoes and eggplants are taking off. And my dwarf tomatoes have a lot of flowers and....fruits! 🍅 Very exciting. I didn't experiment with everything, not all the peppers and sunflowers were tested. So I know next year I won't be giving them tough love. I did check the leaves and general state of the plants each day. Although this test went well for the tomatoes, they did get a break when we had a sudden cold snap. I had to bring them in. So they had a three day break after the fifth or sixth day of being outside. But next year I'll probably have a greenhouse so that will make the process much easier.
Not just sun but wind too. Last week I had a flat of tomato seedlings that I'd grown under lights, with fans, were nice and strong. I'd had them in and out of the house for several days and left them on a covered, shaded porch last Friday, and left to run errands. We ended up having 65 mile an hour winds while i was gone (I got windburn at the nursery where I was browsing!). I came home to find my tomatoes shriveled up and dry as a bone, despite being well watered the day before. Luckily I've been able to salvage most of them
Hardening off is easy in Central Kentucky 6B if you have a greenhouse. Just open the door to the greenhouse all day\evening in April, but watch for any potential freeze days ights when you might need to close it. After a couple weeks of the door being perpetually opened and the wild temperature swings it's enough to toughen the plants without even moving them. Been using this 'lazy' strategy for better than a decade with great success. I think KY being a pivot point\seesaw for air masses gives this automatic hardening-off luxury out here.
I try to harden my plants several weeks in advance just to get them out of the house..i keep a good eye on the weather forecast though.. I just got my work out in
I LOVE hardening my seedlings. But I usually only have like 2 trays to deal with, at one time. LoL. I bring 'em out every morning, and sit and watch them grow 😆
Good info Jess, thanks! I've found a way to cheat, but you have to have a specific sun/shade yard to do it. My patio gets about an hour of sun a few hours in, then several hours later another hour or so. I just bring mine out when it's warm enough and leave them for a week to ten days in this intermittent sun. When it looks like a few days of clouds, maybe even a day of rain, I put them out. By the time it clears up, they're watered in and good to go.
I actually came back to take notes. I've always felt so confused about hardening off my plants and done a terrible job. But not this year! Thank you so much!
Wow, very interesting. I have always started them with one hour of morning light working up to all day over the course of two weeks. Your method seems faster, starting in the evenings. Working backwards. Thank you. Might try next year.
This is so important step; thank you so much! I love the fact that you emphasize to exercise Patience! We are actually patient Gardeners since we enjoy watching this beautiful tomato seed grow and become beautiful plants and grow luscious fruits to be picked and eaten and preserve! What an amazing process. Be encouraged beautiful gardeners! Yes, you can have patience! Bee patient!
I just trimmed my elderberry bush and stuck about 25 tiny branches in a jar of water on my back porch. I never even thought about hardening off from the sun - only the frost. So glad I watched as today I'm dipping them in root hormone and was going to pot them into smaller pots to get more roots. Such a GOOD video today. Thanks for saving my future hedge-of-health and privacy! Your the best.
Great tips Jess. I made that mistake . I got so exticed when it got sunny to leave my seedlings out for 5 hours and now some of them died or are struggling. So true guys. I just started some of them again.
Jess, your spirit is just so beautiful to me!Just a breath of fresh air and positivity.🤗I’m a new gardener this year...thank you for the wisdom & tips!
Awesome! Thank you for the advice on starting in the later hours. I just scalded my pepper 🌶 plants an stunted (it appears) my Golden Jubilee tomato 🍅 plant. I have others on hand but, I am so tired of the winter process of indoor starts now hardening off. Trying to keep track of everything. I have been gradually adjusting the time but, one day I was late retrieving them. I believe they would have been better if it were evening. 🤷🏽♀️
First, I absolutely love your channel. I'm a first time gardener this year. I'm so so grateful for this video. I had no idea what hardening off was. And now it makes total sense. Living in NY we has a shorter growing season (especially since it snowed today 🙄) . I was going to start hardening off next. What do you think about moving the seedlings to a garage. This will start the process of getting them acclimated to the colder NY temps. And then introducing them to sunlight instead of grow light? Last thing I want to do is damage or kill off my plants. Now.... Time to go buy a t-shirt and some stickers. Love my R+R hoodie. ♥️
Wow thank you for all that information. I did try starting kale in the house and one day I put them out in the sun. I actually took them in that evening and sorry to say I kill every last one. Well I learn my lesson. So thank you such for school me with you knowledge this makes the world of difference. Oh not sure if I ever said that I live in the Caribbean. Thank you
I got plant starts from my local garden center today!! We’re supposed to have rain and possible hail tonight, so I’ll be waiting a couple days to plant... patience!! And now I know to bottom water them so when I forget to water them they will be ok!
I'm so glad I've been sort of following this advice. My tomatoes have been in a greenhouse during the day and I check on them throughout the day, but we've been into freezing temps yesterday and today and I decided to leave them under the grow lights in my basement. I'm going to begin introducing them to direct sunlight as soon as it warms up a bit again. (later this week, maybe?)... Thank you for your continued advice!
This was timely! I live in SE Michigan and for the last week the temps have been unseasonably warm, upper 70s, so I'm struggling with starting the hardening off process and being careful about the sun and wind to the day temps dropping in to the 60s and the nights in the upper 30s low 40s. Kind of like hardening off in reverse. Gardening in Michigan in the spring is like an extreme sport! Helpful info. Thanks.
As always, thank you so much for all of your knowledge and sharing it with us . I never fully understood the process of "hardening off" until now 🌱😍🌱😍🌱
I work 12 hour shifts and struggle with hardening off because of this schedule and tend to risk it more than I'd like to admit. Side note: Does anyone else love big bears little cameos? For some reason I just love when he's chilling in the back ground. Such a good dog. lol
Hey! Been loving every one of your videos! My name is Jess and I have a brother named Jeremiah! Just wanted to drop a comment to say hello and thanks for all the awesome and helpful tips! I just bought your book and an extra one to gift to a friend :)
@@laurad7439 I live around Port Washington wi have my onions planted spring garlic and potatoes and hardening off my cooler weather plants hardened off
@@sunshineinfla222 yeah I know I'm an anxiety person every year but just gets worse during the scary hardening time lol.. I should just be used to it after all these years but I just dont wanna lose them 🤣
Yay! I was hoping the tank top real food comes dirty would be available soon. Told the hubs and he bought it for me cause he's a sweet one too. We have to be careful hardening off where I am because of wind. Shredded some peppers a few years ago while hardening off when the breeze was a tad too breezy. Lesson Learned.
I want to let you know that I really appreciate all of your helpful hints and tips. I found your channel through my mom and she absolutely loves your channel! Thank you so much for all of your time and hard work you do. Keep on keepin on.... life's a garden, dig it. Favorite line from Joe Dirt. Ride That Tasty Wave Weldon
I got some baby seedlings started inside that are no where near ready for this stage, but looking forward to it! Thanks for re-opening your pre-orders for the shirt designs, I missed out last month and now I order both pretty shirts!!!
It’s still fairly cold outside, about 40 F midday, but I am starting to harden off the plants that can stand such temperatures so that I can free up some space inside for other plants. I’ll probably still move the hardened off plants inside overnight until night temps go up, but then at least they don’t need to sit in the good window.
Great video! This year I tried something different, putting them out in a low tunnel frame covered with 50% shade cloth. Now I'm starting to lift the sides of the shade cloth up to expose them to full sun a bit more everyday. I put plastic over the top when it's going to be hard rain, and I turn on Christmas lights under the frame to give them a little warmth if it's below 45 at night. So far they're doing really well. Sure beats carrying them in and out!
Love this information, I transplanted and put 2 small greenhouses on the back porch. A few hours,of morning sun and shade for most of the day. Panting in New Jersey is early May!
I think last year I did this backwards too, but im revisiting this video because I started hardening off my Tom's today. I start in the morning build up to mid-day then bring them in for night until night Temps are right for pkanting
Hello from Greece! Thank you very much for another very informative video, as always! I am very new to gardening and to be honest I was ready to plant all my seedlings to my high tunnel skipping the “hardening” step but after watching your video I am going to definitely do this step! Thank you from saving me from a possible disappointment! 😘❤️
I live in an area with a very early last frost date and mild temps and since I WFH, I bring my seedlings outside every day (when the weather is nice) once they germinate so they get used to the elements right off the bat. This way, I don’t have to harden off and can transplant when I want. But I only have a couple of trays of seedlings. They are supplemented by indoor grow lights so I don’t have to worry about getting them out first thing in the AM. Whatever method you use, setting an alarm is KEY!
As soon as you said shirts were available again I paused the video to go order my shirt as I missed the last pre-sale. Shirt is now ordered. Thanks so much for all this great information, as always it has helped me be able to grow the things I am growing this year. 🌱🌱👩🌾🙏🏻
Love that you are only just over an hour from me. Loving your video’s always so informative. And yes this time of year for hardening off does test ones patients but is very important for success. I say this because I had one of those day of impatience and burned some leaves on one of my begonias that I had been growing over the winter. Lesson learned.
Ya'll, I was in a grumpy mood so I went to my community plot to plant lots of zinnias. I was waltzing on my way out all happy and full of vitamin D and garden therapy when I saw some free rescue plants. I casually walked over and THERE WAS A BRAD'S ATOMIC GRAPE. I don't know where I will put it or if it will live. But part of me was like "I think when Jess asks God to bless gardeners, this is what happens". So thanks :)
I AM SO EXCITED FOR YOU. WE THANK GOD FOR HIS GOOD BLESSINGS!!!
That’s awesome! If nothing else you should put it in a grow bag.
Well mine are starting Outside. Had to scury to cover for this coldsnap we had ..but they look Happy. Someday ..greenhouse to start
Congratulations! I believe God DID bless you. Now my question, will it grow in zone 9a, Florida?
I am getting really spoiled to this daily ,early day motivation, I am loving it !!!
Me too love it
Growing a gardener = Hardening my patience muscle 🙃
I put my seedlings in wagons and roll them outside during the day and then roll them back inside, it takes up floor space in the house but only at night!
I have a mental picture of a little radio flyer full of seedlings. This is a great idea!
That’s a great idea. I don’t have a lot to plant - but I do have a cat! And she kind of destroyed a few of my seedlings last year, which was the first time I tried growling from seed!
Great idea. I'm going to do that when that time comes for me.
What a wonderful idea!
Years ago I rooted some tomato plants in the house. When they had enough roots, I stuck them in dirt and put them outside. couldn't figure out why they died. Now I know!! Actually, I think the amount of knowledge I've been gaining the past year or two is down right AMAZING!! Thank you.
You read my mind with this video 😂 I was this close to saying “meh” and planting my seedlings without hardening them off 😅😅😅 I’ll do the steps and have patience.
First year growing seeds and I so needed this! Each of these videos is giving me the confidence I need! If I only get one successful plant, my soul will sing!
Same here. Jess is really helping me with all her videos
It's definitely annoying, but being a first time gardener, having that task when it's a season of just watching things grow and seeing them get stronger brings an unexpected joy
My little sister is growing her first started plants this year. She was planning on transplanting them this weekend, so this video came in the nick of time!
I just gave some herbs to a friend yesterday and told her to be sure and Harden them off and she didn't know how. Now I have the perfect video to send her!
I totally need to get my herbs started. Thanks for the reminder...(0;
I work outside the home, so I typically leave before 5am and don't get home until after 6pm. What I do to harden off my seedlings is to put them out on the screened porch for a few days after all danger of frost has passed so I can leave them out overnight. Then I move them out onto the deck, right against the railing where the bars make shade stripes, for a few days. Then pushed back out of the shaded stripes that the railing makes. But it's still not full sun there, it gets sun between 10 and 5. Then I move them out into the garden.
It's a process, but I don't have to bring them in and out every day. And it seems to work pretty well.
I so appreciate that you release video's so often. It's nice to have your blessings to start my day and inspire me. Thank you 💛
This totally explained what I was messing up!! This is my first year starting seeds indoors and my plants were tall, skinny, weak, and failing to thrive when I was trying to do what I thought was hardening them.
THANK YOU!! Just three days into the method you described and they are drastically better!!!! Your videos make a difference!!!
Thank you! I’m so glad!
Sitting on the couch watching this knowing I have to bring my seedlings back inside for the night 🙃
🌻I am just now hardening off our plants and planting some of them in our raised beds. Some of my seedlings are looking a little rough. I have lost some because I get antsy and want to plant them in the ground so badly. Thanks for sharing your videos they brighten my day every day to learn and listen to you Jess. 🌻
Great advice on hardening off plants. Don’t want to lose those wee seedlings that so much time and effort has been spent on
I know , I dont want to lose them either! I worked way to hard to lose them.
Thank you for saying what the steps *are*. I'm very new and naive. I'd heard of "hardening off" just in general terms, getting your plants used to being outside, .. but I didn't know how to do that properly, and I killed a lot of them by leaving outside too long, or putting in direct sun. Having details like this helps so much!
Jess, do you have suggestions on hardening off, if you have to work a 9- 5 job? Is it better to just wait a little later in the season, and start seeds directly in the ground, if a work schedule prevents doing this process?
I needed this instruction cause I wasn’t sure on how to harden off my tomatoes and peppers. Thanks Jess!
I know right? Its not something a lot of people think about
@@Korkythegardenslayer Being my first time starting seeds indoors, yep, never even thought about sun exposure....always bought plants to plant in my garden.
Man my tomato and peppers were such a pain to harden off for me. They do not like it one bit. My advise is definitely be patient with those. I lost a couple plants and a few stunted for the rest of the year.
Don’t blow it on a single act of impatience! Love that! Great tips! Didn’t realize we’d need to do this for a week! So happy we watched this.
I started my seeds in seed trays and everyone's favorite red cup....started with hauling them in and out every night, and then taking them out one morning, my dogs tripped me(I saved my seedlings!) and took a chunk off the side of my ankle....I then decided I was going to start leaving them out. We have been up in the 80's and then into the high 40's to 50's overnight. My seedlings have thrived! No hardening off for me! Two kinds of green beans planted on my trellis, all my squashes planted, up-potted my tomatoes so they are bigger going in the ground.....my peppers are my nemesis! Only one if each type sprouted and they are taking their time. Thank you for all your inspiration! I have a much larger garden space than I did last year and don't feel overwhelmed. I just keep trying. 😁
Thank you for specifying the late afternoon time period. I definitely would have started in the morning sun not thinking about the uv ray effect.
Yes me too!!
Love your video! Thanks for the great info!
I put mine beside the house where they get a couple hours of early morning sun which isn't that bright then leave them there in the shade. They've been in that spot for 5 days now I think? Doing great.
I have a unheated greenhouse. I had some trays of the cabbage family in it. Well one night it got cold enough to freeze the water in the trays. It affected them some, but they were already used to the cold. On another day I had some Pepper seedlings outside on a warm overcast day, then came some unexpected strong winds with rain. The strong wind was not expected. That wind lowered the temp and harmed some of the seedlings. Some survived the shock while others got their stems broken by whiplash. Nature can be so rude. I used to heat my Harbor Freight 6x8 greenhouse until it got to the point I was heating up the world when the autovents didn't close when the heater came on. I also don't keep cabbage family seedlings in it for to long because it can encourage them to bolt from getting 100F during the day.
This was super helpful. I’m a newb. I always assumed hardening off was only to prepare the plants for lower temps at night. It never even occurred to me that it be for sun exposure too.
You are a professional and amazing at teaching and sharing your true passion!
I listen and learn each time as I plan my next garden 😊
Making them tougher ,like the tip and download s patients it is wearth it ❤️🙏👨🏼🌾
This is so tedious and I've been fighting the urge to skip, but I needed this pep talk. Thank you!!!
I am so glad that I found this channel. You speak my language! Every time I get a question in my thoughts, you must hear them. Your timing is perfect with the video posts. Thank you for the inspiration, and the time you take to explain everything so well....I wish you were my neighbor!! 😂
Hi Jess, love watching old videos to refresh. You are the mater guru of gardening. Thx for being there. Hope all is well with your wonderful family.
I hate hardening off plants so much that I stopped growing seedlings indoors for the most part. I now do almost all my plants by the winter sowing method. I might be a couple of weeks behind at first, but the plants are tough and take off right away without hardening off.
Good morning Jess and the whole wholesome world!!! This is encouraging and important for sure!
Florida gardeners, be careful... Our 4:00pm sunlight is violent for brand-new little plants. Morning mottled sunlight is a little easier on tender seedlings. ♥
southwest sun is brutal here. i throw shade cloth over my infant garden on occassion. i did find some 50% garden shade covers online.
Thank you so much! You just prevented my seedlings from wilting :)
@@cristymarie6450 ♥♥♥
Same in Cali. They were going out at about 9am. 3pm+ would’ve been way too harsh around here.
My grandfathers garden at that time of the year was my favorite when I was a kid he had panels he would put up in the evening or noon sometimes and I would run behind them pretending I was in a jungle maze , I never understood what he was doing because it didn’t happen for a long time , he called it tanning them so they wouldn’t get sunburned once they started living outside. We are in Florida he even had orange trees
Your growth as a teacher has been a joy to watch! That was an excellent video describing the process. Your knowledge & joy of teaching shines through! Bravo sweet Jessica! 😁💖
We are going to use a wagon this year to bring plants in and out. We tried putting them right outside the door on a greenhouse shelving unit, but not enough air circulation or light was there. We also put plants on the porch with a sheet on a clothesline on porch to protect from bright sun. Cloudy days are the best.
I always dread this step too.. I know it so important to do but pain of moving in and out is not fun
Okay, I love the paint color of your garden seat. I see mine in a real pretty shade of pink this weekend. And it will stand out in the garden. Btw, in my relatively small backyard garden I’ve managed to plant 56 tomato plants! That’s just about half. It’s raining buckets here, so I’m snatching moments to run out there and put in seeds, I.e pole beans and vining plants on my cattle panel trellises. God bless you for sharing. You are so inspiring and keeping my mind occupied while I sit here getting chemotherapy (yippy, dippy, skippy!). But I’ll be outta here soon and headed back to my garden. God bless you, sweet girl!
FIFTY SIX? 😳 That will be quite the workload come July. But boy will it be tasty!
@@melissasullivan1658 last year I had twice as many and a lot of fruit, but the pests were so bad my harvest wasn’t that good. I still have more to plant, but I’m still cleaning up the back yard from sally damage.
Never heard of hardening but, it makes total sense. Thanks, Jess. 🙏❤✌👵
Thank you Jess! This is my first season starting my own seeds and this is vital info!
My first starting from seed, too! It was my goal this season so I can save money. But space is limited and I find myself planting a ton of extra seeds so that I can learn how to care for different types of seedlings since practice makes perfect! Now I don’t know what to do with all the extras. I can’t bare the thought of trashing them 💔 and most people I know don’t garden.
Good luck! I hope your plant babies are doing well! 🌱
@@debbyd5729 Thanks! Everything is up and happy apart from tomatillos. Those didn't work for me, for some reason.
Hardening off can not be said enough. No matter when you live. Great vlog.
You speak right to my impatient soul, Jess.
This was so helpful to this newbie! Thank you so much! My mom surprised me with your book- it looks like a textbook- marked, highlighted, underlined :). It’s been a big confidence builder to read up before I make purchases. Thanks again!
You are so right! Hardening off is not a fun process but a necessary one. Thanks for your encouragement to stay the course! ☺️
I bought a mini greenhouse low tunnel with clear plastic to transition my plants outside a few weeks before my last frost comes. As long as my temps are above 40 I leave them out. New York has been having pretty pleasant April weather so I would say for the days that have passed I haven’t had to bring them inside ones yet in April. But my frost tender plants that I have outside with your peppers basil and sweet potato growing slips, I’ve been able to harden those all off well before my frost date, so long as I’m willing to bring them in on nights when it’s Coming close to frost
Omgoodness I’ve been gardening off the last 3 days and my anxiety has been crazy!!!!! Thank goodness for my gazebo and the shade part to harden off!!!!!
I tried a few different hardening off techniques this year. The sunflowers and peppers did not like the tough love, but the tomatoes and eggplants did fine!
I sped it up, leaving them out for about an hour day one, 2 hours day two and all day day three. I did move them when they were outside to partial shade so they got dappled sunlight. Some of the poor peppers got some sun burn...but they're coming back, putting out new growth. The sunflowers are growing slowly 😑
But the tomatoes and eggplants are taking off. And my dwarf tomatoes have a lot of flowers and....fruits! 🍅
Very exciting.
I didn't experiment with everything, not all the peppers and sunflowers were tested. So I know next year I won't be giving them tough love.
I did check the leaves and general state of the plants each day. Although this test went well for the tomatoes, they did get a break when we had a sudden cold snap. I had to bring them in. So they had a three day break after the fifth or sixth day of being outside.
But next year I'll probably have a greenhouse so that will make the process much easier.
Not just sun but wind too. Last week I had a flat of tomato seedlings that I'd grown under lights, with fans, were nice and strong. I'd had them in and out of the house for several days and left them on a covered, shaded porch last Friday, and left to run errands. We ended up having 65 mile an hour winds while i was gone (I got windburn at the nursery where I was browsing!). I came home to find my tomatoes shriveled up and dry as a bone, despite being well watered the day before. Luckily I've been able to salvage most of them
Hardening off is easy in Central Kentucky 6B if you have a greenhouse. Just open the door to the greenhouse all day\evening in April, but watch for any potential freeze days
ights when you might need to close it. After a couple weeks of the door being perpetually opened and the wild temperature swings it's enough to toughen the plants without even moving them. Been using this 'lazy' strategy for better than a decade with great success. I think KY being a pivot point\seesaw for air masses gives this automatic hardening-off luxury out here.
I'm in 6b as well. Great idea!
Got information. Never thought of evening hardening off. Thanks!
I try to harden my plants several weeks in advance just to get them out of the house..i keep a good eye on the weather forecast though.. I just got my work out in
I'm working on hardening off my plants too! Thanks for sharing!!!
I LOVE hardening my seedlings. But I usually only have like 2 trays to deal with, at one time. LoL. I bring 'em out every morning, and sit and watch them grow 😆
Good info Jess, thanks! I've found a way to cheat, but you have to have a specific sun/shade yard to do it. My patio gets about an hour of sun a few hours in, then several hours later another hour or so. I just bring mine out when it's warm enough and leave them for a week to ten days in this intermittent sun. When it looks like a few days of clouds, maybe even a day of rain, I put them out. By the time it clears up, they're watered in and good to go.
I love your channel I have a backyard garden and I am growing a lot of tomatoes and peppers, corn, collard greens and different kale.
Oh sweet hardening off
Blessings
"Now, let's learn about hardening off plants." No, let's order a t-shirt, first! BRB...
Hahaha 💃🏻
Girl same. Within seconds I had to get more stickers and new tanks 😆
Haha. Me, too!
Lol same! 😄
@@whisperjoy1128 i do love the tanks. I'm sad that my old one with Miriam on it has faded so much
So excited for the new shirts my favorite colors with the beautiful graphics!!!! Thank you for relaunching a preorder. 🥰
Jess this content is amazing 😊 It is a part of my day that I look forward to!
This was the clearest explanation of hardening off plants and I finally see what I was doing wrong. Thank you!
I actually came back to take notes. I've always felt so confused about hardening off my plants and done a terrible job. But not this year! Thank you so much!
Can you add head wraps to your shop? Some of the ones you wear are so pretty, I’d love to support you guys and buy one if you were to add them 😊
Once again thank you so much for your time and energy you put into your videos. I really appreciate all the knowledge that you share.😊
Wow, very interesting. I have always started them with one hour of morning light working up to all day over the course of two weeks.
Your method seems faster, starting in the evenings. Working backwards. Thank you. Might try next year.
I learn something each and every single time I click on one of your videos! Bless you!
i know same here!
This is so important step; thank you so much! I love the fact that you emphasize to exercise Patience! We are actually patient Gardeners since we enjoy watching this beautiful tomato seed grow and become beautiful plants and grow luscious fruits to be picked and eaten and preserve! What an amazing process. Be encouraged beautiful gardeners! Yes, you can have patience! Bee patient!
I just trimmed my elderberry bush and stuck about 25 tiny branches in a jar of water on my back porch. I never even thought about hardening off from the sun - only the frost. So glad I watched as today I'm dipping them in root hormone and was going to pot them into smaller pots to get more roots. Such a GOOD video today. Thanks for saving my future hedge-of-health and privacy! Your the best.
Great tips Jess. I made that mistake . I got so exticed when it got sunny to leave my seedlings out for 5 hours and now some of them died or are struggling. So true guys. I just started some of them again.
Same here! I was like ohhhh finally sunny with 74 degree temp 😍...anddddd they burned 🙃😅
@@symmonep9591Yeah.. a mistake i will never make again!
@@AmasAuthenticJourney exactly! We’ll recover though! It’ll be just fine ☺️
@@symmonep9591 Right! Good luck!
Jess, your spirit is just so beautiful to me!Just a breath of fresh air and positivity.🤗I’m a new gardener this year...thank you for the wisdom & tips!
Thanks Jess! Hardening off is probably a common question for many. Great job. Patience required! Bless You and Yours
Awesome! Thank you for the advice on starting in the later hours. I just scalded my pepper 🌶 plants an stunted (it appears) my Golden Jubilee tomato 🍅 plant. I have others on hand but, I am so tired of the winter process of indoor starts now hardening off. Trying to keep track of everything. I have been gradually adjusting the time but, one day I was late retrieving them. I believe they would have been better if it were evening. 🤷🏽♀️
First, I absolutely love your channel. I'm a first time gardener this year. I'm so so grateful for this video. I had no idea what hardening off was. And now it makes total sense. Living in NY we has a shorter growing season (especially since it snowed today 🙄) . I was going to start hardening off next. What do you think about moving the seedlings to a garage. This will start the process of getting them acclimated to the colder NY temps. And then introducing them to sunlight instead of grow light? Last thing I want to do is damage or kill off my plants. Now.... Time to go buy a t-shirt and some stickers. Love my R+R hoodie. ♥️
Wow thank you for all that information. I did try starting kale in the house and one day I put them out in the sun. I actually took them in that evening and sorry to say I kill every last one.
Well I learn my lesson. So thank you such for school me with you knowledge this makes the world of difference. Oh not sure if I ever said that I live in the Caribbean.
Thank you
Got preoccupied yesterday and scalded alot of my babies! Wahhhh
I got plant starts from my local garden center today!! We’re supposed to have rain and possible hail tonight, so I’ll be waiting a couple days to plant... patience!! And now I know to bottom water them so when I forget to water them they will be ok!
I'm so glad I've been sort of following this advice. My tomatoes have been in a greenhouse during the day and I check on them throughout the day, but we've been into freezing temps yesterday and today and I decided to leave them under the grow lights in my basement.
I'm going to begin introducing them to direct sunlight as soon as it warms up a bit again. (later this week, maybe?)... Thank you for your continued advice!
Love this video! Very important step for sure!!! If you skip this step the plants will have a tough time surviving! Have a great day!
Totally an important step. We didn’t know our first year and directly put them out and we ended up sunburning our babies.
@@Korkythegardenslayer yeah we’ve probably all learned the hard way before!
I started seeds indoors and am getting ready to transition them to the garden. Really helpful video! Thank you.
This was timely! I live in SE Michigan and for the last week the temps have been unseasonably warm, upper 70s, so I'm struggling with starting the hardening off process and being careful about the sun and wind to the day temps dropping in to the 60s and the nights in the upper 30s low 40s. Kind of like hardening off in reverse. Gardening in Michigan in the spring is like an extreme sport! Helpful info. Thanks.
As always, thank you so much for all of your knowledge and sharing it with us . I never fully understood the process of "hardening off" until now 🌱😍🌱😍🌱
I work 12 hour shifts and struggle with hardening off because of this schedule and tend to risk it more than I'd like to admit.
Side note: Does anyone else love big bears little cameos? For some reason I just love when he's chilling in the back ground. Such a good dog. lol
I love Bear and all the animals ❤️
Hey! Been loving every one of your videos! My name is Jess and I have a brother named Jeremiah! Just wanted to drop a comment to say hello and thanks for all the awesome and helpful tips! I just bought your book and an extra one to gift to a friend :)
I started hardening off yesterday and idk about everyone else but it makes my anxiety so much worse 😅😩
I’m in Wisconsin - I have a ways to go yet!! I don’t plant a lot but I can see how anxiety provoking it could be!
@@laurad7439 I live around Port Washington wi have my onions planted spring garlic and potatoes and hardening off my cooler weather plants hardened off
Just think of it as they need a little suntan before going to the beach!! No sunburn!
@@sunshineinfla222 yeah I know I'm an anxiety person every year but just gets worse during the scary hardening time lol.. I should just be used to it after all these years but I just dont wanna lose them 🤣
I just stare at them like they'll explode or something 🤣
I have sun scalded my seedlings moving from indoors under grow lights to my greenhouse. Always learning.
Yay! I was hoping the tank top real food comes dirty would be available soon. Told the hubs and he bought it for me cause he's a sweet one too. We have to be careful hardening off where I am because of wind. Shredded some peppers a few years ago while hardening off when the breeze was a tad too breezy. Lesson Learned.
I want to let you know that I really appreciate all of your helpful hints and tips. I found your channel through my mom and she absolutely loves your channel! Thank you so much for all of your time and hard work you do. Keep on keepin on.... life's a garden, dig it. Favorite line from Joe Dirt.
Ride That Tasty Wave
Weldon
Dig it!!!
I got some baby seedlings started inside that are no where near ready for this stage, but looking forward to it! Thanks for re-opening your pre-orders for the shirt designs, I missed out last month and now I order both pretty shirts!!!
I don't have a green thumb, so thanks for that info. Learned something new. 🌷🌻🌼🍓🍅🥕🌶️🌽🍠🥦🫑🥒🧄🥔
It’s still fairly cold outside, about 40 F midday, but I am starting to harden off the plants that can stand such temperatures so that I can free up some space inside for other plants. I’ll probably still move the hardened off plants inside overnight until night temps go up, but then at least they don’t need to sit in the good window.
I love all the angles. Getting super fancy!
Such a beautiful greenhouse! Loving all the colors. Thank you for all the great information!
Great video! This year I tried something different, putting them out in a low tunnel frame covered with 50% shade cloth. Now I'm starting to lift the sides of the shade cloth up to expose them to full sun a bit more everyday. I put plastic over the top when it's going to be hard rain, and I turn on Christmas lights under the frame to give them a little warmth if it's below 45 at night. So far they're doing really well. Sure beats carrying them in and out!
Love this information, I transplanted and put 2 small greenhouses on the back porch. A few hours,of morning sun and shade for most of the day. Panting in New Jersey is early May!
I think last year I did this backwards too, but im revisiting this video because I started hardening off my Tom's today. I start in the morning build up to mid-day then bring them in for night until night Temps are right for pkanting
Hello from Greece! Thank you very much for another very informative video, as always! I am very new to gardening and to be honest I was ready to plant all my seedlings to my high tunnel skipping the “hardening” step but after watching your video I am going to definitely do this step! Thank you from saving me from a possible disappointment! 😘❤️
What I love about you is you're such a sweet young lady. You're real. God bless you and your family.
I live in an area with a very early last frost date and mild temps and since I WFH, I bring my seedlings outside every day (when the weather is nice) once they germinate so they get used to the elements right off the bat. This way, I don’t have to harden off and can transplant when I want. But I only have a couple of trays of seedlings. They are supplemented by indoor grow lights so I don’t have to worry about getting them out first thing in the AM.
Whatever method you use, setting an alarm is KEY!
As soon as you said shirts were available again I paused the video to go order my shirt as I missed the last pre-sale. Shirt is now ordered. Thanks so much for all this great information, as always it has helped me be able to grow the things I am growing this year. 🌱🌱👩🌾🙏🏻
You're right, it does test your patience muscle
Good job love your channel 👏 God bless you
Thanks for explaining this process!!
Love that you are only just over an hour from me. Loving your video’s always so informative. And yes this time of year for hardening off does test ones patients but is very important for success. I say this because I had one of those day of impatience and burned some leaves on one of my begonias that I had been growing over the winter. Lesson learned.
Perfect timing 👌 just started today