I'm in the process of hardening off lots of things but nothing actually in-ground yet other than beets, lettuce, cabbage, broccoli, onions, and potatoes. Wife put some snapdragons and a few herbs out in containers yesterday so we can bring them in if we have too.

I know it's hard to wait but you can get some satisfaction from hardening them off well first. ;) Enjouy your plants!

dave

Thanks for your response! So it is OK to put out lettuce seedlings now? I have a sprouted tray full of them. Did you put them in the ground or in pots?
And can I start some lettuce seeds outside now?

Also, is it way too soon to put out Moonflower sprouts? Last year my Moonflowers did very well, but this year the seedlings are unhappy inside, I don't know why. I have lost most of them.
Thanks
Audrey

Oh yeah lettuce seedling can go in the ground now. Have had some in the ground for 2 weeks with no problems. They are quite tolerant of the cooler temps - they don't like all the heavy rain we have had lately cause it bashes them up some but they recover within 24 hours. Lettuce seed too. I planted it 3 weeks ago.

Moonflower I can't help you with, sorry, never grown them. We could still get a late frost but you could cover them. Just make sure they are hardened off well first. ;)

Dave

Hey Dave,
When you harden off the seedlings do you take them back in at night? Or do you leave them out. I've read both things and was wondering if you or anyone had an opinion about that during the hardening off process.
Thanks
George

I leave them out. Our nights have been mid-40's to low 50's for the past week since I started. If it was supposed to get down into mid-30's or lower I'd bring them in. Otherwise they are doing fine. Hail storms are my biggest worry. ;)

Dave

Definitely start hardening things off now, unless they really like warm weather (like the tomatoes or peppers). Anything that's a 'cool annual' or vegetable will be fine outside now, as long as they're hardened off to both sun and temperatures. moonflowers like warmth, but if they're suffering from lack of light then a little outdoor light on a warm day might do them good. I bring things back inside at night when I'm first hardening things off, and then if I'm leaving things out all night I watch the temperatures very carefully in March and April. There are some websites that will tell you the best temperature ranges for hardened-off plants, so if, for instance, it says that Osteospermum is hardy down to 30F, then you can leave the osteos out all night if they've been fully hardened off. Keep in mind that while something may be hardy at a cold temperature, it's ideal growing temperature may be 60F, so if they're outside in 45F weather they won't die, but they won't get bigger.

Here's a link with some suggested temps.

Here is a link that might be useful: Hardening off temps.

I winter sowed over 300 varieties and planted out about 10 varieties this week. I strongly recommend this method to those of you who have houses full of seeds that you started inside. Just my 2 cents!