This year, I tried starting seeds indoors for the first time. I ended up with some pretty good looking plants, not leggy at all as far as this noob can tell. I got to the point where they'd need to be planted out, but with our toddler to take care of and a bunch of other stuff taking up my time, I just didn't have time to properly harden anything off.
It got to the point where I really had to get them out or they were going to become too root-bound to be any good. I still didn't have time to harden them, so I decided I'd just throw caution to the wind and plant them out, and if they died, I'd go from starts again. I did it in the afternoon and evening over a couple of overcast days.
Surprisingly, they did just fine! I didn't have a single one wilt or fall over. One tomato didn't really seem to thrive, so I pulled it and replaced it with a start. The onions didn't do well, but they weren't doing well inside, and I sowed a bunch more anyway. Everything else, including broccoli, summer squash, and lettuce, seems to have done fine. I even managed to transplant a watermelon... I didn't know they didn't like that.
My question is, did I hurt these plants in ways I can't tell by looking a them? They all seem to be doing fairly well, but perhaps they'll develop problems? Anything I can do to up my chances?
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stella1751
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- Joined: Mon Jul 13, 2009 8:40 am
- Location: Wyoming
If they survived for two days, I would say that you didn't hurt them. Generally they will show distress within two hours of planting if they aren't prepared to handle their new environment. You chose well on your planting days. I've done this before, planted unaccustomed seedlings during a cloudy, windless period, and they did very well.
I've never heard of any long-term effects. Once they've settled in, they are good to go!
I've never heard of any long-term effects. Once they've settled in, they are good to go!