Tips for Planting:
You are getting ready to plant your garden, now is the time to check the weather forecast and make a plan.
Check your area's Last Frost Date. In our zone 5B, it is around mid-May, however we have certainly experienced very cold temperatures later than that.
Many plants from tropical climates (tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, basil, tulsi etc) will suffer if exposed to temps below about 50 deg F. If it's a warm Spring it can be tempting to plant out early.
Caution! It is wise to wait until the forecast shows consistent night temperatures in the 50's. Soil temperature is slower to warm than air, and it is not beneficial to have a plant sitting in soil exposed to the harsh elements. You will likely see very little growth on that plant until the temperatures increase.
However - if you are growing cold hardy plants like kale, lettuce, chard, calendula, parsley and many herbaceous perennials - you can transplant in mid-May or earlier with success.
Avoid mulching with the light colored mulches (like straw) too early in the season, as the reflective properties will actually decrease soil temperatures.
Hardening off:
Grown indoors with soil mix and a roof over their heads, your seedlings have lived in very different conditions from your garden. They have not experienced gusting wind, direct unfiltered sunlight or heavy rain. We do expose them to wind and water scarcity toward May, however "hardening them off" is important.
To do so, bring plants outside 5-7 days prior to transplanting them in your garden. You can slowly increase their exposure to direct sun and wind until they are fully exposed. If the night is particularly cold, consider bringing them indoors.
Note that plants in pots dry out quickly in full sun, make sure to keep them watered during this period.
Day-of Planting Tips:
It’s planting day! Plants want to thrive, and will do everything in their power to grow and reproduce. We can help them out with a few key tips.
The best time to plant is on a cloudy day, or a late afternoon. Transplanting in the middle of a hot sunny dry day is a recipe for sad plants.
Make sure to start with a weed free bed. It’s easiest to hoe before transplanting, and hoeing every inch of bare soil is helpful for killing all the tiny thread-stage weeds.
Prior to planting, water starts with diluted fish emulsion (or water their planting hole). This provides them with a boost of immediately available nutrients to optimize growth.
Your plants are hardy, but still need some TLC. Handle seedlings by the root ball, not the stem. Gently extract the plant from a plastic pot using a combination of gentle squeezing and gravity.
If you are using a cowpot or peat pot, it is essential to thoroughly drench the entire pot prior to planting. The entire pot must be planted, with no fiber peaking through the soil. If needed, you can rip off the top inch or so to expose bare soil so that no pot is showing.
Plant at the same depth they were growing, with the exception of tomatoes that will grow roots out of their stem and can be planted deeper with success.
Press soil firmly around the root ball to ensure great root-to-soil contact.
Water deeply. If it has been hot, sunny and dry, make sure the soil is saturated by poking a finger in the ground (if you can see dry soil then it likely is not enough water!).
Plants may droop for a day or so until they recover.
If your plants have become root-bound (with the roots coiled tightly in the pot) it is best to gently break up the roots before planting (except avoid doing this with cucumbers, melons and squashes which have very sensitive roots.
Check on your plants the day after transplanting, and make sure to keep them consistently watered and weeded!