5 Tips for Transplanting Success
As the weather warms up here in Central Alberta, I know we’re all itching to starting filling pots and planters and flower beds with plants. If you’re anything like my mum and me, you’ve probably already planted out a few more things than you should have, and you’ve probably been having to cover them or bring them inside overnight.
ANYWAY, for the rest of you with more self-control, here are some tips for transplanting out starter plants this year so you have the best chance of success.
HARDEN OFF YOUR PLANTS. Ok, here I have to admit that this is a case of “do as I say, not as I do.” I have no patience… So, my annuals don’t get hardened off. I buy them from the greenhouse, then I usually bring them home and plant them immediately. Sometimes they sit on a shelf in our greenhouse for a day or two first. But hardening off is a beneficial thing that can make your plants have a healthier start. When we start plants from seeds, they… sort of get hardened off? We start them indoors; then, once it's warmer, we move them out to the greenhouse we heat with a space heater or the propane heater. We open the door during the day anytime it's above 5º, so they do get used to breezes and temperature fluctuations, etc. But ideally, you’d also harden them off for a few days before you transplant them outside. I’ll write a blog about hardening plants off for next spring, but right now, it's probably a little too late to be of any use this year. In the meantime, Kristen Raney, Shifting Roots on Instagram, has had some excellent hardening off tips on stories recently.
DON’T TRANSPLANT IN THE MIDDLE OF A HOT SUNNY DAY. I know, this seems like a dumb rule because those are the kinds of days that we want to spend outside, but I say it for a good reason: it's better for your plant’s health if you do your transplanting on a cooler overcast day, or in the evening when the strength of the sun has diminished. This is because the full-strength sun is stressful for plants, and transplanting is stressful for plants. So to cause them the least stress, do your best not to plant during the heat of the day. If you REALLY need to get something in the ground ASAP and it's hot, set up an umbrella to shade the plant for the rest of the day.
Use a root fertilizer. Phosphate and Potassium (P & K on the fertilizer lable) encourage root growth. Strong roots equal a strong plant. Adding some bone meal or seaweed fertilizer, or a bit of both, to the planting hole will help plants establish themselves well. Strong roots, strong plant! Avoid using a fertilizer with high Nitrogen (N on the fertilizer label) levels since that just promotes lots of leafy growth at the expense of root growth.
Water the planting hole, and water again after you’ve planted them in. Watering the planting hole gives your stressed plant roots immediate water. It also helps settle soil into all the nooks and crannies around the roots and eliminate air pockets. Air pockets in the soil can cause sections of roots to die off.
Measure your planting distances. With annual flowers, this is less of an issue, but it can significantly impact vegetables. Crowded vegetables produce less fruit that may be less flavourful and smaller because they’re competing too hard for nutrients and water. I know that when you’re planting out a veggie, like zucchini, that’s only 2 inches tall, it seems utterly ridiculous to plant them 2 feet apart. But they really genuinely do need that much space, so do it.
Now, get out there and get that garden planted up, and tag me @Foliagette on Instagram in your plant posts! I can’t wait to see what you’re growing!