OL, 'fraid there isn't a one size fits all, when it comes to this subject. It will usually have letters on the seed packets that represent the hardiness of your chosen plants i.e. sweet peas will have HA printed on the packets.....this indicates they are 'hardy annuals'...but we know they are hardy, didn't we? ....others will say HHA, this translates to half hardy annuals, meaning they can be planted out after no more frosts are expected etc.
Tomatoes Cucumber Aubergines & Chillies are not normally hardened-off, because they are grown under glass for the duration. They can be grown outdoors, but this is something undertaken during the warmer days of summer.
Marigolds Lobelia & Morning Glory can be started under glass before being hardened-off by putting in a codframe for a couple of weeks before being planted into their permanent positions....leaving the top off during the day & replacing it at night.
PS. This is a bed I planted of summer annuals.....I merely bought several packets of seed very cheaply at the end of the season, sowed them directly into the border, no greenhouse, no coldframe, no hardening-off.
I will admit to buying a few cheap geranium & bedding begonia plugs.
I'm just a lazy gardener (albeit with a modicum of success)...can't for the life of me understand for instance why anyone would want to soften sweet peas (I do grow other things, btw) and then have to acclimatise them to he great outdoors again.....in actual fact they can be sown outdoors in October where they are to flower.
David K i like your way of thinking i am a complete amateur but fast learning the more i stress and mess the more problems i get,everything i have planted with out no fuss is thriving and everything i am planting and stressing with is dying,i just think the trial and error approach is best as everyone's gardens and weather is different,still i do take all tips and advice on board
It's a fine balance, Mikey....sometimes 'trial & error' can lead to disillusionment and whatever our pursuits of interest, that can't be helpful.
I think this is in the mind of more experienced gardeners on this forum taking trouble to help & encourage those who are comparatively new to gardening.
I can not argue with you David and should of explained better the trial and error suits me at the moment and I do realise this would not suit others I suppose thats the amateur still showing in me I have a lot to learn but I will get there hope I have not offended anyone.
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I might hold back a bit then, I'm running out of space indoors!!
OL, 'fraid there isn't a one size fits all, when it comes to this subject. It will usually have letters on the seed packets that represent the hardiness of your chosen plants i.e. sweet peas will have HA printed on the packets.....this indicates they are 'hardy annuals'...but we know they are hardy, didn't we?
....others will say HHA, this translates to half hardy annuals, meaning they can be planted out after no more frosts are expected etc.
Tomatoes Cucumber Aubergines & Chillies are not normally hardened-off, because they are grown under glass for the duration. They can be grown outdoors, but this is something undertaken during the warmer days of summer.
Marigolds Lobelia & Morning Glory can be started under glass before being hardened-off by putting in a codframe for a couple of weeks before being planted into their permanent positions....leaving the top off during the day & replacing it at night.
Hostas & hardy geraniums no problem with those.
PS. This is a bed I planted of summer annuals.....I merely bought several packets of seed very cheaply at the end of the season, sowed them directly into the border, no greenhouse, no coldframe, no hardening-off.
I will admit to buying a few cheap geranium & bedding begonia plugs.
I'm just a lazy gardener (albeit with a modicum of success)...can't for the life of me understand for instance why anyone would want to soften sweet peas (I do grow other things, btw) and then have to acclimatise them to he great outdoors again.....in actual fact they can be sown outdoors in October where they are to flower.
These bluddy sweet peas haunt me!
Well, Verdun if I lived in your beautiful location, it's what I would be doing.
I sometimes feel that gardening is as difficult as we care to make it.
David K i like your way of thinking i am a complete amateur but fast learning the more i stress and mess the more problems i get,everything i have planted with out no fuss is thriving and everything i am planting and stressing with is dying,i just think the trial and error approach is best as everyone's gardens and weather is different,still i do take all tips and advice on board
It's a fine balance, Mikey....sometimes 'trial & error' can lead to disillusionment and whatever our pursuits of interest, that can't be helpful.
I think this is in the mind of more experienced gardeners on this forum taking trouble to help & encourage those who are comparatively new to gardening.