Gardening Tips

Before transplanting your seedlings, they need to be acclimated to the outdoors. Set the containers in lightly shaded locations for a couple of hours the first day. Take them out daily for a week and leave them out a little longer each day. The night before transplanting, leave them outside overnight. A cloudy day is best to transplant seedlings to their outdoor garden bed. If the weather is hot, do the transplanting in the morning or late afternoon. Water after planting to settle to soil around the roots. Water the area the afternoon before you transplant the seedlings.

If you are worried about the ill effects of the chlorine in your tap water, let the water stand 24 hours in an open container. The chlorine will escape into the air. Warm water is better for the plants. Cold water will shock them.

To help vegetables and other sun-loving plants get more sun, create reflected light. Set the containers next to a white or light colored wall.

Aphids and caterpillars do not like mint. Put one tablespoon of mint in a trigger spray bottle with 2 cups of water. Spray onto the plants.

Pepper your lettuce to keep out rabbits.