Since a lot of you will be planting this weekend and into next week, it’s time for one of our most important “post planting” tips! We’ll start with the most important one. It’s very important to regularly water your seedlings once you’ve transplanted into the garden. We suggest every 2-3 days, or whenever the soil starts to look somewhat dry.
Two things happen when you transplant. First, the nearby soil “wicks” water away from your seedlings, allowing less to get to your seedlings roots. Two, your plant has not yet developed a complex root system and can only reach “so far” for more water when they are young. Transplanting is a vulnerable time for your plants, with a changing environment and transplant shock, so it’s important they have what they need!
Watch out for particular warm days. (As an Alaskan, I’d define that as higher than 70F/21C, it’s important we are on the same page!) These temperatures will challenge your plants and they may need to be watered even more frequently than recommended above. If your plants at all start to look droopy or generally shriveled, that’s a sign you need to immediately apply water! Don’t worry too much, though, plants are seriously dramatic and they will usually bounce right back like nothing happened.
You want to deeply water, the watering should penetrate the soil a fair bit. This will encourage your plants to root more deeply as they will reach for the water wherever it’s at. Overall, throughout the season, it’s generally better to deeply water less frequently than to lightly water more frequently. In outdoor settings, it’s very difficult to over water as the excess will simply continue down into the soil.
Also, for any direct sows, you may want to water daily or every other day. Remember, your seeds are in that top part of the soil and this dries out the fastest. Just like with indoor germination, outdoor germination requires direct contact with moisture to promote the seed’s germination.
Good luck with those gardens. We love seeing your garden photos, whether you’re a beginner or an advanced gardener, so you’re always welcome to toss photos in the comments!
