Seedlings: well begun is half done!

Seedlings are the start of a new crop, so the better their condition, the more likely you are to benefit at harvest time. Most experienced farmers will confirm that when seedlings grow rapidly into a uniform stand, the crop usually ends up well.

Human nature also plays a part. If a crop does not start off properly, one tends not to give it the same attention as a crop that starts off beautifully. This may sound illogical, but in my experience it happens.

hardening can be done by withholding nitrogen or water

Once, on trip to the US, I visited a very large seedling nursery, where the manager told me that his clients dictated the size and hardness of the seedlings that they wanted grown. This does not happen much in South Africa, but it should.

I have seen seedlings arriving from a warm area transplanted in a cold area just before a cold front. Unsurprisingly, all the plants were burnt to death by the low temperature.

If plants require hardening, this should be done at the nursery, not in the land after transplanting where there is less control.

match the conditions

The conditions at the nursery and on the land should be as similar as possible. The ideal scenario is one where the plants arrive from the seedling grower in an active, growing condition and the farmer provides perfect conditions so that the growth continues uninterrupted. This is rarely possible, of course, and a compromise is usually required.

Many farmers now plant mechanically, and the plants need to be the optimal size and the cavities well filled with roots to make the operation smooth and uneventful.

Nurseries usually try to get the seedlings grown and dispatched as soon as possible to increase turnover. Usually, in order to avoid any comebacks, they harden the plants so that a 100% stand can be achieved.

If this is overdone, the plants will survive, but make a slower recovery to fast growth.

Under hot or cold conditions, this may benefit the farmer, as there will be a full stand rather than gaps due to plants that did not make it or had a setback while adjusting to the harsh conditions.

how to harden plants

Hardening can be achieved in a number of ways. Probably the safest is to get the plants close to the required size and then reduce applications of nitrogen; this will automatically slow down growth.

The plants can be held in this way for as long as required. The plant cells will thicken, the

Bill kerr ABOVE: The plant on the left was allowed to become too long before hardening; the other plant has been hardened optimally.