Horticultural aide-mémoire Harden off

Because the weather varies from year to year, there is a human tendency to trust fair weather and skip the tedious routine of hardening plants off. Wrong. It takes time to accustom half-hardy plants to the rigours of spring days and nights, so the process must be gradual. Open the cold frame a little during the day and shut it each evening. Open it a little more next week and so on. The final week at the end of the month should let us take the frame light off entirely, but keep your eye on the forecast. Better safe than sorry. SCD