I thought I could leave the last of the tomatoes in the 6-packs to harden off this week (weather permitting) and plant next weekend. But no dice - some were just getting too leggy (stretching for light) crowded together on my shelves. So, another 2 days spent potting up - some of the Brandywines went to 1 gallon pots, and more Gardener's Delight cherries went out of the 6-pack and into 3" pots, along with my early hybrids and Cosmonaut Volkovs, and some Super Sweet 100s.
Everything (all the tomatoes that is - still too early to harden off the peppers) spent the past 2 mornings in the sun, though I did have to set up a windbreak with a couple of old storm windows. Next year I'm going to have to build a cold frame (maybe even a couple, try starting the plants in one?). One window fell over today on top of a tray of a dozen Brandywines in 4" pots, so the bent ones got potted up in more 1 gallon pots to bury the stems so they could root (I was going to bury them deep anyway), and I decided to repot all the other 4" Brandywines so that I could use the pots and trays for Cherokee Purples.
I had wanted to wait to pot up more until I could get the huge Brandywines out in the garage overnight, seeing how it's going to be a little chilly tonight (under 50). The garage should stay warmer than that though, and I just don't have room in the house (well, I *do*, but I think my husband would protest) for all these 1- gallon pots after today's"shuffle". But now potting up is almost finished, and the Tomato Shuffle (maybe I should call it the Tomato Two-Step since I was "shuffling" plants from pot to pot?) from the climate-controlled house with grow lights to the great outdoors has officially begun!
Depending on the severity of the thunderstorms we're supposed to get, I may even have all the tomatoes hardened off by the end of the week. Memorial Day weekend is the traditional time to set out tomatoes around here, but aside from the actual holiday, the weather isn't looking like it will cooperate, so I may have to wait a few days. Not that I could get 120 tomatoes planted in 1 day anyway!
Oh, and I am going to have more tomato plants than we need (even with the casualties today), so if anyone is interested in buying any, feel free to email me at BriarwoodsFarm@gmail.com.
