How To Transplant Plants Outside

Ready for some transplanting seedlings examples? Learn how to transplant plants outside to get your vegetable garden ready for summer!

Reader Contribution by The Natural Gardening Company
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by AdobeStock/nieriss

Ready for some transplanting seedlings examples? Learn how to transplant plants outside to get your vegetable garden ready for summer!

There are clear signs that your plugs are ready to transplant to larger containers. The most visible is the presence of true leaves. These are the leaves that grow following the cotyledons. Cotyledons are embryonic leaves, the first set of leaves to appear after a seed germinates. They look like rabbit ears, with an ovate shape and smooth margins. True leaves have the shape of leaves on the mature plant, only smaller. You can recognize the true leaves on a tomato transplant because they have indented margins.   If you handle your plugs with care you can move them when they have only one set of true leaves, but it is more common to transplant when there are two sets because the plugs are sturdier at this stage. You can transplant the plugs of tomatoes, peppers and eggplants for several weeks after they enter the true leaf stage. The plugs begin to lose their well-balanced, fresh, new look, but you can still produce a good plant with larger, older plugs.

Handle Plugs with Care

Handle your plugs with care when you transplant. They are delicate, and you can damage the stems or pull out the roots, setting back or permanently damaging the plant. The best way is to pull them gently where the leaves meet the stem, without applying too much pressure. Stems are responsible for the movement of fluids through the plant. In general, a good stem means a good plant. If you squeeze too tightly you’ll harm the stem, so work slowly and carefully until you develop a knack for handling your plugs.

If you find that your plugs are not releasing from your transplant trays without tearing, try using a tool to dislodge them. We scoop ours out using oyster shuckers, which have small knobs for handles and dull blades. They are ideal for the job.

  • Updated on Apr 30, 2023
  • Originally Published on May 7, 2014
Tagged with: California, Reader Contributions, spring, The Natural Gardening Company, transplanting seedlings
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