The weather here is still awful, and while I do have a little greenhouse (or 'greenhut' actually) there is no way that it's time to start hardening off these seedlings. They are doing quite well in the propagator, with the fluorescent light above them. My next 'project' is to try to figure out a way to raise the lid of the propagator, so that the light is moved a bit further away from the larger plants. The plants directly under the light are larger than the ones further away, even with the reflective covering on the top of the prop. As I had some empty spaces, where seeds didn't germinate, I have been moving the bigger plants into those spaces, to give me a bit of time. Here's where I'm at today:
View attachment 20207
The ones on the right are the Lemon Virginia. There is an 8 cell flat on the left side, where I have Hickory Pryor. And on the left is the Burley. Of course, as usual, I have way too many plants, but I am letting them all continue on for the moment.
In the meantime, I've been up to the tunnel - if you can still call it that. We cleared out most of the weeds that were growing inside. The soil on the left side of the tunnel is much more clay-like than on the right, sadly, and the plants don't do nearly as well on that side.
View attachment 20209
The centre bit is the 'walkway' - we were too tired to deal with it...LOL
The tunnel has hit a level of disrepair over the last year, and has stayed that way, despite the horrible weather that we get. The roof is really just the green weave of the material - there is no longer any plastic, which can be a good thing, in that I no longer have to lug a pump up there to water. On the downside, the temperature inside the tunnel is basically the same as outside. The sides of the tunnel remain intact, so at least the plants will be protected by the wind.
View attachment 20208
I would like to take a moment to thank the administrators for that 'auto save' feature on these posts!! I just lost my entire post, and was starting all over again, when the little 'restore' button came up. Excellent!! Anyway, this is where I am at the moment. My next major step will be repotting the plants into little pots, hardening them off in the greenhouse, and then hoping to have them up in the tunnel by the beginning of May, to give me a good head start. Fingers crossed.