If you try and take your fragile young seedlings straight into the garden they will die of shock. The process of transporting them from the protected indoor setting to the outside is known as hardening-off.
You can accomplish this by taking the plants outside during the day and bringing them in for the night time for two weeks. Start by leaving them out for just a few hours then for longer periods each day. Don’t put them out if there is a frost during the day. After three or four days the plants should be able to be in sunlight for half the day.
By the end of a week they can stay outside all day. You can also place them in protective places like a cold frame or a large box outside and then cover them at night with a blanket to keep out the night cold.
