Spring cabbage seedlings

[Croila]

Hello, I'd really appreciate some advice about spring cabbage seedlings, please, if anyone could possibly help?

I sowed a dozen F1 Advantage seeds back in at beginning of August (probably too early?) with the intention of keeping them in pots until I could put them out in the garden once the tatties have been lifted.

However, I don't think the seedlings got quite enough light and they're really tall, leggy and drawn looking. They must be about eight inches long/high now but they're awfully straggly.

They've been kept in my fairly warm conservatory (in too dark a corner, admittedly) the whole time till I put them outside on Monday for the whole day, and when I got home from work the poor things had totally collapsed. I took them in at night, forgot to put them outside again yesterday, and when I got home from work yesterday they had picked themselves up again.

I guess I have three questions really ...

1) Did I sow them too early, at the beginning of August?
2) How do I harden seedlings off (never done this before!), cause I'm scared they'll just die being outdoors for the whole day?
3) Should I just chuck them out and start again, making sure the new seedlings have more light, or am I too late in the year now?

I'm going to have some successful cabbages next year or BUST I tell you! I've already lost my first attempts to cabbage root fly maggots. I WILL have cabbages to eat yet, I will, I will, I will!

Any advice to help me achieve my mission would be absolutely brilliant, I'd be really grateful.

[zazen999]

Cabbages don't need to be sown indoors, at any time of year. They are an outdoor crop. Oop north like you are, I'd maybe pop them in a coldframe to germinate but they are ok with low temps and the harder they are grown the better.

I'd pot them on now, and leave them out during the day for 7 days, then out all the time afterwards. After they have filled the pots; plant them as deep as possible into their final positions.

[Croila]

Thank you for your quick reply

The reason I sowed them in pots is because my garden's not that big, and I was waiting till the tatties were lifted to make space to plant the cabbages. I literally don't have any spare earth patches outside right now but the tatties will be getting lifted in the next couple of weeks I think. And I don't have a coldframe yet as I only started gardening in May this year for the first time ... However, it's on my wishlist and I think I'll get one next month, as I think I'd use one a LOT.

So ... I'll stick them outdoors during the day for a week like you say, and after that I'll leave them outside till I can put them in the ground. I'm just a bit concerned because they wilted really badly after that one day outside. And that sounds sensible: planting them deeply to get past the leggy problem.

I'll sow some more in pots tonight actually, as I'd like a few more.

Thank you for the advice, much appreciated!

[zazen999]

That's ok - but you can leave them in their pots outside to germinate.....rather than put them indoors....as you have found they get sappy and leggy!

[Croila]

I definitely will do. It's ferociously windy here at the moment so I'll have to make sure theyr'e not wheeched away though!