VOA慢速英语：在将植物放在室外之前，要先“硬化”

The month of May is the best planting time in many areas in the northern half of the world.

在北半球的许多地区，五月是最佳的种植时间。

Many gardeners are visiting garden centers now to buy plants. Those who have grown plants from seeds indoors may be getting ready to plant them in the garden at about this time.

许多园丁现在都到园艺中心去买植物。那些在室内用种子种植植物的人可能正准备在这个时候把它们种在花园里。

However, seedlings cannot usually go straight from an indoor growing area to outdoor beds and borders without risk. They need to be "hardened off" first.

然而，幼苗通常不能毫无风险地直接从室内生长区域转移到室外的花床和花坛。它们需要先“硬化”。

That means slowly introducing the plants to environmental conditions like sunlight, wind, and changes in temperature that they have not yet experienced. If plants are not hardened off enough, they could get burned by the sun or go into shock from more wind exposure or lower temperatures than they are used to. Stressed plants can recover. But the process usually sets their growth back by a few weeks.

这意味着要慢慢地将植物引入它们尚未经历过的环境条件，如阳光、风和温度变化。如果植物没有充分硬化，它们可能会被太阳灼伤，或者因为比它们习惯的更多的风吹或更低的温度而休克。受压力的植物可以恢复。但这个过程通常会使它们的生长推迟几周。

Hardening indoor plants

硬化室内植物

Start hardening your plants by placing them outdoors in a sheltered area that is partly protected from the sun. Do this for increasing periods each day for about a week before planting them in the garden. Protection from the sun is important. Even the window that gets the most sun in your home or an electric growing light cannot compete with the strength of direct sunlight.

把你的植物放在室外有遮阳的地方，让它们逐渐硬化。在把它们种在花园里之前，每天增加一点室外时间，持续一周左右。防晒很重要。即使是家里阳光最充足的窗户或电动种植灯也无法与直射阳光的强度相比。

Choose a day after the danger of frost has passed and when the temperature is above seven degrees Celsius. Place plants outside for an hour, set a timer, and then bring them back inside to a warm spot, under electric plant lights is the best choice.

选择霜冻危险过去后，温度高于7摄氏度的一天。把植物放在室外一个小时，设一个计时器，然后把它们带回室内温暖的地方，在电灯下是最好的选择。

Repeat this on the second day for two hours. Add an hour of outdoor time each day for a week. After that, they can safely be planted in their permanent homes, whether in the ground, a raised bed, or a container.

第二天重复这个步骤，持续两个小时。每天增加一小时的户外时间，坚持一周。之后，它们就可以安全地种植在它们的永久家园中，无论是在地面，一个凸起的花床，还是一个容器里。

Follow the weather and keep an eye on conditions throughout the process. Bring plants inside if rain or severe wind threatens during their outdoor time.

在整个过程中，要密切关注天气和环境条件。如果在室外时间期间有雨或严重的风暴威胁，就要把植物带回室内。

Do not be concerned if there is no protection from the sun in your garden. You can harden your plants under an outdoor table, for example. Under large outdoor plants works equally as well. If you have none of those, you can protect your plants from the sun with something like an umbrella.

如果你的花园里没有防晒设施，也不要担心。例如，你可以在室外的桌子下让你的植物硬化。在大型户外植物下也同样有效。如果你没有这些，还可以用雨伞之类的东西保护植物免受阳光的伤害。

If the weather is not hot, you can even plant your seedlings directly in the ground. Then harden them by covering each individually with a large plastic container with its bottom and top removed. Burying the bottom in a few centimeters of soil will hold the container in place. You can water plants through the pouring hole at the top.

如果天气不热，你甚至可以直接把幼苗种在地里。然后用一个底部和顶部都去掉的大型塑料容器把它们单独包裹起来。把底部埋在几厘米深的土壤里，这样就能把容器固定住。你可以通过顶部的口给植物浇水。

Remove the container for each day's hardening-off period. And then set it back into place and secure it into the soil afterward. Watch your plants carefully because high temperatures and strong, direct sunlight might "cook" them. Follow weather conditions and use your best judgement before planting seedlings directly in the garden.

每天的硬化期结束后，移除每个容器。然后将其重新放回原处并固定在土壤中。要仔细观察你的植物，因为高温和强烈的直射阳光可能会“烤熟”它们。在直接种植幼苗到花园之前，要密切关注天气条件并谨慎判断。

If you started plants in a greenhouse, they have already been growing in direct sunlight, so the process is easier. Open the windows for a few hours each day for about a week. Then, move seedlings to a sheltered outdoor area for two hours the first day and four hours the second day. After that, they should be ready to be planted outdoors.

如果你在温室里种植植物，它们已经在阳光直射下生长了，那么这个过程将更容易。每天打开窗户几个小时，坚持一周左右。然后，将幼苗移到有遮蔽的室外区域，第一天两小时，第二天四小时。之后，它们就可以在户外种植了。

I'm Gregory Stachel.

格雷戈里·斯塔切尔报道。