Mother's Day weekend is the big one for retail greenhouses and garden centers in this region. But just because you walked out with flats of tender transplants, or a gorgeous hanging basket all in bloom, doesn't mean these pants are ready for outdoor life. Too much of any piece of our mix of up and down spring weather can take a toll: wind, rain, sun or cold. Same goes for the starts under the grow light in the basement. Cooperative Extension's Amy Ivy explains they all need to be toughened up, or "hardened off." [full story]