@ Fusion power:
I'm glad that you stressed holding back watering. Water-stressing has been a part of my hardening off process for years. If you allow the foliage to begin wilting at this early stage, the plant's self defense system begins growing more roots to seek out the needed water. (Bottom watering @ this stage forces a deeper root structure which increases the plant's drought tolerance.)
Last season I had somebody thinking my seedlings needed watering, so they watered the ones they saw. Throughout the season, those plants seemed to need frequent watering, while the ones that they missed seldom needed watering. At seasons end, those that had been "voluntarily" watered early, had root structures less than half the size of those that had been water stressed during hardening off.
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