What is thinning out?
Thinning out is the act of removing seedlings or young plants in order for them to be spaced correctly so that they may grow strong and productive and to avoid crowding.
Why thin out?
When you plant seeds sometimes you might drop a few extra of those tiny things and get more seeds in one spot than you need. Maybe you dropped them like that on purpose just in case some don't germinate. Maybe your seed pod contained more than one seed. Either way, if more than one seedling grows in that small space, it would necessitate thinning out. When 2 things grow in such close proximity, they begin to compete for nutrients and water. With 2x the plants growing, there is a need for 2x the nutrients. The competition could lead to the failure of both or all of the plants in that spot.
How to thin out.
Thinning out is pretty easy. All you have to do is trim the least successful seedling or plant with a pair of scissors as close to the soil as possible. Another way, if they're still very young, is to gently pull the seedling up (root and all). With this way though, you do run the risk of injuring the roots of the seedling you intend to protect.
What I did.
Last night I did some thinning out of my own. I had a couple pots growing two and even 3 seedlings in them. I took a risk and ripped out the extras and repotted them in their very own pots with fresh, new and damp seed starting mix. This morning they look great, but only time will tell.
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| A couple of my transplants |
The bottom line is, it doesn't matter how you do it, just make sure it gets done!
Thanks for reading!
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