Seedlings should have at least two pairs of true leaves and be about 3 to 4 inches (8-10 cm.) tall before thinning.Įvening hours are a good time to thin seedlings as the cooler temps and darker conditions make it easier for the remaining seedlings to bounce back from any stress they may have received. You can soak the area with water to soften the soil if it’s too dry. Make certain the soil is reasonably damp beforehand, which simply makes it easier to pull the plants out intact and with less damage-similar to weeding young sprouts. Depending on what you are growing, you’ll want to thin plants out enough so that each seedling has a couple of inches (5 cm.) of space (or two finger widths) on either side. If you do it too late, the overdeveloped roots may cause damage to the remaining seedlings during the thinning process. Knowing when to thin seedlings is also important. Crowded plants limit air movement, which can lead to fungal diseases, especially if the foliage remains wet for extended periods. When you thin seedlings, you’re also helping to improve the air circulation around them. The practice of thinning plants is done to allow them plenty of growing room so that they can receive all the proper growth requirements (moisture, nutrients, light, etc.) without having to compete with other seedlings. Knowing when and how to thin plants is important for their overall health and success. Covering plants with a floating row cover for a few hours after thinning does the trick.Thinning plants is a necessary evil we must all face in the gardening realm. The carrot root fly is a good example of a pest that might be drawn to a newly thinned bed of carrots. SNIP OR PINCH OFF: Root vegetables such as beets, carrots, onions, parsnip and turnip should be snipped or carefully pinched off at the soil line to prevent damage to neighboring plants.ĪFTER THINNING: Some gardening gurus remove all thinned plants to get rid of a scent that could attract pests. The other option is to thin greens when they are tall enough to eat – my preferred method for greens. Take one pass with the rake and then another pass in the opposite direction. RAKE METHOD OF THINNING: Lettuce, spinach and other greens can be thinned by hand or with a flexible rake. They will stretch out farther than the seed leaves and will start to exhibit characteristics of the specific lettuce grown. The true leaves will grow soon after and look different. The round leaves will grow further apart as time goes on allowing room for the true leaves. Seed leaves of lettuce are small and round in shape. If you forget to label the area (I never do that, yuk, yuk), you can identify the plant by looking at the true leaves. True leaves resemble the leaves of the mature plant. Usually true leaves come in a pair, although some plants develop just one true leaf to start and others get a few true leaves all at once. The second set of leaves is referred to as true leaves. Sometimes you can see the seed casing still attached. The first leaves that form are called seed leaves or cotyledons. For others, it’s best to wait until several sets of leaves develop. For many plants, it’s wise to wait to thin until a second set of leaves forms. WHEN TO THIN: Some plants can be thinned at a certain height. This reduces the chance that you’ll damage surrounding plants. When it’s cool sprouts will be nice and plump and the remaining plants will be less stressed if you get too close.īEFORE THINNING: Water the soil to make it easier to pull extra plants. More Thinning TipsīEST TIME OF DAY TO THIN: At the coolest part of day and 10 minutes after watering. Maybe even laminate the thing! Let your seeds stay put until the next time you need them. Go ahead, print out this handy thinning chart. No more fiddling around with a bag full of seed envelopes. To solve this little inconvenience, I created a chart for cool weather crops. Sometimes it’s damp out in the garden, or it’s an uncommonly warm day. Every fall planting season I shuffle through seed packets to find out how to thin the seedlings.
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