Thinning Seedlings Might Feel Wrong, But It’s the Secret to Bigger Harvests – And Now Is an Ideal Time to Do It

A gardener is thinning seedlings in the vegetable garden.

I have always enjoyed growing vegetables from seeds. Sowing and nurturing them through to harvest is very satisfying. Along the way, thinning seedlings is essential to give your plants a chance of reaching full size.

We’ve all been guilty of sowing too thickly. But even if you follow the guidelines on packets, they’ll often recommend sowing thinly then thinning to the final spacing. Without thinning seedlings, you get tightly-packed plants battling for light, water and nutrients. For the best crop, you need to thin these seedlings and allow the strongest to develop.