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Re: Thinning

Ross E Stanford wrote:
> 
> Thanks to everyone about the transplanting question.  Now I have
> another basic question.
>      It seems that every planting instruction tells you how many seeds to
> place per
> foot, and then how to thin them.
>      1.  It seems to me that just about all of my seeds grow.  So why
> don't I just plant
> them to the final spacing?  Maybe 2 seeds per space, just to make sure.
> (My only
> guess is that you thin to get the best growers)

You thin to get the best seedlings, and you over plant a little in case
contitions turn bad for germination.  That being said, most gardeners
plant too much seed.  It's one of the reasons that dis-reputable seed
providers give for providing low-germ seed.  If the gardener is going to
over seed, why provide them with good high-germ seed that will just go
to waste?

>      2.  When it says to thin to, say, one foot apart,  If I save only
> the best plants,
> they are not evenly spaced.  What is best?

I have the same problem/question.

>      3.  Do others really feel bad like me when they thin seedlings?
> (This is Stan, not
> Evil Stan).

I used to resist thinning but I learned eventually that agressive
thinning works out better in the long run.  If you plant fewer seeds
then you dont have to thin so much!

Steve  (Maritime...)

>       Thanks
> 
> Stan.         The cheap and lazy gardener.
> 
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