trimmings

Today I had to do one of the things I hate most about raising plants from seeds: thinning.

Once your seedlings get going, it is important to thin them to make sure the little dudes have enough room to grow strong enough to handle the transplant outside. This is especially important if you, like me, planted 2-3 more seeds per peat disc than is recommended or necessary. I think that this behavior stems (badum-bum) from my irrational fear that I won't be able to nurture a plant from seed to fruit. In all honesty, raising seedlings isn't that hard, but I remain shocked every time I manage to make it happen. Yet every time I try to hedge my bets by planting a few (read: many) extra seeds here and there.

However, by planting more seeds, I invariably produce more seedlings than I can handle/raise, necessitating the thinning (which, as I mentioned, I hate). It's a vicious cycle, really, and it breaks my heart to kill any of the plants...

That others might live...

My eggplants have been moving right along. Many of the seedlings are just starting to get their first true leaves, which are the second set of leaves that appear. In reality, the first leaves you see on a seedling aren't leaves at all. They're actually called cotyledons, or seed coats, which essentially come from the seed's original casing. I read somewhere (I can't remember where; bad historian!) that cotyledons are actually food storage for the plant until it starts photosynthesizing. But I digress. A few of my eggplants now have their first "true leaves," which means that they're almost ready to be transplanted.

So thin them, I did. I picked the strongest/most developed seedling in each of my discs to let grow, and chopped the rest. McGee and Stuckey recommend using manicure scissors to cut the discarded seedlings off at the base, as trying to rip the seedlings out may damage the root structure of the seedlings you are saving. As I had no manicure scissors, I used my pruning shears, which was a lot like cutting butter with a machete. Whatever.

We are supposed to have some very nice weather this weekend, and I am tempted to transplant some eggplants outside, but I should really wait until our frost date. This springish weather is deceiving...