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A little while back I planted eggplant seeds in my raised box bed. I took three or four seeds and stuffed them down a few inches in four spots in the box, then watered every morning. Now each spot has multiple sprouts coming up in bunches. Do I choose one to keep in each spot and clip the rest? Do I wait to do this till the first real leaves develop, or leave them all alone? Thanks.

I may not wait for first leaf but when I see one clearly better than others I clip. When I've left them close together it's stunted their growth.

Thanks. Makes sense. I will do that.

Keep the strongest looking one and tip off the others at dirt level.

If you have a bug problem you may want to wait a little longer in case they get your best plant you'll still have something to fall back on.

I have always planted 3-4 seeds to start give them a week or so then pick the nicest to keep....up here in Michigan other than row crops there all started around February 15 in my grow tent in the house they will go outside on a 65 + degree day but stay inside under grow lights with a fan for 18 hours until around May 20 the earliest depending on the weather....
Most years I have tomatoes before the 4th of July....

After I transplant or any young plants, I spray some Sevin dust on them that usually keeps the bugs away till they get bigger and stronger. But no matter how big they get bugs can be a problem I use Neem oil, castor soap mixed with water for flowering plants that need Bees to pollinate not to kill the bees with Sevin dust works for me.

Soon after emergence, I remove all but 2. Then I give them a week to see which one is doing better before I remove the other. 3 or 4 in a hole is too many but 2 won't make much difference.
When you remove it, cut it off. Don't pull it out or you could damage the roots of the one you keep.

LOL.

I usually leave them alone and still get more zooks than I can eat

Interesting. So you get multiple sprouts in one spot, leave them alone, and still get a full crop of zucchini?

One zucchini is one too many!

I plant zukes and yellow squash in "hills" of 3-4 plants each, it works well.

Pro tip on your eggplants--if your wife doesn't know what an eggplant looks like, don't let her pull weeds in your garden.

We start ours in individual peat cubes in our greenhouse. Nothing goes out to the main dirt until plants are about 8” tall. Keep 400w metal halide 4ft about seed arrays. Small oscillator fan to build stem hardiness.

However, in the last couple years, we just buy 1ft tall plants 4 pack for $1.75 from the Amish greenhouse plantation. None of that foucking around with spindly bullshît seedlings 1” tall.

my DIY greenhouse plants flopped this year…

Musta watered them too much.

Buy heirloom seeds from Baker Creek.

Had good luck last year.. 🤷🏻‍♂️🤷🏻‍♂️

Fuggin Bonnie has lost their minds… $5 for a single plant ( 6” plant?)

Local co-op had another brand.. small peets fro 3/$1.69.

Always planted 5-6 seed per hill on cukes n squash and don’t thin

Damn! Getting mixed messages on thinning.

We only doing cucumbers, zucchini & yellow squash in starter cups this year, went to the local nursey for bell peppers, tomatoes and jalapenos. Will be planting greens beans & quick pick purple hull peas in about 2 weeks.

Yes to thinning on eggplants, but squash do well in hills.