Thinning seedlings. So, I was trying to find something definitive about when you should thin seedlings, and I found pretty variable advice — when they’re 3-4″ high, when they have 1-2 sets of true leaves, as soon as possible if you live somewhere cold with a short growing season, etc. So I’m honestly not sure what the maximally effective time is for thinning, but I mostly figure that if I do it when I remember to do it, that’s probably better than not doing it at all…
…so I thinned some yesterday, when I was watering after taking off the humidity domes. Pictured, artichoke seedlings before and after thinning. And yes, you could, in theory, take those little sets apart and carefully tease apart the roots and transplant them, but I tried that last year, it was a LOT of work, it’s a fair bit of trauma to the plant, I think, so I lost some of those anyway, and I think I’m done with attempting that. I went in with my tiny snips and just snipped away the weaker-looking plants.
It feels quite heartless the first time you do it, but then your heart hardens and it’s just fine. 
Survival of the fittest, baby.
I also checked the height of my lights yesterday — you want them pretty close to the top of your seedlings to maximize light (assuming you can move your lights around), but not so close that they’re touching the lights and burning.
And I labelled a bunch of seedlings individually, since I’m planning to give most of them away, and I want people to know what they’re getting. Popsicle sticks + a garden marker (supposedly resists water and fades less, though honestly, I’m not sure it’s any better than a Sharpie). Grow, babies, grow…
Much more comprehensive info on thinning: https://getbusygardening.com/how-to-thin-seedlings/
