How to prick your plants and move them on to bigger pots.

Courgette seedlings being moved to their bigger homes.

At some point you’re going to have to brave it and move your seedlings on to a slightly bigger home. They need more space to grow. If they have been planted in an open tray, with a few seeds, they may be competing for more space and more nutrients.

Here’s a quick and easy guide to transplanting your very cute seedlings on to their new homes.

1. Prep your space - make sure you have pots with moist soil ready to go. Make a hole using your dibber, so you can plonk it straight in.

2. Using your hands or a widger, gently lift your seedling out of their original home. You will need to ease them out by wiggling their roots around using a widger. Hold their leaves to do this. Their stem is their lifeline, and if you pull just that bit too hard, you might accidentally snap their stem. A snapped stem means no access to their roots which brings in nutrients. A ripped leaf, isn’t as big of a problem.

3. Place your seedling in to their new home, which you’ve already prepped. Gently place your seedling in, and then tuck them in.

Tip: for some leggy seedlings you can get away with burying quite a lot of the stem in the soil. Tomatoes are a good example of plants that can be take their stems being planted quite deep in the soil.

Now you’ve rehoused your seedling you can just return to it when it needs hydration and some chatter!

We’ve announced this week that we’ve created a new product that is called the Big Box which includes everything you need, from seeds (obvs), to sustainable and compostable bamboo pots and a widger and a dibber. It’s the perfect kit to enjoy your eco-friendly and mindful gardening journey!