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I have seen the mass production methods at the farm - rough handling and seedlings can take it. Sure you might get some wilting for a day or two, but no worries for that.
OTOH the OP wanted to know how to do it without having to see em wilt, and that's where we small timers excel.
@GoDawgs I greatly admire that you modified the fork to make it PERFECT for the job.
My Mom has a two prong fork she uses to lift bulbs - I mean a big one! Seems odd to me but definitely well tailored to task. Great weeder for deep stuff too.

Thanks for the kudos, @bower but I can't take credit for that. I read about it somewhere and making one was a cheap experiment. LOL!

"Sometimes, a fork is just a fork."


Hey, what the, where did that come from? These fingers have a mind of their own.

I read about plastic fork idea a month back, fork instead of shovel, sounded like good idea. Totally forgot it when potting up last week. My brother and I pre-trenched a bunch, about 100 I guess...into milk jugs split down the back and butterflied out. The starts were in five cups, 20+ to a cup, bonnie planting cups, with top diameter about like a 16 oz cup. 3-1/2"? They were packed in there and roots all tied at the bottom. Took straight compost and filled the milk bottle trays, laid them down (2-3 true leaves on each) and pressed them in, with just the leaves above ground. Two or four to the tray, depending. I always try to leave as much soil as possilbe on the root ball. This was 4-5 days back, they all looked fine yesterday. They went from inside under light to pressed into trays and into hot greenhouse, same day, watered immediately and the next day.

No drainage holes were made.

Some were done dry, the later were done wet, dry may have been better.

I found 2 Genuwine in a 3 inch pot at Lowes today and did the cleavage lift and separate with my fingers and put the twins in a bigger container.

Am I the only one who does this under water(the plants not me lol)? I tip the pot over my other hand, to catch the soil onto a bucket or table or whatever. Try to get rid of as much soil as possible. Then I dump the plants into a container of water & gently swish them around. The roots will quickly be visible & I just hold 1 seedling or plant in each hand, still under water, & gently pull. It helps to massage all roots in water to remove dirt. Sometimes I'll have another container of water to do a final rinse. This method never fails me & I've never lost a plant due to ripped roots.
They do just fine replanted soon after, and I may use the soil I saved from the original pot if it looks like good quality, plus some extra of course. And water the plants with the water I used. Any extra dirt in bucket goes right in too.

peebee wrote: ↑Wed May 08, 2024 6:46 pm Am I the only one who does this under water(the plants not me lol)? I tip the pot over my other hand, to catch the soil onto a bucket or table or whatever. Try to get rid of as much soil as possible. Then I dump the plants into a container of water & gently swish them around. The roots will quickly be visible & I just hold 1 seedling or plant in each hand, still under water, & gently pull. It helps to massage all roots in water to remove dirt. Sometimes I'll have another container of water to do a final rinse. This method never fails me & I've never lost a plant due to ripped roots.
They do just fine replanted soon after, and I may use the soil I saved from the original pot if it looks like good quality, plus some extra of course. And water the plants with the water I used. Any extra dirt in bucket goes right in too.

I also rinse the soil off underwater to separate the roots. So no, you are not alone there.

I planted a mummified cucumber today.
That will be fun when those seeds pop.
You get 100 plants in an area the size of your hand.

When small plants are transplanted, you have to take into account that you will have to separate their roots later. It is not a problem to put a plastic partition between the plants and the future problem is solved. When transplanting for the first time, he uses a partition, which allows me to grow four seedlings in one 200 ml pot. I am adding pictures for clarity.
Vladimír


upload image online

peebee wrote: ↑Wed May 08, 2024 6:46 pm Am I the only one who does this under water(the plants not me lol)? I tip the pot over my other hand, to catch the soil onto a bucket or table or whatever. Try to get rid of as much soil as possible. Then I dump the plants into a container of water & gently swish them around. The roots will quickly be visible & I just hold 1 seedling or plant in each hand, still under water, & gently pull. It helps to massage all roots in water to remove dirt. Sometimes I'll have another container of water to do a final rinse. This method never fails me & I've never lost a plant due to ripped roots.
They do just fine replanted soon after, and I may use the soil I saved from the original pot if it looks like good quality, plus some extra of course. And water the plants with the water I used. Any extra dirt in bucket goes right in too.

This is how I separate scallion seedlings. Works like a charm!

slugworth wrote: ↑Thu May 09, 2024 5:53 pm I planted a mummified cucumber today.
That will be fun when those seeds pop.
You get 100 plants in an area the size of your hand.

1 mummy popped out of the ground today.
I put the crypt on a warming mat under lights to encourage his siblings.

Anyone ever plant their two (2) in one (1) planting hole?

The Gotch

just in grafting experiments instead of using domes or extra parts to keep moisture in.

The cuke seedlings pull out of the rotting cuke cleanly without any klingons or injury to the roots.
I have a massive amount of seedlings in the clump I have to transplant into other containers tomorrow.
Store bought seeds this year were only a 50% germination rate.
The mummy was from hybrid seed,so the results will be interesting.