Thinning to a certain extent certainly is necessary in my opinon.

For example - if you fail to thin carrots to give them enough space to develop, you may end up with a bunch of partially formed carrots instead of healthy ones, as they didn't have enough room / nutrients / sunlight etc to share.

Just my opinion :)

Thanks.... I think I need to hear this from other gardeners, not just DH, if you know what I mean.

PAM

I agree with jwstell42, carrots absolutely need to be thinned unless you have sown them very thinly (i.e. 2 inches or more apart). The problem with sowing this thinly is that a)seeds are tiny and hard to sow and b) all the seeds will not germinate and you will have gaps in your bed or row.
As for the tomatoes.. I usually start these indoors in cell packs. You can plant more then one per pack and then separate them after they have started on there first set of real leaves.
It pays to be ruthless when it comes to thinning.

Jon

Thin the carrots

Carrots, beets, and other root veggies, yes. Otherwise, even if you have enough nutrients in the soil you'll get deformed ones. As for other veggies, I always tend to plant several things together pretty close, i.e. peas and beans. I also mulch a lot and add a lot of compost every year so there are plenty of nutrients for them.
I also find with things like onions and garlic, I can plant a double, staggered row to help maximize garden space.

Why not thin some and leave some undone and do a little experimenting yourself. (of course, you may have to be prepared for "I told you so") :)

If it has worked for years you must be spacing things okay. But if your carrots never develop to a good size or shape you should try thinning....and do it early in their growth. If you leave them about 1 inch apart at the first thinning you can harvest every other one for baby carrots and leave the rest 2 inches apart for later harvest at full size.

In nature the strong may survive, but they take alot longer to grow while competing with the ones who later die. You can "help" your veggies grow faster by getting rid of the competition early in the growing season. I like dirtbert's idea of a little experiment. Try different spacings and see what works best. Yes, you can pull out the extras, it is okay. Hopefully, you don't have trouble destroying the weeds. They are also living things, but they gotta go, too.

FWIW: I shared a garden plot for awhile with someone who said I was "playing God" whenever I went in and thinned plants. But she let me do it, just didn't watch. Are you sure DH isn't already helping your garden with a bit of thinning when you aren't watching?