prick out

prick out (third-person singular simple present pricks out, present participle pricking out, simple past and past participle pricked out)

1. (horticulture, transitive, intransitive) To separate (seedlings) growing together, for example into a different pot
   • 1911, Thomas Smith, Profitable Culture of Vegetables:

     Before the time for sowing arrives consideration should be given to the question of what labour is available for pricking out the seedlings, and what accommodation can be provided for the protection of the plants in their later stages