Been watching your progress
a beet question? do you do something to the seed before planting in the dirt?
Th reason for the question is beet seeds seem to be in clusters and then grow too close and when I try to thin out I have disturbed the roots

I actually did it both ways, because I transplanted two sets of transplants.

Early on, inside, I separated a couple trays of the seedlings into individual yogurt cups abd put them back under the lights to continue growing. Life (and a death) interrupted the process for the other seedlings.

So, this last batch went in as clumps. I dug a fairly deep hole and set the whole tangled root ball down. I press it in firmly. I set these clumps fairly close together, to, since I'm don't expect to get roots at this point. But, I do anticipate tons of beet greens, which are delicious!

In the fall, I'm going to just throw out the seeds, and thin from there. That way, I should get a good crop of beetroots.

Hope this helps.