Make Your Own Biodegradable Seed-Starting Pots

Reader Contribution by Jessica Kellner
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‘Tis the season to start garden seeds indoors! We can save tons of money by starting garden seeds indoors to transplant into our spring gardens. Most seeds require a few weeks to grow before it’s time to set them out. Considering we’re a few weeks out from the last spring frost date in many parts of the country, now’s the time to start those early seeds.

This morning I went on the news here at one of our local stations (you can watch the video here) to talk about starting a spring garden. I shared the information about starting seeds indoors from the current issue of Natural Home and Garden — which provides a planting guide worksheet that will tell you when to start seeds and plant seedlings all season long (read the article to learn how to use it). On the news show, I also talked about using biodegradable seed-starting pots. I didn’t have time to discuss or demonstrate this in the 3-minute news segment, but another very cheap and easy way to use biodegradable seed-starting pots is to make them yourself out of newspaper.

Making a newspaper seed-starting pot is unbelievably easy. Essentially, you just fold a piece of newspaper in half, roll it around a soda can and then tuck in the ends on one side to form a bottom. Voila! Instant, plantable seed-starting pot. Blogger Mr. Brown Thumb gives more detailed instructions on his blog here, as well as instructions to create seed-starting pots out of old cardboard toilet paper rolls.

If you want to make a bit more sophisticated newspaper pots, you can buy the handy dandy seed-pot maker from Uncommon Goods, which is pictured.   

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