Seed Starting Pods

With seeds starting season at its very beginning, I have realized that I don't have enough pods to get me through!  I debated about just buying a few more flats, but decided instead to buy a bag of organic seed starting mix and try to make my own pods out of recycled newspaper.

I found this great tutorial on Little House in the Suburbs and, even though I couldn't find any tape (figures, right?), decided to give it a go.

Grab a newspaper or a free local paper/periodical (no glossy pics, just straight paper and print), open it up and remove any staples.

Take 2-3 pages (depending on how thick you want it to be...remember, you'll be rolling these, so less winds up being fine) and tear them into 3-4 inch strips (the wider your strip, the deeper your pod will be, I made mine pretty deep because I was preparing to plant tomatoes and peppers in them).

Take a strip and begin rolling it into itself.  Once it's rolled, place a rubber band around it to hold it in place (if you have tape...YAY!  You can use that instead).

Next, take one of your strips of paper, tear it in half and fold it into a small rectangle about the width of the bottom of your newly created tube.

Now, take your newly folded rectangle and slide it into your tube.  This will create the bottom of your tube.  Remember, I did it this way because I couldn't find tape.  You can also fold in the bottom of your tube and tape it together.  That would probably be easier, but this way worked out fine (it just stretched my imagination a little further than it usually goes at 6AM) ;-)

Finally, place your new pods on a plate or an extra sheet of newspaper, fill them with seed starting soil (this step is incredibly messy), moisten the soil and plant your seeds!

Place your newly started seeds in a tray and put them under your grow lights.  These guys won't last forever, but neither do the pods you buy at the store.  The newspaper will decompose, so when it's time to transplant them out, all I'll have to do is remove the rubber band and plop them in the ground or in another pot.

Ta-da!!!

Linking up to Frugal Days, Sustainable Ways #17