Young Dusty Miller seedlings grow in eco friendly, handmade newspaper pots.
It may seem like sustainability is mainstream now, but we all have some recollection of our loved ones practicing what is now call sustainability in some way or form before it gained it’s fame and rebranding. With particular regards to land stewardships, our ancestors centered practices that ensured a healthy relationship with Earth and ourselves. As home gardeners, many wish to adopt this same approach but believe our impact is small, but that’s far from true. Small steps such as finding sustainably ways to start seeds can prove to be cost efficient, eco-friendly, and reduce waste. Here we’ll discuss sustainable seed starting tips and methods for the everyday gardeners.
Implementing sustainable seed starting techniques can be cost efficient for the avid gardener. After a year of gardening, you’ll quickly see how supplies can add up. Spending tons of money to start seeds at least twice a year is not ideal for sustaining a long gardening passion and/or career at all. Gardening should be assessable and unfortunately capitalism can get in the way of that. These methods we will discuss below can make gardening affordable and assessable to our community which means more people reaping the benefits of gardening. Practicing sustainable seed starting methods also reduce your environmental impact and helps reduces waste which is essential in fighting our current climate change issues.
Although newspaper is what’s used above, you can use whatever paper you have on hand to create these crafty pots. Paper is compostable and allow for you to either easily remove the pots for simple transplanting or bury the plant with the pot so it can break down in the soil adding to the biodiversity of your soil. Paper pots work well with all sort of veggies and can be messy right after watering so when moving or transplanting, wait a day or two after watering to ensure the paper had dried enough to support the plant and soil. Here is an easy demonstration on creating paper pots.
Reducing waste includes turning one use items into multiple uses. You can take your everyday take out containers and plastic trays and reuse for your leafy green seedlings. Be sure to add holes at the bottom for drainage if you plan to have your seedling in these containers for longer than a few weeks. Also don’t be so quick to toss the top of the containers either. Clear lids make perfect humidity domes for germinating seeds.
Second hand stores are a great place to find gardening supplies and tools. You are incline to find seedling trays, tupperware, and pots you can use to start seeds as well as container gardens. My advice is to make sure you clean all items with castile soap and some alcohol to prevent spread of unknown plant diseases.
My favorite sustainable seed starting method is using coconut coir pots. These pots are biodegrable which means they are created to be compostable. Biodegrable pots are simple- they are made of natural materials that will break down over time in the soil. Because of their make up, when ready to plant your seedling, you can simply bury the pot as well. This method is a favorite of mine also because it help minimizes transplant shock. Some plants are sensitive to having their roots moved or adjusted, burying the entire pot fixes that issue. I always dip my pots in water right before starting any seeds to help with moisture retention. I must mention as well, the most wildly available biodegrable pots are made of peat moss which is extremely controversial due to how it being harvested in the wild. I recommend specifically searching for compost or coconut coir pots to ensure your purchase aligns with your morals.
A soil blocker is pretty much self explanatory! It’s a tool that creates blocks for planting seeds out of soil mixtures. You’ll then use those blocks as its own pots. Here’s a guide on how to use a soil blocker. Soil blockers can come in a variety of sizes to accommodate different seedlings and once you get the hang of it, a fun tool to have in the garden. It cuts down on how many items you’ll need, reducing waste in the long run.
Sustainable seed starting is not to hard to obtain and definitely can be made assessable for our community. Hopefully, you can add one of these methods to your garden this upcoming season.
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I've used compostable carryout containers and cups and it was so cool to watch the breakdown process and growth of something new! Another cost container or seed starting is a cardboard egg tray. I used that few of those last year I will definitely do it again this season. It not only help keep track of what seeds sprouted but the transfer process was easier too.