Containers for Growing Seeds

Last week I started my first seeds of the year (a little late but the year seems to have already gotten away from me….).  I like Park’s Bio Dome with bio-sponge plugs (particularly for larger seeds) – just drop the seed into the small hole in the middle of the moistened plug, put the plug in the styrofoam plug holder, put the lid on the Bio Dome, and you’re done.  But not everyone has those and really, you don’t need such fancy stuff to grow seeds.

So just what can you plant your seeds in?  Here are a few suggestions using things you probably already have around the house.

• plastic egg cartons – just poke a hole in the bottom of each “egg,” or use a sharp knife to slice an “X” in the bottom (cardboard cartons don’t work quite as well as they tend to mold or sag)
• plastic milk jugs, soda bottles, juice bottles, etc. – use a sharp knife to cut the bottom off about 3″ above the bottom, poke some holes in the bottom, and voilà, instant seed pot
• waxed containers, like OJ or juice containers – like the plastic containers, just cut the bottom off and poke some holes in it
• newspaper - believe it or not, you can make perfectly good “pots” out of newspaper, but it helps to have a special pot making tool like this one from Lee Valley
• any plastic containers (e.g., margarine containers, sports water bottles, Tupperware) - using them as seed starting containers is a good way to reuse plastic containers of all sorts that have seen better days – just don’t forget to poke a couple of holes in the bottom for drainage
• plastic grocery bags – these can be used to form a seed starting flat by filling it shallowly with seed starting medium, although it works better if you use them to line a cardboard box (they hold their shape better) – realize that the cardboard with soak up water from draining holes in the plastic bag and will deform a bit, but it should be fine (just make sure both the bag and box are clean and didn’t have anything in them that might cause mold or odors)

That’s just a short list – I’m sure there are plenty of other creative ways to reuse household items to start seeds.  Any suggestions?