Growing plants by seed is the cheapest way to get fresh, organic fruit and vegetables. Plus if you buy organic seeds, you will know exactly what will have been used on your fruits and veges from start to finish. You are in complete control and can keep them 100% organic.

When growing veges (or any plants) from seed, you have two planting options; plant the seeds directly in the soil in your garden or plant them in seed boxes which, when the plants are established, can later be transplanted into your garden. Planting the seeds directly in your garden can work well for some types of veges (eg. carrots, lettuce, onion) but the seedlings are at risk of attack by predators, such as snails, as well as the weather. Using a seed tray reduces these risks, however, you can lose some of the seedlings when planting out due to transplant shock.

So what is the best solution? Use individual seed boxes which can be planted directly into the ground. This way there is no transplant shock and the seedlings will be strong enough to survive being out in the open. The seed boxes just need to be made from an organic biodegradable product and you’ll be right.

Make Your Own Seed Boxes

You can buy seed boxes or containers from garden centres but they can be quite expensive which kind of defeats the purpose of growing your own plants from seed. If the purpose is to save money, that is. The cheapest and most eco friendly way is to make your own seed boxes. This is a quick and easy job which is not as inconvenient as you might think. To start with, you can try using egg boxes or the cardboard from toilet rolls or paper towels. These will work. The other option is to make origami seed boxes. It will take a little effort to make them but once you get the hang of it you’ll get them done in no time. Small Meadow Farm also has some info on making newspaper pots.  Try it and you’ll see just how easy it is.