Making Your Own Seed Tape

Article taken from www.bananabeltgardening.com forum
and written by my friend, Patty Spencer of Roseburg, OR.

Getting bored waiting for spring? 

:idea: Making your own seed tape is not only something that can be done as a project with the kids, but the finished product will make planting easier & faster later on, when it’s time to get out there & play in the dirt.

This works great for tiny veggie seeds like carrots, onions & radish, but is also handy for border plants that you’d like to have in rows.  It just about eliminates thinning after the plants poke through to the surface & makes planting at the right depth a cinch.

Start with 4 or 5 squares of bath tissue… the longer it is, the harder it might be to work with, so it’s best to have a length that you can hold in front of you, with an end in each hand.

To continue, you’ll need scissors, a ruler, washable white school glue & a toothpick.

Cut the tissue into strips about an inch wide for single row plantings, or work with the length of tissue uncut, for wider rows.  Lay a ruler down on the strip, so you can space the seeds evenly. (If you’re working with kids, you might want to make pencil marks.)

Using the toothpick with a tiny dab of glue at the tip, pick up the seeds, one at a time, & glue them onto the tissue at increments according to the specific requirement for the seed you’re working with.  Check it often, to make sure the tissue isn’t sticking to your work surface.

After the glue is dry, roll up the strips & store them in labeled envelopes or jars.  (I also mark the name of the seed on the tissue, just to be on the safe side.)

When it’s time to plant, make a shallow trench (the depth that the seed is to be planted), then lay the strips end-to-end.  Cover them with soil & dampen the row.

You might want to place cardboard strips on the top of the row & wet them down, to ensure that the seeds stay damp while they germinate. (Weigh them down with pebbles or a little soil, so they dont blow away.)

Check them every few days & remove the cardboard when sprouts emerge.

Have fun getting ready for spring! :happy10:

One Response to Making Your Own Seed Tape

  1. Pingback: Make Your Own Seed Tape | Gardening Tips | BBB Seed

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