Homemade cups for seedlings - budgetary and convenient option for planting seeds. Start holiday season hits the pocket, so any way to save is welcome. Traditionally, wooden and plastic pots, disposable cups and incised cans. You can make convenient and economical cups for seedlings with your own hands.
Each type of pot has a number of advantages and disadvantages. To do right choice need to consider all options in more detail.
As a container for seedlings use:
- wooden boxes;
- plastic cassettes;
- peat cups;
- plastic disposable cups or containers for sour cream, yogurt and vermicelli fast food;
- buckets of carrots in Korean or sauerkraut;
- paper cups for hot drinks;
- incised packages "tetra-pack" from under juices and dairy products;
- homemade cups made from newsprint.
We will talk about each type separately.
Wooden boxes
A large box is used for sowing seeds of tomatoes, peppers, flowers. In a common box, seedlings grow until they reach 10-15 cm. After that, picking is necessary: planting seedlings in individual containers. Before planting, the box inside is covered with cling film (or ordinary polyethylene). At the bottom of the box there are small holes through which water can flow, so the box must be placed on a pallet.
The advantage of such a container is its low cost. The box can be made independently by cutting and knocking together unnecessary boards. You can adjust the size yourself (taking into account the length and width of the window sill). The main disadvantage is the severity. The wooden box itself weighs a lot, and after filling with earth it can become unbearable. The need for picking is another drawback. When separating seedlings high risk damage the undeveloped root system.
Plastic cassettes
Plastic cassettes are very convenient fixture for growing seedlings. It has a similar structure with an ice-freezing mold, although the volumes of the containers are much larger. A drainage hole is pierced at the bottom of each recess. It is enough just to fill the cassettes with special soil. Each cup is designed for one plant.
The cost of cassettes is modest. Seedling cups are not fastened together very tightly, they can be easily cut with scissors. They are light and compact. When transporting, you need to be careful: some cassettes are made of fragile material, and the cup may crack. Peppers and eggplants are best planted in deeper containers.
Peat glasses
Peat containers are an innovation for gardeners. The main advantage of the product is landing in the ground directly with the form. Peat decomposes in the ground, so the seedlings do not need to be removed from the tank, risking damage to the roots. In addition, the cup itself is a ready-made fertilizer for the soil. However, some gardeners do not advise sowing seeds in them. In their opinion, it is better to use peat glasses for picking.
The advantage of the product is the minimum required fraud: picking, transplanting. There is no risk of "injuring" the roots. There is only one minus - the probability of buying defective goods. In some cases, seedling containers begin to fall apart, crumble, and mold may appear on them. You can buy such pots only in trusted stores.
Peat tablets
Compressed "buns" made of peat are a more expensive analogue of cups. They differ in that the soil mixture for seedlings does not need to be poured into the tablet. Dry tablets are placed in a tray with water. After a while they will swell. Seeds are planted inside. Planting is as easy as shelling pears: a tablet with a germinated plant is buried in the ground.
Advantage - minimum cost forces. The disadvantage is the cost. Tablets cost 5 times more than regular cups. However, you do not need to spend money on soil mix. Some gardeners use tablets only at the first stage of growing seedlings. After the plant has grown, they bury the pill in a glass of soil.
These can be disposable plastic cups or yogurt cups, processed cheese or sauerkraut. You can use cardboard disposable cups for hot drinks left after visiting the coffee shop. The main thing is to choose containers different sizes. If you buy disposable tableware, you need to purchase two sets: glasses (100 ml each) and beer glasses (500 ml each). The first set is convenient for sowing seeds. Large containers are used for picking.
The advantage is cheapness and convenience. Such "pots" can be used for more than one year. Of these, an earthen clod is easily removed along with the root system. Disadvantages: inconvenience during transportation due to instability and lack of drainage. Before filling them soil mixture you need to make small holes in the bottom. It is convenient to do this with a hot awl.
Milk and juice boxes
Cardboard packaging from juice or dairy products is convenient to use for planting seedlings. To do this, they need to be cut. The height of the glass depends on the planted crop. Eggplant and pepper more soil for the full development of the root system. Despite the fact that the cups are made of paper, they should never be buried. They do not dissolve in the soil. Make holes in the bottom for drainage.
You can make pots for seedlings with your own hands. The height can be adjusted independently. Such containers can be easily transported: they are light and stable. It is very easy to extract an earthen lump. To do this, you just need to break the glasses.
Homemade paper containers
Homemade paper cups are absolutely free, non-toxic and easy to operate. True, it will take about half an hour to manufacture a batch of containers. An old newspaper is folded in half, wrapped around a glass or bottle. Part of the newspaper sheet must be tucked inward, forming a bottom. Holes do not need to be made.
Such molds can be safely buried in holes in the open field. It is preferable to use paper without printing ink, but old newspapers are also suitable for this purpose. The height of the container for seedlings of pepper or eggplant should be about 12 cm, diameter - 8-9 cm. Smaller glasses are suitable for seedlings of tomatoes and cabbage: 10 cm in height and 6-7 cm in diameter.
Do-it-yourself seedling cups can be made from eggshell. Such small "pots" are suitable for planting small ornamental plants. Before planting, you need to lightly squeeze the shell in your hand so that it crumbles.
Any version of the product has disadvantages and advantages. Each gardener must take into account the specifics of the planted crop and financial capabilities. If you have a long transportation ahead, you need to choose denser pots. The main thing is to plant plants with love so that they thank you with a healthy harvest.
Spring for gardening lovers is a hot time, which primarily involves working with seeds. Modern stores offer gardeners a whole range of various containers for seedlings, but for the sake of economy, most gardeners prefer to make do with improvised means and materials. There are many ways to make DIY seed growing cups, and below we will talk about the easiest and cheapest of them.
Glasses from metal and plastic jars
The classic version is a container made of metal cans from canned foods. Several holes should be drilled in the bottom (preferably from the inside), and in order to make it easier to remove the seedlings from the container, several cuts are made on its walls. If the cups are supposed to be used more than once, it is better not to cut them, but simply put a strip of thick paper or polyethylene on the bottom - in order to get an earthen ball and not damage the roots, you just need to pull it. In a similar way, you can use tin beer cans cut off at the top, as well as plastic bottles and sleeves from toilet paper.
Plastic yogurt cups can serve as a container for seedlings of vegetables and flowers. First you need to cut out the bottom of the jar, and instead put a circle of tin or cardboard of a suitable size.
When the shoots need to be planted, it will be enough to press on the improvised bottom with a stick. It is important to note that transparent disposable cups are the worst for seedlings, since the roots in such containers do not receive enough light and shoot growth slows down.
Cups made of paper or newspaper
A container for seedlings made of paper or newspapers is made in several ways. For the first, you need a suitable cylinder (you can use a plastic bottle or tin can, cut off at the top) as a base, as well as strips of paper of a suitable width. If the paper is thick enough, three strips will be enough to make one cup, and if it is thin, it is better to add 2-3 more. Paper strips must be attached to the base so that they protrude beyond its edge by at least 5-6 cm (depending on the radius), then wrap it in paper (not too tightly so that the cylinder or jar can be easily removed) . The protruding edges must be pressed well, thus forming the bottom of the cup. After that, the base can be removed, and seedlings can be planted in the resulting container.
Seedling cups can also be made according to the papier-mâché principle. This will require several glass glasses, a bowl of water and old newspapers or even toilet paper. Soak the newspapers well and form a future container on a regular glass. If toilet paper will be used to make cups, instead of a bowl of water, you need to take a spray bottle. Toilet paper is wrapped around the mold, after which it is well moistened with a spray bottle and pressed well against the walls of the glass. The workpiece is dried for 24 hours, after which it is removed in a circular motion.
Paper or newspaper cups convenient in the first place because the seedlings are subsequently very convenient to plant in the ground. You can simply tear the paper and throw it away, or even plant the shoots along with the container (the paper will naturally collapse over time), without damaging even the smallest roots.
Film cups
To make cups for seedlings from plastic film, it is best to take a film that is used for greenhouses. In addition, you will need a base of a suitable shape and a regular stapler. The film is cut into strips, wrapped around the base and fastened with staples, after which a square cup is obtained. An easier option is to make tubes out of the film, bend the top edges for rigidity, install them in a box or pallet and fill them with earth. In this case, the most important thing is that the film is dense enough, otherwise it will simply lose its shape.
If a lot of bags of fermented milk products have accumulated at home, they can be put under seedlings. The bags are tucked up, seeds are planted in them, after which the edges are turned off and poured required amount land as the shoots grow. The only disadvantage of this method is that the packages are quite unstable and require additional support. For greater rigidity, it is recommended to strengthen their edges around the perimeter with cardboard strips.
In which cups is it better to plant seedlings?
It is rather difficult to answer the question of which cups are best used for seedlings, since it depends on the characteristics of the crop that is planned to be grown and other factors. Today in gardening stores you can buy different containers for growing plants: peat cups and tablets, as well as plastic containers. different forms and sizes.
Peat tanks
Pressed peat containers have a number of very valuable advantages. Firstly, they provide maximum survival of young plants, since they can be planted directly into the ground with a container without injuring even the smallest roots. This is especially valuable when growing delicate crops that "do not like" transplanting to a new place. Secondly, the material from which the container is made does not just break down in a natural way, but turns into a nutritious fertilizer.
Peat cups are both round and square - the latter are very convenient, as they do not take up much space on the windowsill.
When buying such containers, it is important to remember that in order to reduce costs, some manufacturers add cardboard to the material, and such containers are not suitable for growing seedlings - when planted in the ground, shoot roots do not pass well through a thick cardboard layer, which is why the plants begin to grow poorly . In addition, planting seeds in peat pots requires knowledge of some rules:
- containers must be placed on expanded clay or sand;
- the earth must constantly be moistened, since the water from such pots quickly evaporates, as a result of which the seedlings will grow poorly (although excess moisture can lead to the appearance of a tribe on the walls of the cups);
- as the shoots grow, they need to be moved away from each other so that the roots of young plants do not intertwine with each other.
There are also peat humus tablets on sale, which are no less convenient for planting seedlings - when wet, they can significantly increase in size. If it is not possible to buy such tablets, they can be replaced with nutritious self-made nutritional cubes.
DIY food cubes
To make cubes you will need:
- humus (5 parts);
- sod land (1 part).
- peat (3 parts);
- humus (1 part).
The components must be mixed together, after which, for each kilogram of the resulting mixture, add 15 g of ammonium nitrate, the same amount of potassium sulfate, 50 grams of superphosphate and water so that the mass has the consistency of thick sour cream. It must be laid out in a pan with a layer of 8-10 cm, then cut into sharp knife cubes of the required size. For convenience, the cubes are slightly moved away from each other and seeds are planted.
Video - Do-it-yourself pills, cubes for seedlings
plastic containers
Plastic containers for growing seeds can be of two types: ordinary pots and cassette containers, which look like cells fastened together. Pots are more suitable for domestic plants, since it is quite difficult to transplant shoots from them - the roots are very tightly intertwined with each other, as a result of which they are severely damaged. If the seedlings are going to be grown in plastic containers, it is very important to choose the right size.
Not easy. For the success of this business, it will be necessary to observe the conditions that are necessary for the germination of seeds. One of these points will be the choice of capacity.
seedling pots
From an agronomic point of view, peat or peat pots are the optimal capacity for growing seedlings. They have 3 advantages over any container:
- provide 100% survival rate of seedlings, as they are planted in the garden along with the container - at the same time, not one, even the smallest root, is injured;
- suitable for growing seedlings that do not tolerate transplanting: eggplant, cucumbers, melons, watermelons, sweet corn and delicate flowers.
- after planting seedlings, the container turns into a useful one for young plant fertilizer.
Peat pots for seedlings are pressed on special machines from peat or nutritious peat mixture. Products can be cylindrical or square. The latter are more convenient, since they can be arranged more compactly on the windowsill.
Important! To reduce the cost of production, unscrupulous manufacturers add cardboard to the mixture. Such pots are not well suited for growing plants, since the roots pass through the cardboard layer with difficulty, and after planting in open ground plants will be stunted. Products with the addition of cardboard have smoother and denser walls than ordinary peat pots.
When growing seedlings in peat pots there are rules.
- The soil should always be moist, if it dries out - the plant will drastically slow down growth.
- Pots are placed on a layer of gravel, expanded clay or sand.
- As the plants grow, the pots are arranged, increasing the distance between them so that the roots of neighboring plants do not intertwine.
Growing in peat pots has one drawback - the earth dries up quickly, as evaporation occurs not only from the surface, but also through breathable walls. This means that the seedlings will have to be watered almost daily.
Peat tablets
IN last years appeared on sale peat tablets. They are easier to use than pots, since there is no need to prepare and store the land mixture until spring - the seed or cutting is placed in a tablet of compressed peat. Fungicides and growth stimulants have already been added to the peat, so the seeds sprout together, the seedlings do not get sick and grow quickly.
Before sowing or picking, the tablets are soaked in warm water. During swelling, only the height of the tablet increases, while the diameter remains the same. After 10-15 minutes, the excess water is drained and a recess is made on the surface of the swollen tablet, into which a seed, preferably sprouted, or a cutting is placed.
Many gardeners grow seedlings in plastic containers. There are two types of plastic containers for seedlings: cassette, that is, divided into cells, and ordinary boxes.
Plastic
Plastic boxes are not suitable for seedlings. In such a container, the roots are so tightly intertwined that when landing in the ground, they almost have to be cut with a knife. If low containers can still be used for gardening purposes - to keep seedlings in them until picking, then deep boxes are only suitable for balcony gardening.
Cassette
Cassette containers for seedlings are pots fastened together, each of which will contain one plant. Products are made of smooth plastic, so seedlings are easily removed from such cells with a clod of earth and its roots hardly suffer. When buying containers, it is better to choose models with a pallet, otherwise you will have to make the stand yourself.
The disadvantage of the method is that the cups cannot be arranged and the grown seedlings will soon begin to crowd each other and stretch. Containers are not suitable for seedlings that need to be grown for a long time, but they can be used for cabbages and asters - plants that do not gain a large mass of leaves before planting in the ground.
The best do-it-yourself seedling containers
Most gardeners rightly believe that the best seedling containers are not those that look beautiful, but those that do not need to be spent. To get free containers, you just need to use the packaging materials a second time.
So, if you cut off the upper part of the tetrapak from under any dairy product, you can get a bulk container with laminated, and therefore not soaking walls. This is the most popular way to provide yourself with containers for the seedling period.
People over forty have seen a time when the only available container for seedlings were homemade wooden boxes. Gardeners knocked them together from boards, plywood and packing boards. The boxes were made of different depths and sizes, and they managed with this unpretentious container. Then in middle lane did not grow many seedling crops. Mostly tomatoes were sown in the boxes, occasionally - peppers, white cabbage, hardy flower crops. For a summer resident of those years, it was standard set seedlings. About the leek celery root, then few people heard broccoli, but only a few grew them.
Nowadays, it is not difficult to buy special containers for seedlings. But are modern plastic cassettes, peat pots or tablets so good for growing high-quality planting material as their manufacturers claim? Isn't it better to use boxes, cups, kefir boxes or other improvised containers in the old fashioned way?
Today we will try to find the pros and cons of the most popular containers for growing seedlings and choose the best option.
Perhaps the most ancient way of growing seedlings is to plant seeds in a common box, followed by picking. This is how our grandmothers grew seedlings. The box can be wooden, plastic or foam. As a rule, the box is placed on a pallet, and the inside is lined with plastic wrap and fill with earth.
Pros: More seedlings can be grown in a box than in individual glasses; it is convenient to turn it over; no box required accessories during transportation; it is easy to put together by yourself and save money.
Minuses: In the process of picking or planting seedlings in the beds, there is a high probability of damage to the roots (and this means a delay in growth and fruiting); wooden box, filled with earth, quite heavy.
Plastic cassettes
Plastic cassettes are small containers fastened together with drainage holes of various lengths and widths. If desired, there will surely be a cassette for the entire width of your window sill.
In Russian stores, plastic cassettes are usually sold without pallets. In this case, the pallet will have to do it yourself. Otherwise, they are very easy to use: you just need to fill each cell with soil mixture and boldly plant the seeds.
Pros: Easy to adjust to the desired size by cutting with scissors; they are inexpensive and last a long time; cassettes are light and compact; already have holes for good drainage; seedlings are easily removed from the cells.
Minuses: Cassettes of "large format" are inconvenient for transportation, because they are very flimsy and can crack under the weight of the earth and plants; due to the fact that the cells are fastened together, when extracting one seedling, you can inadvertently break the earthen ball of another; not free; not every culture will have enough space in a small cell (for example, the roots of peppers and eggplants may not have enough “depth” of the cassette).
Peat cups
Peat cups are very popular among gardeners, especially among supporters organic farming, because they are made from environmentally friendly materials and easily decompose in the ground. It is often recommended to use peat pots and glasses in the second stage - for transplanting (picking) seedlings, and not for sowing seeds.
Pros: Durable and safe, do not contain toxic substances; the walls of the cups are porous, they allow air and water to pass through, preventing the roots from “turning sour”; seedlings are planted on permanent place directly in the pot, which means root system not injured at all; seedlings take root almost 100%; decaying peat serves as additional fertilizer.
Minuses: Not all commercially available peat cups are different good quality; have a tendency to get wet; not cheap; can “bloom”, that is, become moldy; in peat containers, the soil loses moisture faster, which means that you need to closely monitor the seedlings and prevent drying out.
Peat tablets
In recent years, special peat tablets have gained popularity - compressed fine peat with nutritional supplements in a shell made of a strong mesh. They are placed in a pan and filled with water. The tablets swell and increase in height several times, after which seeds are planted in the recesses from above.
Pros: Picking without unnecessary gestures: the tablet is simply buried in the ground; excellent air and moisture permeability, which is important for the development of a powerful root system; no need to prepare or buy seedling soil, at least in the first stage of growing seedlings.
Minuses: Expensive pleasure; as in the case with peat pots constant monitoring of humidity is necessary - it is very easy to dry out the roots of seedlings.
However, resourceful gardeners will always find a way out. For example, to solve a moisture problem, peat tablets with seedlings are placed in Plastic container from under sushi, pastries or cake. The container is filled with water to the brim, and the tablets themselves take as much moisture as needed.
Plastic cups
One of the best options containers for seedlings - these are plastic cups of various capacities. They can be either specially “sharpened” for growing seedlings, or ordinary transparent ones from sets of disposable tableware. Moreover, you will need two sets of such glasses: one with a volume of 100-150 milliliters for the initial planting of seeds, and the second with a volume of 500 milliliters for the subsequent transplantation of young plants (picks).
Pros: Cups are cheap, but will last more than one year; plants are easily removed without damaging the earthen coma.
Minuses: Still worth the money; if you use transparent disposable cups, you need to remember to make drainage holes (for example, with a hot nail); difficulties may arise during transportation (usually cups are placed in shoe boxes so as not to tip over).
Homemade containers for seedlings
And yet, the optimal containers for seedlings are those that do not need to be bought. Because we always have them at hand! And instead of encouraging the production of excess plastic with your hard-earned money, you should pay attention to the recycling of all kinds of packaging materials. Abroad, this practice is flourishing, and we, I must say, are not far behind.
Dairy boxes
By cutting off the bottom of the dairy box, it's easy to get a wonderful seedling container. It remains only to pierce the bottom in several places for drainage, put the boxes in a tray, fill with soil - and sow.
Pros: Free; lungs; may be of different heights; the finished seedlings are perfectly removed along with the earthy clod (just tear the box apart).
Minuses: It's easy to forget and throw the box in the trash instead of cutting it off; a pan is needed, because they let water through.
Cups of yogurt, sour cream, instant vermicelli, etc.
Free replacement for special plastic cups. With the role of a glass of 100 milliliters, packaging from yogurt does an excellent job, and in large glasses of 500 milliliters of sour cream, seedlings will feel no worse than in purchased nurseries.
Pros: The same as store-bought plastic cups, plus freebies and a small contribution to a big environmental cause.
Minuses: The same as purchased plastic cups.
Buckets of sauerkraut, cucumbers, etc.
Liter plastic buckets will cope with the role of a container for seedlings no worse than others. They are especially suitable for large seedlings. The good thing is that you can safely fill half the tank with drainage, and only then with soil.
Pros: free, large, easy to carry, because each bucket has a handle, durable.
Cons: transparent; need to be improved (it is necessary to pierce holes to drain excess water)
Paper cups from newspapers
For those who do not eat sour cream or drink milk, but read newspapers, this interesting and extremely fashionable in the West method of making containers for seedlings will come in handy.
The old newspaper is folded in half lengthwise, and wrapped around a 1.5-liter bottle or can in several layers. The main thing is not to forget to leave an allowance for the bottom at the bottom. The edges are fastened with a stapler, the bottom is simply bent inward. Ready! You can fill the cups with earth, lightly tamping it, and plant it.
For tomatoes, peppers, eggplants and cucumbers, paper cups are made with a diameter of about 8 centimeters and a height of 10-14 centimeters. Cups about 7 centimeters in height and 5 centimeters in diameter are suitable for cabbage seedlings.
Pros: Free, lightweight, non-toxic; you don’t have to take the seedlings out of the glass, just put it in the hole and cover it with earth.
Minuses: It is necessary to find time and work with your hands, which is not always possible; a pallet or box is required where to put these cups (tight to each other).
What else can be adapted for growing seedlings? There are a lot of variations here! For example, cardboard sleeves from toilet paper rolls can easily play the role of a cup.
Opaque cropped plastic bottles with drainage holes in a circle (2-3 centimeters from the bottom) work great. Even "one and a half", cut into two or three parts, turn into hotbeds without a bottom. But this “problem” is easily solved with the help of a pallet or a low box, where you need to install home-made containers filled with soil. Some gardeners cut from plastic bottles rectangles, fold them into cylinders desired diameter and fasten the edges with a regular paper clip. From such a container, the plant does not even have to be shaken out: he removed the paper clip, the cylinder fell apart.
Can be used as planting cups food waste, unnecessary plastic container and much more. This will not only save money, but also significantly reduce the amount of garbage thrown out. Here are some options:
The peel of an orange
As a cup for seedlings, you can use the peel from an orange or lemon, grapefruit, in general, any citrus. In the lower part of the half of the peel, a hole should be made for drainage, and the peel itself should be filled with soil. The advantage of such a pot is that the plant can be planted in the soil with it.
Eggshell
Another eco-friendly option that works well for growing small seedlings is eggshells. Just like citrus peel, it can be placed in the ground along with seedlings. For stability, eggshell pots are placed in a container.
egg tray
Another option for making cups for seedlings with your own hands is to use a plastic egg tray. In its lower part, it is necessary to make holes for the drainage of water. Such a tray is thrown away after use, and not buried in the soil. The use of cardboard trays is not recommended, as they can get wet when watering.
ice tray
The ice tray is used for small plants in the same way as the egg tray.
Plastic bottle
Consider several design options. The first is to simply cut off half of the bottle and fill it with soil. In the second case, the cap is not removed from the upper half of the cut bottle, a hole is made in it and a cord of synthetic material is inserted.
Seedlings are planted in the half with a lid, and water is poured into the lower half, after which top part inserted into the bottom. Thus, you get not just a cup for seedlings, but a whole automatic watering system.
Disposable plastic cup
A disposable plastic cup can easily be turned into a container for growing seedlings. To do this, it must be thoroughly washed if before that it contained coffee or, for example, yogurt, and then make a hole in the lower part to drain the water.
Filter for coffee machine
A filter for a coffee machine, not surprisingly, can also be a good cup for seedlings. By itself, it cannot boast of stability, so several of these filters should be placed in a box or pallet with high sides, so the filters with seedlings will support each other and not fall.
tea bags
Another option for planting plants with a small root system is to use tea bags. When planting seedlings in the ground, the bag does not need to be removed, it easily disintegrates in the soil.
Toilet paper or paper towel roll
The same scheme is used as with a newspaper or paper cylinder, the lower part is bent so that the bottom is obtained.
Newspaper or any old papers
A newspaper rolled into a cylinder or any old paper will serve as a good glass for germinating seeds, but in the soil this decomposes in a maximum of a couple of months.
Milk or juice cartons
Seedling cups can also be made from empty milk or juice cartons. Moreover, they can not only be used as is, but improved by pre-cutting the package at all four corners and wrapping the sides of the package halfway down. Then the usual "money" elastic band is put on the bag - it holds the wrapped walls well. And as the seedlings grow, the walls of the package unfold to the height necessary for adding soil.
An easier way to use cardboard bags is to simply cut them in half, after which you can plant seedlings in them. The main thing is to wash them thoroughly before use.
If you do not want to spend time making cups with your own hands, use traditional seedling or peat cassettes, which are convenient because each of their cells can be broken off and planted in the ground along with the seedlings grown in it.
Of course, you do not have to use only the methods and materials described above, you can safely improvise and use any unnecessary containers and food waste if they are suitable for planting seedlings.