Spring is a busy time for gardening lovers, which primarily involves working with seeds. Modern stores offer gardeners a whole range of different containers for seedlings, but to save money, most gardeners prefer to make do with improvised means and materials. There are many ways to make cups for growing seeds with your own hands, and below we will talk about the simplest and cheapest of them.
The classic option is a container made from metal cans for canned food. Several holes should be drilled in the bottom (preferably from the inside), and to make it easier to remove the seedlings from the container, several cuts are made on its walls. If the cups are intended to be used more than once, it is better not to cut them, but simply put a strip on the bottom thick paper or polyethylene - in order to get out the earthen lump 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 toilet paper rolls.
Plastic yogurt cups can serve as containers for seedlings of vegetables and flowers. First you need to cut out the bottom of the jar, and instead put a suitable size circle of tin or cardboard.
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 choice for seedlings, since the roots in such containers do not receive enough light and shoot growth slows down.
Cups made of paper or newspaper
Containers for seedlings from paper or newspapers are made in several ways. For the first you will need a suitable cylinder (you can use plastic bottle or a 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. The 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 this, the base can be removed and the seedlings can be planted in the resulting container.
Cups for seedlings can also be made using the papier-mâché principle. To do this, you will need several glass glasses, a bowl of water and old newspapers or even toilet paper. Soak the newspapers well and form the future container on a regular glass. If you will be using toilet paper to make cups, use a spray bottle instead of a bowl of water. 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 are convenient primarily 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 break down naturally over time), without damaging even the smallest roots.
Film cups
To make cups for seedlings from plastic film, it is best to take the film that is used for greenhouses. In addition, you will need a base suitable shape and a regular office stapler. The film is cut into strips, wrapped around a base and fastened with staples, after which a square cup is obtained. A simpler option is to make tubes out of film, bend the top edges for rigidity, place them in a box or pallet and fill them with earth. In this case, the most important thing is that the film is thick enough, otherwise it will simply lose its shape.
If there are a lot of bags of fermented milk products accumulated at home, they can be used for seedlings. The bags are folded, seeds are planted in them, then the edges are turned away and sprinkled required amount soil as shoots grow. The only drawback of this method is that the bags are quite unstable and require additional support. To make their edges more rigid, it is recommended to reinforce them around the perimeter with cardboard strips.
Which cups are best to plant seedlings in?
It is quite difficult to answer the question of which cups are best used for seedlings, since it depends on the characteristics of the crop that you plan to grow 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 shapes and sizes.
Peat containers
Containers made from compressed peat have a number of very valuable advantages. Firstly, they ensure maximum survival rate of young plants, since they can be planted in the ground directly with the container, without injuring even the smallest roots. This is especially valuable when growing delicate crops that do not like being transplanted to a new location. Secondly, the material from which the container is made is not simply destroyed naturally, but turns into a nutritious fertilizer.
Peat cups come in both round and square - the latter are very convenient as they do not take up much space on the windowsill.
When purchasing such containers, it is important to remember that to reduce costs, some manufacturers add cardboard to the material, and such containers are not suitable for growing seedlings - when planted in the ground, the roots of the shoots do not pass through the thick cardboard layer well, 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 soil must always be moistened, since water from such pots quickly evaporates, as a result of which the seedlings will grow poorly (however, excess moisture can lead to the appearance of tribes 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 nutritional cubes made by yourself.
DIY nutritional cubes
To make cubes you will need:
- humus (5 parts);
- turf land (1 part).
- peat (3 parts);
- humus (1 part).
The components need to be mixed together, then 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 needs to be placed in a tray in a layer of 8-10 cm, then cut sharp knife cubes required size. For convenience, the cubes are slightly moved away from each other and the seeds are planted.
Video - Tablets, cubes for seedlings with your own hands
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 house plants, since replanting shoots from them is quite difficult - the roots are very tightly intertwined with each other, as a result of which they are severely damaged. If you plan to grow seedlings in plastic containers, it is very important to choose the right size.
| Culture | Pot width, cm | Pot height, cm |
|---|---|---|
| 12-17 | 12-17 | |
| 7-10 | 7-10 | |
| 6-8 | 6-8 | |
| 10-15 | 10-15 | |
| 10-15 | 10-15 |
Cellular or cassette containers are small pots fastened together, in each of which one plant is planted. They are made of high-quality smooth plastic, so the earth ball is very easy to remove without damaging the roots. When purchasing such containers, it is better to choose containers with a pallet, otherwise you will have to make it yourself.
The disadvantage of this method of growing seedlings is that as the shoots grow, they begin to crowd each other. That is, such a container is not suitable for seedlings that need to be grown for a long time, but it can be used for plants that do not gain a large mass of leaves: for example, asters or cabbage.
In any case, when purchasing ready-made containers for growing seedlings, you need to pay attention to the following factors: sufficient capacity, hard, opaque walls with low thermal conductivity, as well as the presence drainage system, which will relieve the seedlings of excess moisture. In such conditions, the shoots will grow strong and healthy, and the plants will delight the gardener with a rich harvest.
Video - Do-it-yourself cups for seedlings
Spring is a troublesome time for gardening lovers, because it means, first of all, working with seeds. The modern assortment of various seedling containers and pots is truly huge, but still most gardeners, in order to save money, prefer to use improvised means. Do-it-yourself cups for seedlings are made by the most different ways, and you will learn about the simplest and most accessible ones from this article.
Jars for canned food, coffee or tea are, so to speak, classics. In the bottom of each container you need to drill a couple of drainage holes (preferably from the inside), and to make it easier to remove young plants, you can additionally make cuts on the walls. If the cups will be used for several seasons, instead of making cuts, it is better to place a strip of polyethylene or thick paper on the bottom - this way you can remove the earthen lump without damaging the root system (you just need to pull this strip). Cut-off beer cans, toilet paper, PET bottles and much more can be used in the same way, but more on that later.
Cups from under baby food and yoghurts. But the bottom of such jars needs to be cut off and a cardboard or tin circle of the appropriate size placed in its place.
When you need to transplant seedlings, you just need to press on the bottom with a stick.
Note! Not the best option for seedlings are disposable plastic cups, which is explained by the risk of slowing plant growth.
Cups from old newspapers
A small stack of newspapers is quite useful for making disposable cups. Typically, such containers are more convenient than the options described above, because when replanting the plants do not need to be shaken out - instead, you need to tear the cup. As a result, the root system will not be damaged.
To make these cups we need a mold. A small bottle or tin. The algorithm of actions should be as follows.
First, take a sheet of newspaper and fold it in half.
Fold the edges of the resulting container and its bottom.
Fill the glass with soil mixture.
Note! If you are not sure that the cup is strong enough, you can tie it with thread or an elastic band.
Seedling cups made from toilet paper
The next manufacturing option is based on the papier-mâché principle. Here we need a spray bottle, glass glasses and toilet paper itself. The technology is extremely simple: we wrap the glasses with toilet paper, moisten them generously with a spray bottle, and then firmly press the paper against the walls. We dry the workpiece for 24 hours, and then remove it with careful circular movements.
Note! Such cups are good because they can simply be torn apart to transplant seedlings into the soil, as mentioned above. Or, as an option, the plants can be planted together with the container (it will subsequently collapse naturally).
An original version of making newspaper cups
Here you will need the same newspapers, as well as cuttings of a building profile. The latter, if necessary, can be easily found among construction waste, so you don't have to buy anything. In our example, two sections of profiles are used, each approximately 20 cm long. The width may vary depending on the specific crop (for example, wider cups are needed).
First, take a newspaper and cut it lengthwise and crosswise.
In one hand we take a piece of the profile, in the second we take a newspaper folded in half (i.e. two layers). We wrap the form with newspaper as shown in the image below.
Where the bottom of the cup will be, bend the corners one by one.
We don’t remove the profile yet – it makes it much more convenient to fill the cup with soil mixture.
When the cup is filled, carefully pull out a piece of the profile.
Place the filled cups in a box pre-lined with polyethylene.
The result should be something like this.
Paper cups - an improved option
Another option for making containers from old newspapers is to use original device. For the convenience of visitors step by step guide presented in table form.
Table. Master class on creating paper cups.
| Steps, photo | Description of actions |
|---|---|
| To work, we will need such a rectangular device - a kind of tin sleeve placed on a small wooden block. |
| We will use this device when making seedling cups from newspapers. The sleeve can be made from a tin can. Such containers are tinned with food-grade tin, and therefore it will be enough to overlap the tin and heat the joint with a soldering iron. We will use the electrical tape on the sleeve as a guide when winding the newspaper so that the finished cups have the same height. |
| We can cover one end of the block with a piece of leather soaked in oil. Thanks to this, the soil will not stick. |
| First, fill the sleeve with soil mixture as shown in the picture. |
| We wrap the sleeve with a strip of newspaper, focusing on the electrical tape. |
| To form the bottom of the container, bend the edges of one side. |
| Carefully pull the sleeve onto the block, holding the soil with the end with the leather patch. |
| We place the filled cups in a wooden box, previously covered with polyethylene. |
Note! As for the dimensions of the container, they will largely depend on the dimensions of the box itself. Although on average it is from 2x2 to 4x4 cm.
We use toilet paper rolls
The advantages of this method are the same as those described above - the bushings are an environmentally friendly material, they do not contain foreign impurities, so seedlings can be planted in the ground without removing them from the cups (the latter will rot in the ground without a trace). If the cups will be used for large plants, we can use entire bushings; in other cases, they (the bushings) can be cut in half. The manufacturing process itself is not complicated.
Table. Master class on making cups from toilet paper rolls.
| Steps, photo | Description of actions |
|---|---|
| So, first we prepare everything necessary - these are the bushings and scissors themselves. |
| We take the first sleeve, crush it and cut it into two halves. |
| On one half we make four cuts (about 1/3 of the height). |
| We bend the “blades” that were formed as a result of this and form the bottom of the future cup. Simply put, we make the same bottom as in ordinary cardboard boxes. |
| The bottom is almost ready. |
| The result should look something like this. |
| That's it, the seedling cups are ready for further use. All that remains is to fill them with soil mixture and sow something you need! |
Video - Making cups for seedlings
Film cups
To create such cups, it is recommended to use PET film for greenhouses. We also need a simple stapler and a base that has the required shape. First, we cut the film into strips, wrap it around the base, and then fix it with staples. The result will be a nice square cup. Although there is a simpler option - make small tubes from film with curved upper edges (required for rigidity). We place these tubes on a pallet or in a box and fill them with soil mixture.
Note! The film must be dense, otherwise it will easily lose its shape!
You can also use bags from fermented milk products. To begin, we fold these bags, fill them with soil, sow the seeds and turn the edges back. In the future, as the seedlings grow, the soil will have to be added little by little. The disadvantage of this method is the instability of packets. To achieve greater rigidity, it is advisable to strengthen the edges with cardboard strips.
Making cups from plastic bottles
Any plastic bottle will do here (in our example, a 1.5-liter bottle). The algorithm of actions is given below.
Table. Master class on making seedling cups from plastic bottles.
| Steps, photo | Description of actions |
|---|---|
| First, cut off the neck and bottom of the bottle as shown in the image. |
| The cut may be uneven - this does not play a special role. |
| Flatten the cut bottle (you can glass jar, as in the photo), forming the first pair of ribs of the cup. Due to the features and properties of the plastic, the ribs will definitely be straight and parallel. |
| It should look something like this. |
| Next, we press the resulting workpiece with our hand (the hand does not have to be six-fingered, as in the picture) and cut along the lines of transition of the container into the neck and bottom to get smooth edges. |
| The edges turned out really smooth. |
| We bend the workpiece as shown in the photo and make a couple more ribs. |
| We still use a glass jar for this. |
| As a result, we got a square container without a bottom. We measure the side of one square and divide the resulting figure by 2. Example: 7:2 = 3.5 cm. |
| We cut each of the edges by 3.5 cm. |
| The result should be the following. |
| We bend the cuts and form the bottom, like, again, a cardboard box. |
| We align the edges so that the finished cup is more stable. |
| The glass is ready. We do not make drainage holes. |
| At the end, we wrap the container with “foil” - a label from the same bottle. If you are concerned that water will seep out a lot after watering, you can seal the bottom with tape, although this is not necessary. |
How to sow seeds in such cups correctly? Nothing could be easier! As an example, consider the cups described above, made from plastic bottles.
So, take a ready-made glass and fill it with soil mixture - store-bought or home-made.
Fill the container completely or only 2/3 full. We place a couple of seeds, peppers or any other crop on the soil.
Then lightly sprinkle the seeds with soil mixture and water thoroughly.
Cover the cups and place them in a warm place, waiting for the shoots to appear. As you can see, even from such a seemingly useless thing - a plastic bottle - you can make excellent seedling cups.
The ideal soil for sowing should be light and loose, have porous structure and sufficient aeration, as well as coincide with the crop intended to be grown in the given soil. Read more in .
An alternative option is to make nutritional cubes
To make such cubes we prepare:
- 1 turf soil;
- 5 - humus.
There is another option:
- 1 part humus;
- 3 - peat.
Mix the prepared ingredients, and add ammonium nitrate (15 g per 1 kg), potassium sulfate, superphosphate (50 g per 1 kg) to the resulting mixture. In addition, add water - such an amount that ready mix had a creamy consistency. We place all this in a tray in a layer 80-100 mm thick, and then cut it into cubes of the required sizes. You can move the cubes a little away from each other to make it easier to work with. At the end we sow the seeds.
Video - How to make seedling cubes yourself
As a result, we note that regardless of what kind of cups you use, they must be rigid, spacious enough, with low thermal conductivity and opaque walls. In addition, you should take care of drainage - it will protect the plants from excess moisture. If all these requirements are taken into account, the seedlings will grow healthy and strong, and adult plants will definitely delight you with a rich harvest or abundant flowering!
Video - Making cups for seedlings
With the onset of the new calendar year, every lover of growing vegetables in their own garden bed is again concerned about searching for containers for sowing. Almost all gardeners have given up the habit of growing seedlings on the windowsill in bulky containers. wooden boxes- they are too inconvenient when transporting to the dacha. In addition, tender young seedlings have time to grow into the roots of neighboring plants. The optimal solution When choosing a container for sowing, use a seedling cup.
Should I buy it in a store or make it myself?
Of course, production technologies do not stand still, and every hypermarket that respects its customers keeps in its assortment convenient containers for peat seedlings, which not only will not damage the root system of the young plant, but will simply dissolve in the soil. Why build your own cups when you can buy ready-made ones? The answer to this question is extremely simple. Experienced gardeners are accustomed to planting dozens or even hundreds of seeds of various vegetable and flower crops. Can you imagine how much money you will need to invest to stock up on containers for all the seeds? Therefore, we will save money and make peat cups for seedlings ourselves. In the meantime, let’s determine if there are any available materials that could become a container for seedlings.
Simple solutions from scrap materials
Even during the winter, those who like to cultivate garden beds collect plastic cylinders, juice boxes, milk cartons, and sour cream containers. Literally everything is used: from paper to thick greenhouse film. And the imagination of gardeners knows no bounds. The film is stitched with thread, cleaved with a stapler, and wound in several layers. There is another simplest way to design containers. Two-liter beverage cylinders are cut at the required height and converted into a container for planting. Plastic cups for seedlings, made in this way in a simple way, have one small minus. However, when replanting, the root system will have to be disturbed a little. Only the removal of those plants that, during the time spent on the windowsill, did not have time to acquire long and strong roots, occurs painlessly.
Making paper cups for seedlings
Some plants are so capricious that they cannot withstand transplantation, get sick for a long time and do not take root well. As a result, while the seedling is acclimatizing in a new place, the precious time allotted for growth will be lost. Therefore, we will make paper cups for seedlings. During the winter, you can collect unwanted newspapers. Pressed cellulose obtained from recycled materials is used to print publications. It will easily rot in the garden, serving as food for omnivores.
We cut the newspapers into pieces of 10x30 cm. The newspaper sheets are quite thin, and in order for the process to go faster, you can fold them in half or three. We take an ordinary glass and wrap it with the resulting blanks in several layers. We leave a small protrusion, which will later be needed to form the bottom. Now dip the bottom edge of the paper in a small amount of glue and crumple it thoroughly, forming a bottom and firmly fixing it to the bottom of the glass. Press down the newspaper blank with a glass and let the glue dry. We repeat this simple manipulation as many times as we plan to receive blanks. Paper cups for seedlings are ready! Now they can be put away in the pantry until the sowing time.
Peat container for planting
If we are not sure about the density of newspaper sheets, we can use more sophisticated technology production of landing container. A peat cup will bring even more benefits to the painlessly transplanted plant. After all, when it dissolves in the soil, it actually becomes good fertilizer. You can make peat containers to your own order. We ourselves will determine the required dimensions of the cups and adjust the conical steel blank to fit them. We take into account the fact that in order to obtain an earlier harvest, it is necessary to sow the seeds in large, spacious containers. Root system it will develop well, the transplant will be painless, and the plant will immediately be able to begin bearing fruit.
To make a peat cup for seedlings, we will need:
- steel conical shape of the required size;
- blank for forming cups;
- circle with a rod.
Composition of the nutritional mixture
Having found all the components of the mold for constructing future cups, we move on to making the peat base. We will need the following proportions: 50% peat, 40% cow manure and 10% black soil. Instead of black soil, you can use any other rich soil. Mix well and add azotobacterin, phosphorobacterin and water. The mixture should be quite thick in consistency.
Responsible stage of production
To begin, we lower a circle with a pin to the bottom of a steel glass and fill it with the prepared peat mixture to a thickness of 2 cm. We thoroughly compact the future bottom with a blank. Now, without removing it, we will pour the solution along the edges, filling the entire gap between the steel glass and the blank. The seedling cup will not dry out if the mixture is immediately compacted when pouring. The blank can be immediately removed as soon as the peat composition fills the voids right up to the very top. It’s okay if the liner is difficult to remove; you can slightly rock it from side to side. Now all that remains is to carefully pull the rod and remove the finished glass.
Time to experiment
Not everyone gets peat cups for seedlings of perfect quality the first time. Sometimes homemade containers can disintegrate and dry out - perhaps this is because the mixture is not thick enough. Sometimes the resulting products are too dense and hard, which are difficult to dissolve in the ground when planted. The necessary skill and instinct will definitely come, even if it takes multiple repetitions.
A glass for seedlings made of polyethylene
To make a container 10 cm high and 7 cm in diameter, you will need a piece of thick film measuring 33x15 cm. Find or cut out a rectangular block to fit the size of the future cup. In the two edges of the block responsible for the bottom, we make grooves in such a way that a stapler can be placed in them. We cut the polyethylene blanks and begin to design the planting containers. Then we wrap the film blank around and secure it with a stapler and 5 staples. We fix two of them on top and bottom side edge, and with the rest we form the bottom, folding the ends of the film into an envelope. It's okay if more staples go on the bottom. This way you can model cups of various sizes.
Conclusion
We learned a lot about how to make seedling cups. Of course, peat or paper containers are seen the best solution compared to homemade polyethylene glasses. The idea of planting plants in the ground along with a natural glass that dissolves with water in the soil was revolutionary at one time. But only gardeners can decide which of the presented methods for making containers for seedlings is most acceptable for them. After all, not everyone will be able to find steel blanks for peat glasses, and not everyone will have the time and patience for painstaking work with glue and paper. Therefore, making cups for seedlings is a purely individual matter.
Perhaps you will use a proven method and sow the seeds in disposable plastic containers, besides, they clearly show the condition of the root system and the degree of soil spillage. And such containers can be reused many times. Whatever container you choose for sowing seeds, we wish you a rich harvest!
To grow seedlings at home, you first need containers. Seedlings feel best in cups; in them, the roots of the plants are not intertwined like plants planted together in one box. When planting seedlings from cups in the ground, the roots of the plants are not damaged, since the plant removed from a separate container with a lump of earth is transferred to the hole without destruction, so seedlings from cups take root faster. Crops such as peppers and eggplants do not like transplants and suffer for a long time if the root system is damaged; it is recommended to grow their seedlings only in cups.
There are many options for cups of different sizes and materials on sale. various materials. The most popular are cassettes or cups made of dark plastic. However, many people do not have the opportunity to spend money on purchasing containers for seedlings. additional funds. Therefore, they collect juice tetra bags and plastic bottles, then cut them to the required height for planting.
The simplest and cheap way make your own paper cups . It is best to use glossy magazines. You can use newspapers, but they need to be folded in several layers, since after abundant watering Cups made from newspapers get wet and may break. Glossy magazines have thick, polished paper, and besides, the page size of magazines printed in A4 format is perfect for rolling cups - this is a regular landscape sheet.
How to make cups for seedlings:
To work, you will need a couple of magazines, wide tape and a glass or tin can of the required diameter. You will twist the cups according to the size of the glass, for example, for tomato seedlings we use containers up to 400 ml, for this we take a glass with a diameter of 8-10 cm, for pepper and eggplant seedlings the diameter of the cups should be approximately 6 cm. The height of the cups for paper seedlings can be adjusted according to the size of the glass. the process of twisting them.
From the center of the magazine, tear out the sheets in pairs, so you get paper in two folds.
Place a glass at the bottom edge and wrap it in paper.
Cover the edge with tape, using several pieces of tape, starting from the top.
Move the glass in the paper to the desired height of the seedling glass. Crumple the remaining free edges of the paper tube along the bottom of the glass inward and seal with a piece of tape.
Place a paper cup and use the glass inside to press down on the bottom so that it becomes stable.
The seedling cup is ready, place it in a box or box. It is better to place paper cups tightly next to each other in a box or box with high sides so that they do not lose their balance.
Do-it-yourself cups are filled with soil, then you can begin replanting or sowing seedlings.
Cups for seedlings from magazines are well preserved until planting, do not get wet, and do not tear even when moved. There are holes in the bottom between the leaves through which excess water flows out after watering, to prevent waterlogging of the seedlings and rotting of the roots.
Paper cups, in this moment, more relevant than ever, since it is a cheap way to transport the same seedlings. Of course, you can use the plastic cups that are familiar to everyone, but there are times when the cups are not at hand, or they do not fit in size. In such cases, this method of making cups (pots) from paper (newspaper will also work) with your own hands comes to the rescue.
To make a paper cup we will need:
- newspaper;
- cone (in this case, a can of paint);
- scissors.
First, let's take our cone. The size of the cup directly depends on the size of the cone, so this must be taken into account. We cut the newspaper to the size of a cone, fold it into 2 layers so that the cup does not tear in the future.
We twist the newspaper around the cone and bend the bottom (bottom) of our cup.
That's all. You can use the cup to suit your needs! This method Suitable, first of all, for those who sell seedlings. By the way, if you are engaged in growing and selling seedlings, I recommend looking at the articles “How to make a box for seedlings” and “Mini greenhouse for seedlings.”
The first question we ask ourselves before sowing seeds for seedlings is: in what containers should we plant the seedlings?
There are many ready-made seedlings on sale, but for various reasons we choose to make homemade glasses. We can make them the right size, volume, and position it as conveniently as possible for yourself. This is their main advantage.
How to make glasses for seedlings from paper and film, read in this article.
Making containers for seedlings with your own hands is quite quick and not difficult. Moreover, you can do this in advance, on long winter evenings.
Glasses made of film.
The first year we grew tomato seedlings in “diapers”. When the seedlings grow up, the diapers need to be unrolled and filled with soil.
But since last year we have simplified and changed this process a little. We will not unroll the film and add soil, so we immediately make a glass from the film of the required depth.
For example, for tomatoes – 18cm, for plants with short roots – 10cm is enough.
- We use a film that is thick enough so that it holds its shape well. Or you can not unroll the thin film. It is usually sold folded in half.
- We cut the film into rectangles, approximately 15x20cm, and wrap them lengthwise around a handle or tube with a diameter of 3.5-4cm (approximately). The diameter depends on the container in which you will then place the cups. It may be a little more or less.
- We fasten the edges with tape. We bend the bottom by 4-5 cm and also fasten it with tape. We pierce the bottom several times with an awl to drain excess water.
You should get narrow, long cups made of film.
- We fill it with earth, not reaching the top 3-4 cm. We compact the earth. If you fill it almost to the top, there will be nowhere to pour water when watering.
DIY paper seedling cups
Very uncomfortable.
- I place glasses in jars in three rows, close to each other. Otherwise they collapse.
- Such narrow glasses must be installed in any container with high walls. Can be used in flower pots.
What do I like about the diaper sowing method?
- Compact placement of seedlings on the windowsill. Narrow rolls of film take up little space, pressing tightly against each other. At home, this is a big plus.
- The roots, accustomed to growing downward, once in the garden bed, continue to reach deeper in search of moisture and nutrition. Such plants require less watering.
We made containers for pepper seedlings and tomato seedlings from film. But when there were free stems left, we used them for greens, basil and celery. You can pick flowers and other plants in them.
These glasses will serve you for many years. After planting the seedlings, be sure to save the film until the next season.
Paper glasses.
In order to save space and money, last year we made paper cups using the same principle, only square ones. They took magazine and newspaper sheets and wrapped them around wooden block, the bottom was bent and secured with tape.
But I didn’t like these glasses because the seedlings refused to grow in them. Something was wrong with this paper.
The photo shows how frail the seedlings are in paper cups and how large they are in plastic cups. The land and growing conditions were the same.
And the second inconvenience with paper cups is that they began to fall apart from moisture while growing seedlings. Watering became difficult; moisture flowed into holes without moistening the soil.
We no longer use this method of creating glasses.
But since some gardeners recommend this method, perhaps there are subtleties that we did not take into account.
In general, containers for growing seedlings can be any:
- transparent jars with lids (for cookies, cakes, vegetables, salads)
- cardboard boxes for dairy products
- plastic bottles
- and even egg packaging
You can buy 200 ml disposable glasses and place them in a vegetable drawer, the bottom of which is lined with film.
Prudent summer residents prepare this valuable container all year round. And over time, any container is seen as a container for seedlings. As you can see, there is a huge field for imagination here.
If you have any questions that I did not take into account in the note, ask in the comments and be sure to share your experience.
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All gardeners know that the summer season requires financial investments. Here you need to buy seeds and seedlings. Let’s say you can grow seedlings yourself. But, again, the question arises - what to grow in?
How to make convenient cups for seedlings
Buying special cups for seedlings is also expensive, especially when you plan to grow on a large scale. So, at this stage you can save a lot by making cups for seedlings with your own hands. And you don’t need to buy material - you can always find old newspapers, cans, bottles, packaging, and film at home. And in winter there will be something to occupy yourself with.
Material for cups for seedlings
The starting materials can be either ready-made containers or improvised means, namely:
Since the finished container can already be used, we will focus on the last two points that require human participation.
Paper cups for seedlings
In order to make paper cups, you will need paper (newspapers, magazines) and a blank (base) of the glass. The following is used as a preparation:
- a cut-off plastic bottle with a loop on the bottom (to make it easier to remove the blank from the made glass);
- cut off top of a tin can.
Cut strips of paper up to 40 cm long and 20 cm wide. Wrap them around the base for the glass so that the paper protrudes 5 centimeters beyond the edge. Then tuck this protruding edge and make the bottom of the glass. Now the base can be carefully pulled out, and the cup itself can be secured with paper clips or glued together for strength. Ready! All that remains is to pour the prepared soil and you can plant the seedlings. If you use toilet paper, then it is first moistened abundantly and then dried well.
The advantage of paper cups is that they can be planted in the ground along with the seedling; during the growth process, the paper will decompose and will not interfere with the growth of the root system.
Cellophane cups
These cups are made using the same technology as paper cups, but with careful use they will serve you more than once. To do this, roll the film strips into a cylinder and secure the bottom and walls with a stapler.
You can do it even simpler and buy cellophane bags for packaging in bulk. Immediately fill them with soil and place them in a box for stability. Such bags are pre-pierced at the bottom so that moisture does not stagnate.
For more information on how to make cups for seedlings with your own hands, watch the video:
As soon as summer residents begin to have seasonal troubles with seedlings, all sorts of containers are used for germinating seeds of vegetable and flower crops.
What are the best cups for seedlings?
But it is not always possible to purchase ready-made containers for seedlings. We suggest making bags for seedlings from spunbond with your own hands: quickly, inexpensively and very convenient.
Spunbond is a popular covering material non-woven material, known to any summer resident. To make bags, you can purchase medium-density or denser spunbond, preferably black, although white is also suitable.
Spunbond is inexpensive, about 50 rubles per linear meter. The width of the canvas is 1.5 meters. From one linear meter you can sew a bunch of cups for seedlings different sizes. In order to make bags from spunbond, it is not necessary to purchase new covering material; an old, already used one will do.
Many people order similar bags made of spunbond from China, but their size is very small - 8*10, this volume is more suitable for seedlings of flowers or cucumbers, but not for tomatoes or peppers, larger bags are needed here. And you need to order these bags in advance, since you have to wait a long time for your order. Let's try to make bags for seedlings with our own hands, especially since it is not at all difficult.
It is necessary to cut rectangles of the required size from spunbond and fasten the sides with a stapler. If there sewing machine- it’s better to stitch, it will be even faster and more reliable.
The resulting bags must be turned out and covered with soil. Spunbond bags are ready for planting seeds or picking seedlings.
What are the benefits of making your own spunbond seedling bags?
- Spunbond bags are perfect solution for growing seedlings with further planting directly into the ground, since plants can be planted directly in cups without damaging the root system.
- Spunbond can be used to sew bags for seedlings of any size, suitable for any crop;
- Spunbond unlike plastic containers allows air to pass through, which allows plant roots to breathe and also protects the soil from waterlogging;
- Soft spunbond bags take up little space in drawers or boxes;
- Black spunbond attracts solar heat, which makes plant growth more comfortable;
- Dense spunbond does not transmit light to the roots;
- Watering seedlings can and should be done directly into the container in which the spunbond cups are made. This saves time because you don't have to water each plant individually.
As you can see, hand-made spunbond seedling bags have many advantages, and sewing them is very easy and simple.