Great Seed Starting Idea

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Randy

Super Moderator
Staff member
I had lots of good tomatoes, but like most years, it took a long time for our soil to warm sufficiently for the plants to take off.
 

Jade

New Member
Last year was a really bad year for growing tomatoes and other crops!
We had way too much rain which basicly rotted the tomatoes in the field!
This year looks to be a good year, now that we are under the influence of El Nino, rather then a La Nina!

This is good news. Last year I put in a cuke, a squash, eggplants and peppers too. The only thing that was happy were the beans. I felt like such a failure and a disgrace to my profession.
 

Rose White

New Member
egg shell flowerpots

I like this because it is
1.) Organic and
2.) inexpensive

Use egg shells to plant new starts in. I use only cage free orgainc eegs in compostable containers. When I crack my eggs I try to crack on end leaving a large bowl. I then place the empty shell back in the carton and fill it with a couple tablespoons of soil and add my seed. When the seedling is ready to be planted outside I simply lift the egg shell out of the carton and plant the whole egg shell and seedling in the ground. Saves buying peat pots and such and helps build your soil.

How do you do your starts?

Using egg shells to start seeds in is ingenious. Thanks for the idea. :)

I save all the flats and individual pots when I purchase flowers and use them for seedlings. Sometimes I plant seeds directly into my windowboxes or garden but they grow more randomly. I like the idea of planting the seedlings best.

Rose White, author of
"Easy Gardens A to Z"
http://www.ebooksandmoreforyou.com
 
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Crabbergirl

Super Moderator
Staff member
You are welcome Rose. I really like doing that as it saves buying or re-using nasty plastic. Don't get me wrong I still use plastic pots I have recycled but at least I am not buying them anymore;) You and also use the hard shell from a spaghetti squash too. I also use the cardboard egg cartons.
 

levi murphy

New Member
I can't believe it..I never thought of this idea before.I'll definitely be trying this soonest. Thanks for the info
 

Crabbergirl

Super Moderator
Staff member
Levi,
You are so welcome. I take it you are organic as well?? Pumpkin shells work too. Anything that leaves a shell behind can be used. I have even been known to use cardboard boxes from all types of items. I never use those that contain anything harmful and I am always looking at things before I throw them out to make sure I have "used" them up first;)
 

Crabbergirl

Super Moderator
Staff member
LOL! Not sure inventor would be the correct classifcation, but I do like to try to use anything that will compost down later. Great thing about the cardboard is that you can plant the whole thing when you are ready just like a peat pot.
Thinking of other things I do that you might like. I do so many things out of habit that I really have to think about it. I'll post as they come to mind;)
 

Crabbergirl

Super Moderator
Staff member
Just bringing this back up. It is that time of year to start seedlings again ...and yes, I have all my egg shells ready . I am actually going to get them filled with composted soil this weekend. I ordered all my seeds and they should be here any day. In addition I have my saved seeds from last year.
One change however. I have been getting my eggs in bags, so I have had to scavenge those Styrofoam egg cartons from friends and neighbors. Hmmmmm I will recycle when done with them but it annoys me a bit. Better that they serve a purpose more than once anyway.

Happy sprouting!
 

Markymark

Member
I like the idea with the eggshells but I usually crush them up and throw them in my garden. I will be starting my seedlings with this Soil blocker it's a bit pricey, but the concept of it is just awesome! Check this youtube, around 30s is where he shows it being used. I linked to the 2inch model which is the one I'd probably use.
 

Mainegal

Super Moderator
Staff member
Crabber
U get your eggs in bags?? Never seen that and don't they get cracked that way?
 

Crabbergirl

Super Moderator
Staff member
You have to be very careful with them. I haven't broken any yet.I get my eggs from a small local producer. We double bag them either in plastic, ( seems odd you are trying to buy organic and conserve resources but they are recycled from one person to another, or if we are lucky we get paper. Sometime I just take my reusable cloth grocery bags. The paper cartons don't last to long and people don't return them, so it's the other ones I hate. I have actully been grabbing them from my neighbors recycle bins too!

I will post some pics later today. I got them all filled yesterday.
 

Crabbergirl

Super Moderator
Staff member
I like the idea with the eggshells but I usually crush them up and throw them in my garden. I will be starting my seedlings with this Soil blocker it's a bit pricey, but the concept of it is just awesome! Check this youtube, around 30s is where he shows it being used. I linked to the 2inch model which is the one I'd probably use.

Having internet issues so I can't watch the video. Once you have made the soil blocks what do you put them in to keep them together? Looks like a good idea but not sure what happens after the block is made.
 

Crabbergirl

Super Moderator
Staff member
Dirt eggs

Here are my dirt eggs. I filled them this weekend and just in time because I GOT SEEDS today! Yippy!
 

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RonsGarden

Super Moderator
Staff member
Cool egg shell recycling Nancie!
That is something I would do if I had more room under my growlights or another set of lights!!<--which won't happen due to lack of room in our sunroom!
 

Crabbergirl

Super Moderator
Staff member
Thanks Ron. It's really great for those things that like calcium , especially to start.
I have somewhat the same issue with lighting.I am wondering who I have to move , or who I can move , from the grow lights. I actually just need to buy more lighting. :rolleyes:
 

Markymark

Member
Having internet issues so I can't watch the video. Once you have made the soil blocks what do you put them in to keep them together? Looks like a good idea but not sure what happens after the block is made.

The blocks hold themselves together, they don't crumble and fall apart, and ROOTS will not grow outside of the block (until they just overwhelm it), they call it air pruining. So when it's time to plant in your garden you just dig a hole for the square and plant it. Apparently there is no transplant shock as the roots have not come in contact with any new soil (apparently they have been doing this in Europe for a while). So with this setup one would be able to avoid having peat pots (they don't really decompose with Alkaline soil from what I understand), or any type of pot for growing your own starts for your garden.

The transplant shock is the most important part too me this really stunts the growth once one gets it in their garden. That thing comes in few different sizes ¾" x ¾", 2" x 2", and 4" x 4." Reason why I mention it is cause I like throwing my eggs into a blender with my kitchen waste and blending it all up nicely and tossing it into my garden for the worms.
 
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Crabbergirl

Super Moderator
Staff member
Thanks for the info on the blocks. That sounds like a great idea. I will consider the blocks. I hate the plastic pots and not needing pots at all is great!
Most of the year I compost my egg shells , but during seed starting time I love to use them as pots. I think it has my chicken a bit confused though! LOL!
 
I like it

What a great idea! I really like how simple it is and how many problems it solves. I'm definitely going to use this when starting all my bigger plants. Thanks for the tip crabber!
 

bankysmith

New Member
That's actually a really good idea to start growing your seeds. It also will enrich your soil with calcium. What vegetables require lots of calcium in the soil to achieve the best growing results? I would most likely try growing those types of veggies in the egg shell. Thank you for the tip.
 


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