DIY Seed Tape

There's nothing like a little garden prep, during our lead up to the growing season. If you're longing to get your hands in the soil-but it's still frozen, this is the next best thing. Launch into your garden prep by making your own seed tape.

This is my technique to achieving picture-perfect rows of lettuce, carrots, and beets, while being thrifty. Plus, the work you do now will have you proudly grinning from ear-to-ear come harvest time.

I am a  lazy urban gardener.  And, thanks to sound, parental guidance, I'm also a THRIFTY urban gardener. You can purchase seed tape at garden centers and online. It will organize your garden into beautiful,neighbor-enviable rows. But, seed tape can be expensive.

     Solution? Make your own.

What you will need is, cheap toilet paper (I grabbed some from my sister-in-law's house. She is FAMOUS for her see-through, 1-ply offerings). A Dollar Store may have the right stuff, too.

You'll also need fresh seed for cold weather crops. Right now, garden centers have a plentiful supply of several brands of cool weather crop seed, i.e: carrots, spinach, lettuce, beats, etc.

Use some Elmer's School Glue or mix a paste out of flour and water to the consistency of glue. Both are non-toxic and just a tiny dab works. Grab some scissors and a popsicle stick or paint brush to dab your paste.

Use a tape measure, as well. Measure the space in the garden where you plan to place the seed tape. I cut my TP in strips, right down the middle, making them long enough to fit perfectly in my garden box. I follow the directions on the package for spacing and start "gluing." Once I get the glue and seed on the TP, I fold over the remaining TP and voila! I have seed tape ready to plant, as soon as I can work the soil. Be sure to label it.

Generally, I do this project in the dead of winter. This little gardening activity gets me excited for what is to come. A word of caution though, if you make seed tape using flour, label and refrigerate your tape until you plant. I have had some tape get moldy before I had a chance to plant it.

Once in the ground, the cheap toilet paper dissolves and the seed is left to germinate, sprout and grow, uniformly into wonderful edibles. 


Urban gardeners with very large plots may want to use a different seed distribution method than this, as it can be a little time consuming. But then again, it is a great winter project or even a fun task in which you can involve the youngest gardeners in your home. It is always beneficial for them to discover the origins of their food.