Newspaper Seed Starting Pots

I have had several ladies ask about the newspaper pots that I made the other day, so I thought I would write up a tutorial on how to make these.  They are very simple and go together quickly. 

Here is a list of the items you will need to gather together:

Newspaper~ black and white only

Aluminum can~ I used a soup can (10 3/4oz) and a tomato paste can (6oz). You could use a larger size if you desired a larger pot.

Plate with water

Yard stick, scissors and pen~ only if you use the cutting method described below.

 

Step 1:

Start with a stack of newspaper.  Mark out 5 inch widths on the paper, using the yard stick.  Cut on the lines and discard the 1 inch strips. Your strips should measure about 5x20 inches.

Step 2:

Layer two strips of paper one on top of the other.

Step 3:

Begin rolling the newspaper around the can. I used the lines on the can as my guide, since I didn’t want my pots to be too deep.

Step 4:

Roll tightly all the way to the end.

Step 5:

Place the can seam side down in the plate of water.  This will help seal the paper and hold it in place.

Step 6:

Fold in the ends of the paper to make the bottom of your pot. Do this step carefully around the wet areas of the paper or it will tear.

Step 7:

Set the can bottom side down into the water and let it set for several seconds to soak up a fair amount of water.  Remove it from the plate and flip it over.  Press down on the paper to seal if necessary.

Step 8:

Remove the paper from the can and press down any flaps of paper sticking up on the inside of the newspaper pot.

Step 9:

Finally, roll the outside of the pot in the plate of water so that it is wet all the way around. I even wet the inside of the pot with my fingers to help hold all the layers together. I don’t know as this is necessary, but I think it helps.

The end product:

 

 

****Now here is an alternate way to do this that eliminates the cutting:

Take a single piece of newspaper, fold it in half and then follow steps 3-9

I personally didn’t like to do it this way.  I found it was too bulky at the end for my liking. But if you started the paper farther up on the can to make a taller pot you probably wouldn’t have this problem.

Here are the different pots I made.  The one on the left shows the method of folding the paper.  I had to cut off a portion of the bottom because it was too thick.  The one in the middle shows the pots I make using 5x20 inch strips. The pot on the right are pots I make using 4 inch strips of paper and a 6oz tomato paste can.  I will probably use these smaller pots to start my flowers and herbs and the larger 5 inch pots for tomatoes, green peppers, broccoli and cabbage.

Any Questions?!