get a broadsheet newspaper if you can - the age, courier mail or SMH and cut sheets into 1 inch wide strips. Make up a paste of plain flour and water, about the consistency of custard. Paint the glue onto the paper and then place the seeds along the strip at the distance recommended for planting that particular seed. Allow to dry. you can plant the seed tapes straight away or store them in an airtight plastic box until you're ready to use them. If storing them, don't forget to label each lot of seed tapes.
Forest, Good one. Have you actually done this yourself? How did you stop the seeds germinating, and were germination rates still good? Cheers Mike
Hi Mike Yes, I've done this myself and the germination rates are good. When I did mine, I planted them straight away. I used them for root vegetables like carrots, radishes, beetroot etc. It saves on seeds (good if you save your own seeds and don't have many) and thinning out, and it's much better on the back to space your seeds out while sitting at a table rather than bending over the garden bed. The woman who told me about this does hers up and stores them until she's ready to plant. She's kept hers for a few weeks. The trick is to have the glue at a gluggy custard consistency, allow them to dry out completely and quickly and then store them in an airtight container.
Sounds like a great way to plan out "succession"planting too, as you only need to get your seeds out one night and do all the tapes at once!. You could plan all your lettuce and vege planting over a couple of months, and just get one tape out a fortnight and have veggies coming on when you want them instead of all at once! I love it....rushing out to buy a broadsheet newspaper now! Hold on I have all that packing paper I can use! woohoo
Forest, This sounds like a great way to get the little ones involved on a quiet day. I like the idea of using a half sheet and folding over the other side and succession planting with them in blocks. You will know what is weeds and what isnt. Should also suppress the weeds as they have two sheets to break thru. Cheers Mike
Forest, can you give some more details about how exactly to position the tapes on the earth? Does it matter which side is up or down? Covered in soil or exposed? Jonathan
hmmmm forest, I am getting edgy on my reply to this. So it is something that you have heard that works?? Please correct me. It is Saturday tomorrow and I will certainly try, and it is my job to be skeptical, I am still strugging to understand the relationship between 'clag' [however you make it] and seed placed on that mix. Thin cornflour mix wets the seed, 'thick' mix wets the seed but somehow it doesnt cause germination. This should be tried by permies on lettuce, all sorts of herbs and fine seed like mint, lemon balm etc before being 'sold' on this thread. As I have said, I will be skeptical and start tomorrow. cheers floot
Forrest gave us a great idea - which can now be tested and built upon if there are improvements to be made I remember when I was a kid I used to make a glue that was similar to the backing of stamps or envelope flaps. It is made from a really high concentration of gelatin in hot water. It can be brushed on to paper etc before it cools. I reckon for small seeds if you did this on butchers paper, newspaper or whatever, then after it is dry you would need only rub it lightly with a sponge or whatever to get it sticky again and then chuck the seed on. There would be such little dampness that it is unlikely to start germination (it would dry really quickly). I have not yet tries this, but will in due course - just throwing it out as a possiblility.
floot, you can buy commercial seeds tapes made the same way. Seeds don't really germinate after short exposures to moisture. They have to be wet enough to swell, and a thin coating of quickly-dried material isn't going to affect them. Most seeds require a MINIMUM of 3 days of moisture to sprout, and they're not going to get that. I've heard of people doing this with success many years ago. I'm going to try it in spring with carrots. I simply CANNOT spread the seed evenly. (Then I'll build a steel and concrete structure over the bed to keep my Belgian wonder dog from harvesting them before I do! :lol: ) bjgnome, I doubt that it makes a difference which side is up or down. When the seeds sprout, they are usually strong enough to get through a thin layer wet paper, but if you're more comfortable, plant seed-side up. Cover with the same amount of soil that you would use normally. Sue
