How to make paper cups for seedlings. Buckets for sauerkraut, cucumbers, etc. Cups made from laminate backing: strong and stable

DIY box for seedlings

Work with seedlings is in full swing, and it’s time to talk about containers for them. It’s amazing how many simple, easy, fast – and most importantly, effective – ways to make seedling containers are offered by readers. Read and choose, friends!

For more than 10 years I have been using plastic cups from mineral water, drinks or beer for growing seedlings. I take a plastic bottle (for example, 1.5 l), sharp knife I cut off the top and bottom parts (Fig. 1). The cut out part of the bottle should be smooth, without protrusions or ring-shaped recesses.

I place this workpiece on the table, squeeze it along the diameter, and along the edges with pressure I draw the knife handle several times along the entire length to get a clear line on both sides of the workpiece (Fig. 2). I align the clear lines of the workpiece against each other along the entire length and again draw the knife handle along the entire length of the workpiece several times (Fig. 3). The result is a square glass (Fig. 4) approximately 7x7 cm from the long, flat part of the bottle.

Then I place the glasses close together in a rectangular box with dimensions that are multiples of 7 cm (Fig. 5). Since square glasses have sufficient rigidity, the height of the sides of the box can be made half the length of the glass.

When growing tomato seedlings, I plant the sprout at the very bottom, and as it grows, I add soil on top, and the resulting seedlings have a powerful root system.

You can water both from above and to the bottom of a waterproof box lined with cellophane film. After use, I store the washed glasses flattened, inserting several of them into the same flattened blanks from 2-liter bottles. In this form they do not take up much space.

DIY universal tray for seedlings

I would like to suggest the following: take a tray of any size or make it yourself from glass, plastic or other material. We place a stencil on it measuring 4x4 cm or 5x5 cm and a height of 4-5 cm or 6 cm. The material is one that is convenient to saw.

I personally made it from plastic: length 42 cm, width 27 cm. I sawed it exactly in half - 5 cm. The longitudinal plates can be of any size, multiples of 5 cm, and at the ends + 1.5-2 cm for a bunch of cells. This tray holds 21 (7×3) cells measuring 5×5 cm. I fill the cells with soil that was prepared in the fall (a little more than half) and sow the seeds. As the seedlings grow, I add soil. When the time comes, I plant them in greenhouses, and from there into open ground.

I remove the seedlings from the cells by removing one of the plates - for example, the transverse one. I made a device for this: aluminum pipe 0 TOO mm or 120 mm. The bottom part is like the teeth of a crosscut saw, slightly bent inward to hold the ground, and on top is a wooden handle. The cut in the upper part of the pipe was bent into an “G” shape. A handle is attached to them. Three or four turns - the earth is inside, take it out - and the hole is ready. We plant together - we are pensioners with experience.

Pour 1.5-2 liters of water into the hole, about 1/2 tsp. nitrogen fertilizer, ash. Mix the soil and plant the seedlings, slightly compacting the soil. After that we don’t look back for a long time. Next comes weeding, watering, etc. We always have a harvest, but we moved here from the Murmansk region.

From personal experience

I do planting with early age. Peppers and eggplants do not like transplanting. Therefore, I plant them in cups, sow them in mid-April, lightly soak them, and as soon as they hatch, I plant them in cups in a slightly deepened hole. I fill the soil up to halfway so that I can top it up later. I water the hole, and then I put the seed and cover it with soil.

And I sow tomatoes in any container. When the first leaves appear (not cotyledons!), I replant them into what I have. Tomato roots can be pinched, but peppers and eggplants cannot. And one more thing: raspberries are not a hindrance to an apple tree, I have raspberries growing under an apple tree, they are friends. But strawberries and raspberries are not neighbors. They have the same disease. Weevil loves both.

Sewing according to a pattern

Cups for seedlings can be made from old oilcloth, an unusable plastic bag, milk cartons, salt, pieces of unnecessary film... I make a template from thick paper according to the attached drawing. With its help, I prepare a pattern and, stepping back 10 mm from the edge, sew with large stitches from top to bottom, and then from bottom to top, following the same tracks, I go back and tie the ends of the thread. It turns out dense, reliable seam. One condition: the threads must be made of synthetic yarn, as they do not rot, which ensures the durability of the cups.

Now I lower the glass onto a solid surface and pour in a handful of plain wet garden soil, compact it with my hand, and you get a bottom 1-1.5 cm thick. I move the glass onto a used tin lid and fill it to the top with prepared soil.

I plant one sprouted grain in each glass, water it, put it on a rack and cover it with a piece of film. When cotyledon leaves appear on the soil surface, I remove the film. I germinate seeds at a temperature of 20-25°.

But seeds, especially pumpkin seeds, germinate best if you warm them with your body. My cups are durable, take up little space, and I have hundreds of them. I grow all vegetables in cups, except for root vegetables (potatoes, beets, carrots). The seedlings do not get sick; they can be left at the dacha unattended for several days.

Popular today peat cups for seedlings. Pros: durable, non-toxic, porous walls allow air and water to pass through (so the roots do not sour), replanting is carried out directly with the pot (the root system is not damaged), decomposing peat serves as a fertilizer. But there are also disadvantages: not all cups in stores are different good quality, such containers are not cheap, they tend to get wet, and can become moldy. In such cups, the soil dries out faster, which means you need to constantly monitor the humidity to prevent it from drying out.

Ready-made free containers for seedlings

Walking past a pile of empty plastic beer bottles one day different color, I suddenly realized how to use them in the country. I think that there are more summer residents than beer lovers, the issue of recycling these same bottles can be partially resolved.

When sowing vegetable seeds, in order not to confuse the varieties, you can choose a different bottle color for each variety. Moreover, any bottles, both in shape and color, can be used. Dark ones - for sowing seeds and picking, if you cut off the top part and pierce holes in the bottom with a sharp object so that water does not accumulate when watering. And light bottles, if you cut off the bottom, can be used to cover pickled seedlings. With this method of growing seedlings, it is very convenient to grow them on a windowsill in an apartment, put them in bags and take them to the dacha. It will be protected from accidental damage. For the convenience of planting seedlings in holes, so that the clod of earth does not crumble when removing the bottle, I saw the bottom with a hacksaw before sowing. In this case, a narrow gap is formed, the earth does not pass through it when watering, and excess water flows out. I made a cut about a centimeter and a half along the vertical walls. And when planting, with a sharp knife in the hole, I cut the cuts upward on both sides and take out both halves of the bottles in turn.

The upper parts of light bottles can be used to cover the seedlings at night, and the lower parts of dark bottles can be used for next year, having previously glued it with tape on the sides.

Several problems are being solved at once: less empty containers are lying along the roads, in the forest, on the streets. And the most important thing for a summer resident is the opportunity to receive free containers for seedlings of any shape and any color.

“Quick” cups for seedlings

For a cup with a diameter of 7 cm, it is enough to take a sheet of paper or stiff cellophane measuring 30x18 cm. We bend one side of the sheet (30 cm) and make a cut 5 cm long on the folded edge, also 5 cm away from the edge (see figure).

Then we bend the tongue and wrap the sheet with the curved edge inside the glass (it is more convenient to twist the cups on the bottle). We press down the bottom, remove the product from the bottle and bend the tongue inside the glass. When filling the soil, the tongue will prevent the cup from unfolding.

It is better to iron the folded side and bottom of the cellophane with a hot iron through the paper. We have been making cups like this for 20 years.

We make “seedling” glasses ourselves

So, you need a thick film. From it I cut strips 30 cm long and 20 cm wide. On the long on the side I make four cuts of 6 cm each, resulting in 5 strips of 6 cm wide. That's all - the glass is ready. There is no need to glue or fasten. You can make any sizes. In such cups I grow seedlings of peppers and eggplants without picking and sow them directly. Before sowing, I fill the cups with soil and place them in boxes in two rows. I cover the bottom of the boxes with film and pour expanded clay. And the cups are easy to make. I take a strip of film in left hand, and with the right I put the outer stripes one on top of the other. It turns out four stripes, I bend them - the bottom is ready. I put it on my palm, hold it with my fingers and pour soil up to half the glass.

I carefully put it in the box with the cut in the middle, then I put the second one next to it with the cut facing the cut. The cups must be placed tightly to each other so that they do not fall apart. When I put everything in place, then I fill up the soil.

And it’s easy to plant in the ground: I unroll the film and plant the seedlings into the hole with a lump. The roots are not damaged, the seedlings do not get sick. I wash the strips and store them until next landing, they have served me for many years.

Two in one

Take note!

I offer containers for seedlings, which I have been using for over 30 years. These are plastic glasses for sour cream, yogurt and other products. The container consists of two glasses: an outer one with a hole in the bottom for water drainage and an inner one - cut along and to the center of the bottom. When transferring into a large container or when planting in the ground, you need to water the seedlings and, carefully pulling out the inner glass, spread the sides of the glass, tip it upside down onto your palm, carefully remove the seedlings with a lump of earth and plant them in the ground. Wash the glasses, dry them and use them for many years. I'll add a couple of tips:

Shovel for a pensioner (make the shovel lighter by cutting out part of the blade) (see figure).

Vertical bed:

1 – box made of any material (board, metal, plastic, h = 250 mm);

2 – pipe made of any material, perforated at the bottom;

3 – before filling with soil, lay compost in the form of a cone (grass, kitchen waste, cardboard, paper, sawdust, manure), water through a pipe.

Movable bottom

I bought plastic transparent disposable cups for drinking kvass and various drinks. One hundred pieces with a capacity of 200 and 500 ml. I take a glass and make a cut at the bottom, but I don’t cut the bottom completely, leaving 2 cm uncut.

Then I take newspaper paper, fold it carefully in several layers and make a circle on it slightly larger than the bottom of the cup. I immediately cut out a batch of circles and notches (see figure). Holding the glass in my left hand, I insert two paper circles inside the glass, holding its half-cut bottom. Then I fill it with soil and put it in plastic boxes and water it. The soil does not spill out of the cup, because the bottom is made of newspaper in two layers.

I plant one seed at a time. When transplanting seedlings into open ground, I water the cup well. I move the bottom to the side (it is attached to the glass by 2 cm), with a wooden masher I gently push up the half-rotted paper circle - the seedlings easily come out of the glass with a lump of earth. Now I lower it into the previously prepared holes.

This is how I plant tomatoes without diving. Having planted tomato seedlings, I put the cups in a large box, and at the first opportunity I wash them with a brush in a solution of potassium permanganate. I dry it in the sun and put it away until next season. Individual seedlings are easier to transport and plant.

For cucumbers I take 500 ml cups. The technology for processing the bottom is the same as for tomatoes. But when transplanting cucumber seedlings into the ground, I bend the bottom to the side and place the seedlings in a glass in the hole, and press the bottom, pushed to the side, with earth. And I place the cups so that when watering the water does not touch the stem of the plant. Cucumbers do not like transplants. In the fall, I dig the cups out of the ground, wash them and store them until the next season.

Microchamber for seedlings

I tried many ways to grow tomato and pepper seedlings. Lately I've been using cake box lids. I take two lids: one is smaller, the other is larger. I make holes in one of them to drain excess water. I fill 1/2 of the volume with pre-prepared soil. I sow seeds in the furrows, and stick price tags on the walls with the name of the variety: each variety has its own color. I cover it with a larger lid on top - it turns out to be a microchamber with light walls.

I put these double lids in the third one, bigger size(so that water does not leak out). I install it on the battery, laying foam rubber to avoid overheating of the ground. As a result, you can always see how the seeds germinate, and if there is a threat of dampness due to condensation, then by tilting the cap I rid the seedlings of excess moisture. The temperature is always the same.

Top 7 cheap containers for seedlings

You can save on cups for seedlings if you use equally convenient containers at hand instead of store-bought ones...

Cut off milk, kefir, and juice bags. Plastic cups for yogurt and sour cream will also work. Wash and dry all this.
Bushings from toilet paper place in a tray and fill with soil (photo 1).
Wrap a thick sheet of paper or newspaper folded into several sheets around a tin can (bottle, glass, etc.) (photo 2, 3, 4). Secure with tape or paper clips, place in a tray and fill with soil.
Cut rectangles 20 cm long and 10 cm wide from black film. Fold them in half to make a square. Seal the edges with an iron or fasten with a stapler.
Cut in half plastic bottles volume 1.5 l. Place the upper part, neck down, into the lower part, which will serve as a water reservoir (photo 5).
Wash the eggshells with the tops neatly broken off, place them in an egg carton and fill them with soil. Use for growing seedlings before picking.
For the same purpose, cut off the top of used tea bags, rinse them and dry them.

Homemade cups for seedlings - budget and convenient option for planting seeds. The beginning of the summer season hits your pockets, so any way to save is welcome. Traditionally, wooden and plastic pots, disposable cups and cut tin cans. You can make convenient and economical cups for seedlings with your own hands.

Each type of pot has a number of advantages and disadvantages. To do right choice, we need to consider all the options in more detail.

The following is used as a container for seedlings:

wooden boxes;
plastic cassettes;
peat cups;
plastic disposable cups or containers for sour cream, yoghurt and instant noodles;
buckets of Korean carrots or sauerkraut;
paper cups for hot drinks;
cut Tetra-Pack packaging for juices and dairy products;
homemade cups made from newsprint.

Let's talk about each type separately.

Wooden boxes

A large box is used for sowing seeds of tomatoes, peppers, and flowers. In a common box, the seedlings grow until they reach 10-15 cm. After this, picking is necessary: planting the seedlings in individual containers. Before planting, the inside of the box is covered with cling film (or ordinary polyethylene). There are small holes at the bottom of the box through which water can leak, so the box must be placed on a pallet.

The advantage of such a container is its low cost. You can make the box yourself by cutting and pinning together unnecessary boards. You can adjust the size yourself (taking into account the length and width of the window sill). The main disadvantage is the heaviness. Wooden box by itself it weighs a lot, and after filling with earth it can become heavy. The need for picking is another drawback. When dividing seedlings, there is a high risk of damaging the undeveloped root system.

Plastic cassettes

Plastic cassettes are very convenient device for growing seedlings. It has a similar structure to a mold for freezing ice, although the volume of the containers is much larger. A drainage hole is punched at the bottom of each recess. Simply fill the cassettes with special soil. Each cup is designed for one plant.

The cost of cassettes is modest. The cups for seedlings are not fastened together very tightly; they can be easily cut with scissors. They are light and compact. When transporting, you need to be careful: some cassettes are made of fragile material, and the cup may crack. It is better to plant peppers and eggplants in deeper containers.

Peat glasses

Peat containers are an innovation for gardeners. The main advantage of the product is planting in the ground directly with the form. Peat decomposes in the ground, so seedlings do not need to be removed from the container, risking damage to the roots. In addition, the cup itself is a ready-made fertilizer for the soil. However, some gardeners do not recommend sowing seeds in them. In their opinion, it is better to use peat glasses for picking.

The advantage of the product is the minimum of required manipulations: picking, transplanting. There is no risk of “hurting” the roots. There is only one minus - the likelihood of buying a low-quality product. In some cases, containers for seedlings begin to fall apart, crumble, and mold may appear on them. You can buy such pots only in trusted stores.

Peat tablets

Compressed peat “buns” are a more expensive analogue of cups. They differ in that you do not need to pour soil mixture for seedlings into the tablet. Dry tablets are placed in a tray with water. Over time they swell. Seeds are planted inside. Planting is as easy as shelling pears: a tablet with a sprouted plant is buried in the ground.

Advantage - minimum cost strength The disadvantage is the high cost. Tablets are 5 times more expensive regular cups. However, you don't have to spend money on potting mix. Some gardeners use tablets only at the first stage of growing seedlings. After the plant has grown, they bury the tablet in a glass with soil.

These can be disposable plastic cups or yogurt cups, processed cheese or sauerkraut. You can use cardboard disposable cups for hot drinks left over from visiting a coffee shop. The main thing is to choose containers different sizes. If you buy disposable tableware, you need to purchase two sets: shot glasses (100 ml each) and beer glasses (500 ml each). The first set is convenient for sowing seeds. Large containers are used when picking.

The advantage is low cost and convenience. Such “pots” can be used for more than one year. The earthen ball along with the root system is easily removed from them. Disadvantages: inconvenience during transportation due to instability and lack of drainage. Before filling them out soil mixture you need to make small holes in the bottom. This is convenient to do with a hot awl.

Milk and juice boxes

Cardboard packaging for juice or dairy products is convenient to use for planting seedlings. To do this they need to be trimmed. The height of the glass depends on the crop being planted. Eggplants and peppers need more soil to full development root system. Despite the fact that the cups are made of paper, they should never be buried. They do not dissolve in the soil. Holes must be made in the bottom for drainage.

You can make pots for seedlings with your own hands. The height can be adjusted independently. Such containers can be easily transported: they are lightweight and stable. It is very easy to remove the earth ball. To do this, you just need to tear the glasses apart.

Homemade paper containers

DIY paper cups are completely free, non-toxic, and easy to use. True, you will need to spend about half an hour making a batch of containers. An old newspaper is folded in half and wrapped around a glass or bottle. Part of the newspaper sheet needs to be folded inward, forming the bottom. There is no need to make holes.

Such molds can be safely buried in holes in open ground. It is advisable to use paper without ink, but old newspapers will also work for this purpose. The height of the container for seedlings of peppers or eggplants should be about 12 cm, the diameter - 8-9 cm. For seedlings of tomatoes and cabbage, smaller glasses are suitable: 10 cm in height and 6-7 cm in diameter.

You can make cups for seedlings with your own hands from eggshells. Such small “pots” are suitable for planting small ornamental plants. Before planting, you need to lightly squeeze the shell in your hand so that it crumbles.

Any product option has disadvantages and advantages. Each gardener must take into account the specifics of the crop being planted and financial capabilities. If you have to transport for a long time, you need to choose denser pots. The main thing is to plant plants with love so that they thank you with a healthy harvest.

As the new summer season approaches, gardeners are once again beginning to think about what to use for seedling pots or how to make them with their own hands. Options for containers for temporary cultivation small plant, indeed, there are a huge variety, all you have to do is choose.

Options for containers for seedlings

It so happened that various containers that have already been used for food and other products are traditionally used as pots for seedlings. It is extremely rare that gardeners turn to the assortment of stores for these purposes simply due to the fact that the opening of the summer season already brings with it considerable expenses, so if you can save money, it is better to take advantage of this opportunity.

So, containers for seedlings can be:

Tetra-pack boxes for dairy products, juices and other things.

Such a half-liter bag can be used as a pot for one plant, and if you put a two-liter box horizontally and cut it off side wall, then at least three plant roots will fit into it.

Plastic cups for sour cream and ice cream.

They can be used without cutting. Small cups of fruit yoghurt and various curds are still too small for growing seedlings.

Disposable cups, both small and “beer” ones.

Due to the different volume and low cost, plastic disposable tableware is chosen for seedlings, perhaps most often.

Plastic bottles of any size.

Plastic bottles for carbonated drinks with a volume of up to two liters can be cut off by about a third of the height from the bottom. But the big ones plastic canisters from under drinking water with a volume of 5 to 10 liters, it is more rational to cut them lengthwise and plant them in large quantity seeds

Tin cans for food and beer.

When using such containers for growing seedlings, the most important thing is not to get hurt on the sharp ends of the wall.

Shoe or similar boxes made of thick cardboard, lined with polyethylene on the inside.

You can not only plant the plants themselves in them, but also use them as a box or tray for several cups of seedlings.

Usually, from the wide variety of options, those containers that are on hand at the time of planting seeds for seedlings are selected.

How to make cups from scrap materials.

Of course, recycling food packaging brings more than just cost savings. The environmental component is no less important, when garbage is not just thrown away, but is put to excellent use.

But if a person does not eat, say, store-bought dairy products, the cups and boxes from which could become pots for seedlings, or he fails to save up over the winter required amount containers, that is, a simple way out is to make cups for seedlings with your own hands.

From paper (newspaper)

Paper cups are made according to the same principle: a cylinder or block is taken as a basis, which is wrapped with a strip of paper, preferably without traces of printing ink. Then the base is removed, and the resulting cup serves as a pot for seedlings.

This simple mechanism can be supplemented and improved with various small devices, for example, a loop at the bottom of a glass cut from a plastic bottle.

You need to fill the glass with soil for the future plant, and then wrap it with a strip of paper, and make a bag on top.

After this, turn the cup over onto your palm and pull the plastic cup out of the paper cup by the loop. The soil will remain in the paper cup and the plant seeds can be planted in it.

Thus, you can use a plastic or other base indefinitely and make as many cups as you need.

Paper cups are good because sometimes you can plant seedlings in the garden right in them without removing them. If this is not required, then they cannot be reused either, because while seedlings are growing in them from the soil and watering, they become unusable.

From film

The principle of making cups for seedlings from polyethylene film the same as those made from paper, if not simpler, and they can serve for more than one year.

For such a cup you will need a transparent film, which is used for greenhouses, as well as a stapler or paper clips. You need to make a cylinder from a strip of polyethylene, and from the bottom part - a bag, secure the walls with a stapler and use it as a container for seedlings.

Thus, if you were unable to accumulate the required number of boxes and cups for growing seedlings over the winter, you can always make them from paper or polyethylene using quite simple devices and without spending a lot of time.