Seed tapes make planting tiny seeds easier

If you’ve ever directseeded lettuce, carrot, radishes, onions, or beets into your garden, you know how challenging it can be to handle those tiny seeds, and to get them only where you want them. This is why some seed companies offer these in seed tapes. Seed tapes are long strips of narrow-width paper, with seeds imbedded at the proper spacing for optimum growth out in the garden, whether you plant in-ground or in raised beds.

There are obvious advantages to seed tapes. Not only do they insure proper spacing, but they also reduce planting time and effort. For anyone who might be challenged by arthritis in their fingers or hands, seed tapes are also easier to handle. The typical planting method for tiny seeds is simply to take a small handful, and scatterdistribute them through thumb and forefinger as you move your hand down the row. This close planting requires thinning later on. Seed tapes eliminate the need for thinning. You plant only what you need. That’s time and effort saved.

With these advantages come a few disadvantages. Seed tapes tend to be more expensive than regular seed packets. Compare a packet of one thousand radish seeds for $4.95 with a 22 ½ foot tape for $7.95 from Burpee Seeds. There are also few varieties available, so there is little chance that you’ll find the ones that you really want to grow. Fortunately, it’s easy to have seed tapes of the varieties you want, for the same price as regular seeds. Simply make them yourself. Here’s how: 1. Assemble the materials you’ll need: a roll of toilet tissue (single or 2-ply, makes no difference); scissors; a small bowl, 1 tablespoon of water, 1 tablespoon of flour, a Q-tip or small (art) paintbrush, a tape measure or ruler, tweezers, marker, seeds.

2. Unroll tissue to the planting length you want, then cut it in half lengthwise, giving you two narrower strips. To save cutting time, fold/layer the tissue so that you can cut through all the tissue with just a few snips of the scissors.

3. Using tape measure or ruler, mark the tissue strips at the proper planting spacing per the instructions on the seed packet, e.g., 3 inches for carrots and radishes, 2 inches for leaf lettuce, 5 inches for beets.

4. Mix the water and flour, stirring to make a gluey paste.

5. With Q-tip or paintbrush, place a dab of paste on each mark.

6. Place one or two seeds on each dab of paste (tweezers may be helpful here), then fold the tissue lengthwise over the seeds, pressing down so that the two tissue layers stick to each other.

7. With the marker, note the variety the seed tape contains, then lay the tape out to dry. Once dry, the tapes may be rolled or folded up, placed in a Ziploc bag and stored in the refrigerator until it’s time to plant.

This is a great project to do with your children or grandchildren. It also makes planting easier for younger kids.

If you do square-foot gardening, you can prepare in advance for planting by making seed squares. For the toilet tissue, substitute paper towels. Use plain paper, a ruler and a marker to make template grids for the spacing you want within each square planting block. (e.g., 3-inch squares for beets, onions, carrots and radishes; 4-inch squares for bush beans and spinach; 6 inches for loosehead lettuce, Swish chard and parsley.)

After placing all the seeds, lay a second paper towel on top and press at each dab of paste so that the two paper towels stick to each other. Label, and set aside to dry. And then, wait for planting time.

Pam Baxter is an avid organic vegetable gardener who lives in Kimberton. Direct e-mail to pcbaxter@verizon.net, or send mail to P.O. Box 80, Kimberton, PA 19442. Share your gardening stories on Facebook at “Chester County Roots.”