Skip to main content
Four pot plants made from newspaper on a windowsill

Make your own newspaper seed pots

These pots are not only recycled and biodegradable but also fun and easy to make. Why not get your kids involved, too?

 

 

How to make the newspaper pots

The finished pots are quite sturdy while the seeds are growing, but they’ll break down quickly once they’ve been planted in the soil, meaning you don’t have to transfer them.

What you need

  • Black and white newspaper
  • A small, glass jar

How to make it

  1. Lay a full sheet of black and white newspaper flat. Don’t use shiny, coloured paper as it may contain heavy metals that could drain into your soil.
  2. Fold the paper in half lengthwise twice to form a long, narrow strip of folded newspaper.
  3. Lay a small, glass jar on its side and place it on one end of the strip of paper. Roll the newspaper around the jar. The jar is used only as a form to roll the paper around. About half of the strip of paper should overlap the open end of the glass.
  4. Push the ends of the paper into the open end of the jar. This step doesn’t have to be neat and tidy; just stuff the overlapping newspaper into the jar.
  5. Pull the jar out of the newspaper pocket so you have the newspaper pot in your hand.
  6. Push the bottom of the jar into the newspaper cup, squashing the folded bottom to flatten. This step will seal the bottom of your pot. Once the pot has been filled with soil, the bottom will be secure.
  7. Pull the jar out and you have a finished paper pot, ready to grow seeds in.

Image credit: tamadhanaval