7. Land


7.4 Activities

Seed bombs

Help new plants grow in your garden

Seed bombs are like bath bombs – but for your garden! They are a great way to make gardening fun and look after the land. Seed bombs can be especially helpful in areas where the land has been eroded and damaged. Normal seeding methods involve scattering seeds on the topsoil. But this leaves seeds vulnerable to being baked by hot sun, washed away by heavy rains, blown away by the wind, or eaten by animals and insects. Seed balls protect seeds from many of these threats and can help plants thrive.

Materials:

  • 2 parts potting soil
  • 5 parts clay mix
  • water to moisten the mixture
  • 1-2 parts native seeds (your local nursery can tell you what seeds are the best to plant in your area)
  • large tray or a cardboard box

Mix the soil, clay and some water. Add the water slowly, as you don’t want your mixture to be too wet and gluggy; it should be just moist enough to stick together.

Add the seeds and knead them through the mixture until well mixed.

Take a small amount of your seed-dirt mixture and roll it in the palm of your hand to create a ball. If the ball doesn’t stick together and falls apart, add a little more water. Be gentle when you roll the balls: you want them to stick together but you don’t want to compact the soil too much. The ball needs to break apart when it gets wet in the garden.

Place your rolled balls onto the large tray or into a cardboard box. Store them in a dry, cool, shady place for a day or so.

Scatter your seed bombs around the garden where you want native plants to grow.

There is no need to water them or bury them, just let the earth do its thing!

Tip: You could organise to do this with a Landcare group and scatter seed bombs at a local reserve.