Overheard at the nursery that starting seeds in egg cartons does more harm than good

That lady said the cardboard sucks up all the moisture from the soil and I checked my seedlings and sure enough they were bone dry, has anyone else had this problem with homemade seed starters?

2 comments

2 Comments

amygonzalez2d ago

Why's everyone so quick to blame the egg carton instead of their own watering habits? Cardboard's cheap and works fine if you just check your starts daily and mist them when needed instead of treating them like a set-and-forget system. @foster.wade probably would've had better luck if he'd poked a few extra holes in those styrofoam cartons for drainage instead of switching to those overpriced peat pellets that fall apart.

foster.wade4d ago

Found some egg cartons that were the styrofoam kind instead of cardboard and they just sat there soggy and gross, got mold all over the bottom of my starts. Switched to those little peat pellets in those plastic mesh bags and had way better luck, but then the mesh ripped and dirt went everywhere when I tried to transplant. Honestly I think the whole homemade seed starting thing is a scam sometimes, my mom just throws seeds straight in the ground and they do fine.