New DIY - Origami Seed Starting Kit

DIY Origami Garden “Squash” Starting Kit
Total Cost: $6.45 – $12.00

Materials:
12 - 8” x 6” pieces of newspaper (any free periodical, the Onion would work)
1 - bag of seed starting mix ($3.50)
2 - rectangular Dominick’s salad bar containers (free if you ask nice) or (full of salad $5.99 a lb.)
1 - matching Dominick’s salad bar container lid
1 - 16 oz plastic bottled drink, ($1.20 beverage type of your choice)
1 - Squash seeds ($1.75)

Tools:
- metal skewer for making holes
- pen for marking
- pair of scissors


Make the 12 origami “garbage bins” using the accompanying instructions.
http://en.origami-club.com//newspaper/garbagebin/garbagebin/index.htm

This should take a few minutes each so settle in for a half an hour. Mean while drink the 16 oz beverage and eat your salad.

You should now have 12 bins (slightly diamond shaped), an empty plastic bottle and empty salad container. Rinse the bottle and cap, put aside. Wash and dry salad container before continuing.

Make Drain Tray:
Take one salad bar container and trim the bottom off. You want to be left with a very shallow pan about 3/8 inch deep. Snip the scalloped edge of this piece following the grooves.

Make Label Stakes:
Take the scraps from the container and trim off the edges. Then follow the grooves and trim off 12 pieces of plastic, (2 scallops wide and about 2 inches long).

Make Drain Holes:
Bring the metal skewer, drain tray and the 16 oz bottle close to the stove, turn a burner on and heat up the skewer. (If you don’t have a gas stove light at candle and use the flame from it to heat the skewer.) With the hot skewer poke 8 holes in the flat bottom of the drain tray. On the bottle, about 1½ inch below the cap, within a space the size of a quarter, poke 7-8 holes. Poke another hole 1½ inch down on the opposite side of the bottle. Fill ¾ the way with water and recap. The bottle is now a watering can.

Put the drain tray inside the second salad container bottom side up. It should “float” or bounce back when you press down. The seed bins will weigh it down.

Fill “Garbage Bins” with Dirt:
Prepare starter mix par the directions on the package. Fill your paper bins to a ¼ inch bellow the top.

Start Seeds:
Plant seeds in the bins par directions on the seed packages. Write plant names on your label stakes and put in the seed bins.

Using your watering bottle water your seeds to lightly saturate them. Cover with the salad lid and put in a sunny window or within 2” of a florescent lamp.

Keep moist. Wait…

When seeds germinate remove lid.