Super Simple Seed Bombs

I’m back! 

The crafting chaos series is back, after an unintended break I'm going to be back to the video series just  because life is still chaos so we should still craft!

This week is seed bombs, there will be no actual explosives involved just a lot of seeds primed and ready to be planted! The concept of seed bombs have been around for ages, it's been found to date all the way back to ancient Egypt! Back when it was first used it was a mixture of soil and clay powder which encased the seeds so they were protected against the elements and  animals eating them. It got more common in Japan, in the late 1930’s, where it’s called Tsuchi Dango which translates to ‘Earth Dumpling’, calling it this makes it feel like we are feeding and taking care of the earth! 

Seed ‘bombing’ as its become known today was because of a rise in ‘guerilla gardening’ in the late 1970’s in America, they used the same practises that they used in Japan but instead of planting to help the earth and cultivate crops, they used it as a method of rebellion against the urbanisation of towns and cities, their aim was to bring greenery and plants back into those spaces. Whilst their act of rebellion was seen as illegal because they deliberately targeted spaces not meant for gardening, it is now seen as a way to help conserve the environment, as long as you are careful where you put the seed bombs. 

Whilst that is the origins of seed bombing what we are going to be doing will look slightly different, as the original method was to combine soil and clay powder. But instead of those more expensive and inaccessible ingredients we are going to be making a simplified basic version. One that will allow us to have fun and try out seed bombing. 

Please be aware when you are going around placing the seed bombs that you should be putting them in places were they will benefit and are allowed to be. For example hedgerows and forgotten about stretches of grass or even banks on a river/canal are perfect places, you can even throw them about your own garden! But please be mindful not to throw them in other people’s gardens or purposed land e.g. football pitches. 

So now we’ve had the history and the disclaimers now we can get to making!

Materials:

• Newspaper 
• Wildflower Seeds
• Water
  
  

Tools:

• Scissors
• Bowl or plastic tub that will hold water
• Towel or cloth 
  
  

Instructions:

Step 1- Ripping

The first thing we need to do for this craft is to tear, rip or cut up some newspaper, these pieces don't need to be uniform or neat, just ripped up enough that they will fit in the chosen container. I used about 7-10 sheets of newspaper and made 10 seed bombs. If you have any leftover cut up newspaper from the paper mache bowl then you can use those here and save having to cut them up!

Now we have all the pieces we need to cover them in water, make sure that they are all submerged in the container, this is so that as they soak in the water the paper fibers break down so that they are more pliable and will form the pulp that we need.

Let the papers soak for 24 hours in the water. 

Step 2- Pulping 

Once the paper has soaked, we can now form the pulp. I recommend using a blender for this as it takes much less time and energy, but you can also tear the pieces up by hand and mulch it up that way. 

If you do decide to use a blender you will need to add more water to the mixture otherwise it won’t blend smoothly. 

With both methods the texture that you're looking for is a mostly smooth wet pulp (think wallpaper paste).

Warning, it's about to get messy!

With the very wet pulp we now need to drain the excess water, as if it's too wet then it won't form and hold shape. Take a handful of the pulp and squeeze it in your fist, this will form the right texture we want. Wet enough to be mouldable and workable but not too wet that it has no structure. 

Tip- if you are making a big batch, have trouble with your hands or are crafting with tiny humans who have small hands you can use a cloth strainer to get the majority of the water out of it. 

Step 3- Making a seed ball

Taking a large pinch of the pulp place in the palm of your hand and press/ mould it into a disc shape, use the natural curve of the palm of your hand to create a dip in the middle with your thumb. This is where we want to pour some seeds, so that they stay put in the middle of the ball. Take another small pinch of pulp and place it over the well of seeds, then almost like you are making a dumpling, bring the side of the flat disc up and squeeze them together forming a ball. As you are squeezing and shaping the ball you will be getting even more water out of the seed bomb, so a towel or cloth is needed to mop up any water! 

Once the ball holds its shape then you can set that one aside and start on the next one. 

When they’ve all been made then let them dry in a warmish dry environment. Let them dry for at least 24 hours. 

When they are dry you might be able to see some shoots of the seeds that have started to germinate in their balls, this is a good sign, but it does mean that the seeds need to be planted soon!

Step 4- Throwing, Tossing, and planting

Once the seed bombs are dry then they're ready to be tossed about out in the world. 

Please remember when you are out and about seed bombing that you should only do it in places where you have permission, avoid other peoples gardens and community spaces, instead look for overgrown hedgerows, grassy verges and natural greenery. 

All you need to do is toss the seed bombs into the area you want them to grow in, there is no need to plant them in the ground as the rain and seeds will work that out themselves!

Unfortunately the end result of the flowers will take a while as the flowers wont grow overnight but, plant them in places you go frequently and  keep an eye out to see if you can spot some flowers!

But what if my flowers don't grow? 

Sometimes seed bombs don't work, it's not anything that's gone wrong or you didn't do it right, it might just be that the seeds had other plans! Whilst pretty flowers would be a great outcome for seed bombing, remember that there are other important roles that plants and seeds play. For example birds and other animals eat seeds as their main diet. Sometimes the soil might not be the best for the seeds, but seeds are fantastic for soil even if they don't sprout and produce plants. Seed bombing is not just about flowers, it’s about the entire ecosystem in the areas we’re seed bombing!

I hope you had fun making these super simple seed bombs, and that you also learnt about their history! If you make these I would love to see them, and any outcomes from the bombs themselves! Share an image and tag me at @worldofthoodles