Hi trowel gal!
I am in the Manhattan area. I love your cardboard box idea. We are recyclers and always have plenty of cardboard. I think I'm going to try your method next year. I did milk jugs this year and have had great success with them so I may combine the two methods.
Thanks for sharing your ideas!
Stephanie

I like the box idea also,I will be trying that out this summer with some perennials,Thanks!:)

I like it too!
How tall are the boxes you are using? Also are you purchasing nylon in big rolls or recycling your pantyhose? LOL? I'm trying to imagine stretching pantyhose over a box top..hmmmm

Vera

Hi,
To answer your questions Vera... I use boxes I get at work (my nanny Mom orders a lot of stuff on line) or at the grocery store when the stock boys are unloading them. Usually the boxes are at least 12" or taller so there is plenty of head room for the plants. A liquor store usually has boxes with dividers, that helps your cups stay upright. I cut the flaps off because it makes it easier to use the clothespins (a bag of colorful plastic ones at the $1 store is what I buy). The netting can be purchased by the yard in Wal-Mart's fabric dept. It is really cheap and really wide, under $1 a yard. You can also use garage sale sheer curtains instead of the nylon netting if you like. This box method makes winter sowing so much easier for me and I have tried many methods over the last few years. Did this help explain it? If not just try me again.
Tina

WOW i'm sooo loving your method! it will make dividing so much easier!! i'm sooo dreading this part of ws, this is my first time, and this is the part i'm really chicken about!! **clearing throat** now that the sprouts are out!! LOL so this would in a way be no different than sowing in place and putting something over it if you were so sq ft garden. in a way?? i mean, i could do that? i'd really love to do sq ft and ws. and not have to worry about all the hustle and bustle next year. LOL

I'll tell you what I'm doing with boxes this spring. I am putting cardboard boxes right where I want the future wildflowers to be. I cut the boxes down so the sides are about 6 inches tall. This keeps dogs from stepping into them--but won't deter cats (or squirrels), unfortunately.

I smash down areas of green weeds and grass with the box, then add another green layer by sprinkling straw inside. I add soil and sand--then seedlings and seeds. More straw if you want.

You can cover this with plastic to insulate, leaving gaps for rain. But the main thing is to put wire fencing gently on top if you have cats! I didn't use plastic because these were started in Spring, not Winter. But that may deter squirrels.

This is a new technique I'm trying as I am overrun with weedy lawn, so I don't know if it'll work yet. But the poppies look very happy in the boxes. Nothing else has sprouted yet so my fingers are crossed.

The boxes should deteriorate on their own by the time the plants get big enough to put deep roots down.

I'll let you know how it goes.

By the way, it looked a bit messy at first, but as they weathered they blended in to the landscape fairly well.

Tansy, Zone 6-7

Perfect :D

I worry that high sided boxes are not going to allow enough sunlight.

Vera

I have never had a problem with sunlight not reaching my plants in the boxes. They get about 6 hours of sun a day and germinate just fine. The box is more of an insulator than plastic jugs.
Tansy, you have some "lasagna" beds going there. They work fine for killing out weeds. We can never put sand in our soil in Kansas, it is clay soil and mixing in sand turns it to cement. You probably have a totally different soil in your area. Happy gardening everyone! Off to work.
Tina

I love the box ideas. I am going nuts trying to get all of my wintersown babies planted out, and I am thinking that Tansy's method would do two things at once. Like Tina said, it is an instant lasagna bed complete with plants. It kills the weeds, provides protection, and if you plan properly, you can just remove the sides of the box and the plants can continue growing where they are. I am wondering how this would work with tomatoes.

Becky
ramazz

These are both fabulous ideas and I am going to try both! I am betting I will like both methods for different reasons. Tansy's method would be great for the areas the soil needs a lot of help or where I would like new beds. Tina's idea will be great for all the plants I don't have a clue where to put...lol...which is most of them right now! :)
I am clipping this thread into my google notebook! :)
Thanks ladies!

LOL angie, i have it bookmarked!! i'm soooo using this for next years ws!! i'm still going to use it somehow for the one sq ft thingi. and with tansy's idea, that somehow say's i "can" do it my way. yes, how about the tomatoe's, they are perennial anyhow.

I went to a greenhouse yesterday and they had the tomato plants growing in plastic bags full of soil...can you picture a bag of potting soil sitting on its side, with two hole cut out on the top( ok, actually the side)...with a plant in each hole ?? that is what they were doing and the plants were HUGE !!!

I like the idea of the box, sure would be nice to find a biodegradable cup to use, THEN you could plant them by cups instead of hunks !

Yes, I agree that a biodegradable cup would be nice. I am concerned about anyone putting a whole box of tomato seedlings in the ground, they would be way too close to each other to survive. with my 4 yr. old nanny boy we cut the bottom off the foam cup and tear off the rim then set it in the prepared (lots of compost and loose soil and watered) hole. A little extra soil over the rim makes the cup disappear. This helps in "planting out" with a child, grownups too. You might be surprised how the cup falls apart over the summer and can be troweled in the next year like vermiculite, lets air and water to the roots.In about 10 days our frost date will pass and we can start our planting, what fun that will be! At the end of July I will be leaving my nanny family after 4 years and 2 months. It will be so hard. these boys are dear to me. The 4 yr. old was 3 mos. when I started. But I can feel good about introducing them to the beauty of nature and all the joy it holds. Many children are indoors hooked up to video games or TV and deprived of the out-of-doors. There is a book out now called "The Last Child in the Woods" and it covers the topic of children not being exposed to nature.
I'm going on and on, sorry. Have a beautiful gardening day and hug a child:)or a tree if no child is handy:)
Tina

If I use this for tomatoes, I'll use smaller boxes and space them out. I work in a library and have lots of boxes.

My son likes these instant oriental lunches from Trader Joe's that come in "biodegradable" bowls. I have been saving them and now I wonder if I could put a plant in each one and just "plant" the bowl. It might provide some short-term protection from grubs and bugs.

Becky
ramazz

Becky,
The bio bowl may break down but how long will it take? I would go ahead and plant in them but when you put them in the ground I would cut away the bottom just so the roots will be free. I also love to "reuse" items others throw out. I get those flat sided Fuji water bottles from a friend and use my soldering iron to put drainiage holes in the bottoms. When I bring plants in for the winter I put them in those bottles because they push right up next to each other on my shelves, unlike round containers where there is a lot of wasted space.
Tina

Tina, yeah, I am thinking maybe I should just plant an empty bowl somewhere and see how long it takes to dissolve. I was also thinking I could just put plants in a couple and leave them on the deck to see if the rain will break them down. My son rightly said that they couldn't go in the recycling bin, since they are biodegradable, not recyclable.

Becky