Swings + Roundabouts Autumn 2021

Whenever you can, stick as close as possible to your local ingredients. That means using home-grown compost and choosing seeds that are indigenous to your region, natives are perfect! Soak the seeds overnight. This will soften their outer shells and help them to germinate faster. If there are seeds floating, discard them. Now it’s time to start making seed bombs. Start by mixing the compost with the clay. Then add water drip-by-drip to the mix THINGS YOU NEED: ● 6 parts compost (best from your own garden) ● 10 parts pottery clay mix from your local art store (or clay from the garden) ● 4 parts water (in a bottle to add by drips) ● Seeds of your choice until materials start binding together. Continue to blend until everything is thoroughly combined and the mixture is moist and malleable. If your mixture is too dry, add a small amount of water till moist. Take small bits of the clay mixture and roll in the palm of your hand (roughly golf- sized balls). Then select which variety of seed you are going to use and place some seeds in the small clay mix. (When adding the seeds, please don’t mix different variety of seeds.) For Wildflower seeds –put roughly 10 seeds in the flattened clay mix. For Native tree seeds–put roughly 5 seeds in the flattened mix. Then allow the seed bombs to dry by placing them in a warm sunny location for a full 24 hours till rock hard. Next get throwing! Choose sites with full sun and don’t throw them under trees that will have foliage in the summer months as the plants won’t grow. Let nature do her work and soon a glorious mix of pretty pickable flowers will flourish in your neighbourhood or early learning centre. (These make awesome gifts too for tamariki to take home!) Enjoy! MAKE SEED BOMBS March 2021 { 35 }