Pollinators from butterflies to honey bees need good quality food (forage) just like we do. One of the things we can do to support that is grow pollinator friendly plants in our yards and community green spaces.
Seed balls - little balls of soil, clay and seeds - are a fun way to engage your friends on the block, a Girl Scout troop or even a gaggle of gal pals with a glass of wine! In our family, my mom is the Senior Seed Ball Specialist. She loves growing a yard full of colorful zinnias that attract bumbles and monarch and humming birds. She then saves the seed heads, extracts the seeds and makes them into the seed balls that we share at almost every event we do.
A seed ball is a self contained pollinator garden. Just toss it into an opening that get sun and rain and soon you'll see sprouts.
Here's how to make your own seed balls:
2 cups of dry red clay - you can find this from a ceramic studio or craft shop or order from Amazon
2 cups of soil - organic soil is best and something that is on the finer side will give the best looking balls
2/3 cup of seeds - you can save these from your garden or purchase a pollinator friendly mix
1 cup of water
Mix the soil & clay together and then stir in the seeds. Add the water bits at a time until the mixture begins to hold together. Use your hands or a teaspoon to make balls like you were making cookies. If the mixture is too dry add more water. To loose add more soil / clay. Let the seed balls sit someplace warm and dry for a day or two (or an hour if it's summer in Texas)!
We save our paper tubes - from toilet paper and paper towels. Use glue & tissue paper or recycled newspaper to close one end. Add three seed balls and close the other end. Craft a cute label and you've got a lovely gift and way to share the importance of feeding the pollinators who make our food possible! One in three bits of food we eat requires pollination.
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