The Best Small Containers for Seeds

Seed-Saving Containers

• The most carefully grown and harvested seed is worthless when it is stored in a shoddy container. The best containers for seed storage serve as a barrier against moisture and should have a tightly fitted lid or closure. Sealable plastic bags usually are too permeable to use on their own, though they work well when used with a second container, such as a plastic box with a snap-on lid. Acrylic tubes with snug lids, such as those intended for coin collecting, also work well for seeds. Glass is unrivaled for keeping out moisture, and though buying new glass jars can be expensive, most households have access to old spice jars, baby food containers or pharmacy dropper bottles that work well after they are washed and thoroughly dried. Storage jars with a rubber gasket that seals tightly when the flip-top is latched down are particularly effective at keeping moisture at bay.

Storage Considerations

• Moisture and temperature are the two main adversaries of a seed. So keeping humidity and temperatures low helps to extend the life of many kinds of seeds. Some seeds are naturally short-lived, but even seeds with a relatively short shelf life can germinate successfully after more than one year of proper storage. The trick is ensuring seeds are completely dry before putting them into storage. Otherwise, not even the best container can stop mold from developing and ruining the seeds. Refrigeration helps extend the viability of most seeds, but a cool, dark location indoors, such as a basement or other unheated area of the house, also generally works well. Keeping a silica gel packet in each seed storage container also helps reduce the container's interior moisture level.

Seed-Starting Containers

• Although most seeds sprout just fine when put in any kind of soil, in any kind of container, under any kind of light, those sprouts are unlikely to develop into strong, healthy transplants unless they are started under near-optimum conditions. The container in which seeds are started absolutely makes a difference. The best containers for seed-starting are small, fairly narrow and deeper than they are wide, such as plug trays or individual cell packs. Each cell should be filled with a sterile growing medium, and only one seed should be planted per cell, which eliminates thinning and gives each seedling its own space to grow without competition from nearby roots.

Home Item Ideas

• A container that is out of proportion to the size of a seed, such as a large yogurt container or a cut-off milk jug, is a poor choice for starting a seed because its broad surface area dries out quickly as all the moisture sinks to the container's bottom. Instead, use shallow, wide clam-shell plastic boxes, such as those used for salads or berries, single-serving yogurt containers, small plastic cups or foam egg cartons, each with a hole punched in its bottom. Cardboard egg cartons become soggy with watering, and seedling roots tend to grow right into the cardboard. At transplant time, removing the cartons from the plants’ roots will damage the plants; though the cardboard can be transplanted right along with the seedlings, it poses the risk of restricting the plants’ roots as they continue to grow.