I’d like to plant a seed in your wallet. All green thumbs (and a few green fingers) know that sprouting seedlings instead of buying store-grown plants saves you nearly 90% on your gardening costs. But how do you sprout peas, squash, and tasty tomatoes when there’s still a chill outside?

Easy peasy, people. The answer can be found on your breakfast table, at the farmers’ market, or in your compost heap. Do I have you walking on eggshells? Eggscellent.
To sow some extra savings this gardening season, go ahead and crack open a tossed eggshell and make your own seedling pots — your budget will thank you.
8 Reasons to get cracking:
- The entire eggshell starter pot is biodegradable.
- Cost for the eggshell planter is $0.00 — they’re free if you eat eggs.
- Eggshells contain soil-happy minerals, such as calcium and other earthy nutrients.
- Eggshell seedling pots are pet safe and kid friendly.
- Starting seeds inside (in any container) gives you a huge headstart on your garden, far before the last frost.
- Sprouted seeds are heartier and stronger when planted.
- Sprouting indoors lets you cull the weakest seedlings and remove the ones that failed to germinate.
- It’s a fun project for the kiddlets.

Gardening Tip: Want to grow a garden but don’t know how to start? Check out How to Build a Square Foot Garden for the easy-to-follow instructions.
If you’re looking for a little seed money, here’s how to make your own frugal seedling pots by using everyday eggshells:
Gardening: Eggshell Seed Starters
You’ll need a few good eggs and some gardening tools to get this job done. But don’t worry, most items are likely already stocked in your kitchen or somewhere in your home.

Stuff you’ll need:
- seeds (saved heirloom seeds, etc.)
- eggshells
- egg carton
- potting soil
- spoon
- awl, needle, or thumbtack
- knife
- pot and stove
- natural soil-safe crayons or finger paints (optional)
- spray bottle (optional)
Instructions: How to plant seedlings in eggshells
STEP ONE: Prick a pinhole. Using a thumbtack, gently punch a small drainage hole in the bottom center of each shell. Make the hole large enough so it won’t get clogged by soil or roots.

STEP TWO: Chop the top. Remove the top 1/3 of the eggshell using a small knife to gently pick away at the shell. Take care not to damage the bottom of the egg.

Topper Tip: Lightly tap the top of the egg, and then pick your way down. Cutting carefully with a sharp serrated knife may work too.
STEP THREE: Make dinner. Empty the raw egg from the shell into a bowl. Make an omelet or save for scrambled eggs for dinner. Yummy.

STEP FOUR: Wash and boil. Wash the eggshells and then boil them in a pot for three minutes to kill any bacteria.

Inspect eggshells for leftover debris, and let them dry.

STEP FIVE: Protect eggshells. Place each eggshell in a cardboard egg carton (or a small pot) for support.

Egg cartons serve as a frugal base for up to 12 eggs.

Creative types may like miniature clay pots or fancy decorative planters.
STEP SIX: Spoon soil. Fill 2/3 of each eggshell with potting soil.

Gardening Tip: I used nutrient-rich soil from my finished compost. See How to compost without raising a stink for simple steps even apartment dwellers can follow.
STEP SEVEN: Plant a seed. Add a seed to the soil. Always follow the recommended seeding depth on your seed package, and be aware of the average germination time.


STEP EIGHT: Add sunlight, water. Place eggshell seed starters in a warm and sunny location.

Keep the soil moist (but not soaked) by watering regularly. Watch your seedlings sprout!

STEP NINE: Make your mark. Using natural soil-safe crayons or natural finger paints, gently label the outside of each shell with the type of plant seeded.

Decorating eggshell seedling pots is a fun project for the kids, plus you’ll teach then about gardening.
STEP TEN: Get planting. Once your sprouts have sprung and the frost is forgotten, go ahead and plant your eggshell seedling pots in some freshly tilled soil in your garden.

When planting, give each eggshell a gentle (yet crushing) squeeze — you want the seedling roots to easily find the fresh soil.
Your Turn: Are you growing a vegetable garden this season for food or just for fun? What do you plant?
Happy sprouting!
Love,
Kerry
These are so cute! I love that you can plant these later on by just putting the whole eggshell in the soil. Makes it so easy!
Nice. OR you could just use the degradable egg box and place soil directly into the hollows. then when you wish to plan you can cut the sections apart and plant each one as is into the soil.
[…] inspired me to try planting seedlings in eggshells. Now I just need to figure out what I want to […]
Hot damn! What don’t you think of!?
This. Is. Fabulous. I live in a small apartment complex, so I don’t have a big yard to plant a massive garden. However, this takes care of that problem, because I still have a mini-garden on my balcony using these tips! Awesome…thanks so much for the wonderful idea.
This is another great idea, Kerry. That’s why I love reading your blog. I always learn something here.
My daughter is doing a science project of planting a garden, so this is both timely and extremely useful!
One plus that isn’t mentioned is that, if you plant the seedling with the top of the eggshell above ground it will save your seedling from cutworms that wrap around the stem of young seedlings and cut them off there.
Love the idea it is so cute
[…] just saw this GREAT project on Squawkfox.com (aka Kerry K. Taylor). Easy-to-follow steps with helpful photos — to turn eggshells into […]
I love your steps! And the photos that go with them! (I might get “derailed” by step 3 and just eat breakfast).
[…] Make Eggshell Seedling Posts to Sprout Your Garden For Less […]
[…] Eggshell Seedling Pots: Don’t throw out your eggshells! Repurpose them for seedlings for your garden! […]
Thanks for sharing this! Our family did this, and loved it. Our basil just poked through. I linked to you on my Earth Day post.
http://motherhoodhandmade.blogspot.com/2012/04/earth-day-ideas.html
Thanks again for sharing, and Happy Earth Day!
You have a wonderful blog! very interesting! Hope you have joined pintrest.
Those are awfully cute, but…aren’t they too small? Seems like there isn’t much room for the roots to develop.
[…] the planters. It’s a little colder where Kerry lives, and you can check out her ingenious seedling pot solution at Squawk Fox. […]
This is a great activity for our little boys – and a great starter for transferring to our pot garden. We had issues with over-watering though, and had to poke some holes in the bottom for drainage…
Tomatoes are a staple in our garden, plus peas, beans, cucumbers, squash and an assortment of herbs. We tend to companion garden (tomato/basil/marigold) and will collect seeds.
Cheers,
Caryl
So smart! Going to try this idea with my herbs. Thank you so much!
I’m guessing that I can transfer the eggshell in to container and it will grow just as if I place the eggshell in to the ground???
hi i was wondering if its ok to crush the egg shell after boiled since my cousin work at a canteen and she have tons of egg shell waste . since i cant put the seed inside the egg i was thinking on mix the egg shell with soil and put the mixture into egg carton.thanks for and reply from u 🙂
This is SOOO cool! I’ll let you know if it works for Sour sop (Graviola). Thanks!
So cute! Thanks for sharing, Great idea, I love this blog
I have done this with my green beans to prevent the garden slugs from having a feast. When I plant the egg shell pod I leave the top portion of the egg shell above ground. It prevents the slugs from getting to the seedling. I also add a few crushed egg shells around the planted seedling as an extra layer of protection for the plant.
I have done this with my green beans to prevent the garden slugs from having a feast.
I normally put my egg shells in pie pan and heat them in oven after baking. Do i still need to boil them if heated in oven to kill bacteria?
Hi I new to gardening and I was wondering if on step where you are supposed to wash them if you rinse them with water or do you actually wash them with soap and water?
I tried it actually for our biology project. Thnx. It really helped.
Why do you need to wash and boil the eggshells? Everything else I read about using eggshells in compost just says to crush them and add them, no sanitizing needed. The only thing I can think of is if you’re keeping these seedlings on your kitchen windowsill.