The Webster Viridarium
How to make your own seed bombs
When seed bombs or seed balls began gaining popularity about a dozen years ago, their intent was considerably more radical than it is today. People would make simple earthen seed bombs and toss them where ever they saw a need for flowers, regardless of whose property they were on. The term “guerrilla gardening” was coined.
In reality, in weed ladened or heavily compressed soils wildflower seeds have little chance of germinating.
Here’s something more of a decorative approach, perfect for stocking stuffers or just a little fun.
Instructions
Grab a handful of air dry clay and roll it into a ball. This will give you a sense of the size of your seed ball. Ideally, it should be close to the size of a golf ball.
With the palm of your hand, smash the ball flat and then using your fingers nurse it into the shape of a shallow bowl. To avoid getting any oil residue from the clay on to your work surface, consider placing a sheet of parchment paper or similar between the table and clay.
Place a small amount of soil in the center of the clay bowl you’ve created. It take surprisingly little soil. Too much and it will easily overflow the clay bowl.
Make a small indentation in the center of the soil and then place seeds into the center of the indentation. The number of seeds required can vary depending on what type of seed you are using. I used about 6 to 8 Black Eyed Susan seeds per ball.
Carefully pinch the clay up over the soil. Once the soil is completely contained within the clay, the ball can be gently rolled between your hands to make it rounder. If a hole appears, add a touch more clay and smooth it into place.
Decorating
Squirt a small amount of the matt finish into the lid of the matt finish container or use similar sized receptacle.
Using a paint brush, paint a thin layer of matt finish, over the area you intend to adhere a dried flower.
Still using the paint brush and making sure its only slightly damp, place the point of the paint brush on to a dried flower. The flower should stick to the paint brush and lift away from its sheet. The dried flowers I purchased came with tweezers, but I found the paint brush works better.
Position the flower on the portion of the ball you covered in matt finish. Carefully coat the flower with a generous layer of matt finish until all parts of the flower are flat against the ball and adhered.
Follow your whim. Stop at one flower or add more until you’re happy with the seed balls appearance.
Allow the ball to dry for two to three days. Voila!
