6 quick steps to turn your windowsill seed trays into a homemade propagator

Recycled DIY Seed Propagator.

I am going to tell you how to transform your picture frame glass into a homemade seed propagator - using your existing seed trays and recycled containers.

If, like me, you have a number of old, unused or damaged picture frames, you might be looking for a way to use the glass. Obviously if the glass is badly broken you must carefully dispose of it, but if it’s only the frame moulding itself that’s broken, I have a handy hack for you.

These small panes of glass (or plastic) make fantastic seed tray “lids” for germinating seeds and give frost-protection to tender seedlings - meaning that you can get your seeds going much earlier than you would otherwise be able to do if you sowed them in the ground.

By adding a sheet of glass to your seed tray, it will become a propagating set. The glass will increase the heat to improve seed germination, and ensure the compost stays moist.

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Here’s how to make your own seed propagation tray:

• Sheet of glass or plastic (removed from photo frame)
• Duct/heavy-duty tape
• Seed tray (or recycled plastic fruit container)
• Base/drip tray (or recycled plastic meat/veg tray)

Method –

1. Clean the sheet of glass - the cleaner the glass, the better the light transmission!
2. Carefully, stick the tape along one of the edges of the pane of glass so that half of it hangs over, across the edge, lengthways.
3. Carefully, fold the tape over the edge and smooth down to stick it to the other side of the glass (this’ll make it safer and easier to handle, and cover those sharp edges!).
4. Repeat steps 2 and 3 on the remaining edges of glass. Don’t worry if it’s not perfectly neat – I am a messy up-cylcer.
5. Fill the fruit container with compost/growing medium (finishing 5mm from the top of the tray), water it and place the container on top of the meat/veg tray. Now you are ready to sow your seeds!
6. Sow your seeds and place the sheet of glass on top – make sure it rests on the edge of the container rather than on the top of the compost.

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Top Tips -

• Remove the glass occasionally, during the daytime, for ventilation and to reduce damping off - sometimes I just swivel mine a bit, so it’s still sitting on top, but not completely “closed”.
• Once the seedlings reach the glass, remove it. Prick them out when the first set of “true leaves” show. 

• Use different sized picture frame glass and plastic containers/trays to make different sized propagating sets

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