Gardener raises concerns after using toilet paper roll trick to grow seedlings: 'Works like a charm'

A Redditor using a popular viral method to start seeds with toilet paper rolls ran into a minor (but concerning) issue — and fellow users on r/gardening helped them troubleshoot it.

The scoop

When we consider ways to repurpose things that would otherwise be headed to a landfill, toilet paper rolls might not immediately stand out as the most useful.

But you'd be surprised at how many things discarded toilet paper rolls can do — such as serve as a biodegradable container to start seedlings.

The user in question shared a photograph of their genuinely impressive collection of seedlings, each neatly labeled with colorful popsicle sticks. However, they encountered an issue in the form of unwanted mold and asked others who've deployed the hack how to proceed.

Luckily, other users had an immediate diagnosis and a quick fix. One explained that the seedlings were a "little over-saturated," which they suggested was "not a big deal" and easily corrected.

They advised the user to "reduce watering frequency" and recommended "treating" them with 3% hydrogen peroxide, which is commonly available in supermarkets and drugstores. 

Another user's diagnosis was similar, citing "too much moisture and/or insufficient air movement to move said moisture," suggesting the seedlings would "benefit from less crowding with slight spaces between each roll."

Those fixes came as a relief to the original poster, who was so excited to try out the hack that they'd been "saving toilet paper tubes all year."

How it's helping

For starters, the user's assertion that they'd been collecting toilet paper tubes "all year" hinted at one huge benefit — a year's worth of cardboard waste in that particular form had been diverted from landfills. Since the method is extremely popular, that effect isn't limited to one person.

For gardeners who are trying the hack for the first time, there's another benefit — it costs nothing. 

How often will you be gardening this summer? Every day 🥗 At least once a week 🥕 At least once a month 🌱 I don't garden 🚫 Click your choice to see results and speak your mind.

Commercial gardening products aren't always eco-friendly or even efficient, and replenishing them adds up fast during planting season.

Toilet paper rolls are shockingly versatile when it comes to repurposing, even if you don't have a green thumb. Some enterprising beauty influencers have discovered that they make great hair curlers.

What everyone's saying

Due to the popularity of the toilet paper roll method for starting seedlings, Redditors have praised the method across threads.

One user decreed that the hack "works like a charm," sharing a photograph of how they modified the cardboard cylinders. In response, another observed that the tubes were a "better idea than commercially sold 'peat' pots," as the cardboard "would definitely disintegrate early and roots could flourish." 

As for the original poster, they said, "Lesson learned … keep the right balance between too wet and too dry."

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