While cut flowers are a nice traditional gift, they tend to last about five minutes and it’s hard to print a logo on a petal. Enter a better option: Seeded products.
Seeded products contain (guess) seeds (yes). They’re usually made from paper, although we also sell pencils (we’ll get to that). You plant them in soil and in one to three weeks, flowers grow, according to the labels. Customers get to see your design printed nice and clearly, followed by the satisfaction of nurturing little seedlings into life.
That’s the theory. But when you’re in the middle of burying a business card in a plant pot while your family members exchange concerned looks behind your back, it sort of feels like a prank. To disprove that and find out how well our seeded products actually grow, we got our greenest-thumbed colleague (shoutout Sam!) to test them against a control pack of normal seeds. Find out which rose to the challenge.
How Seeded Products Work
We tested two different types of seeded products. The first type is made of paper and it’s used in our seeded business cards, greeting cards, and confetti (basically any seeded product made of paper!) The paper pulp is made of biodegradable material, e.g. shredded cotton and waste paper, and then dunked in a tank of seeds while still malleable. The liquid is pressed out, the sheets are hung to dry, then they’re cut to size and shape.
The other type of seeded product we tested was a pencil. The seeds are stored in a capsule at the end of the pencil that dissolves once you plant and water it, releasing the seeds. This does mean there’s no room for an eraser, but don’t worry, we have lots of pencils that do have erasers and we just tested them! Also, avoid chewing this pencil end.
Method (Short Version)
The experiment took place over 31 days, plus the day we planted our seeds.
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1
Day 0: We planted our seeded products and a control packet of seeds in their own individual flower pots under 0.5” of soil.
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2
We watered them every day.
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3
We counted the shoots and measured their heights.
Method (Elaborate Plant Care Version)
Here’s what really went into caring for the plants:
Planting
We ripped up the seeded paper products into small pieces (except the confetti, which was already in small pieces.) Only half of the greeting card fit into our pot, but we used all of the other products. We stuck the end of the pencil straight into the soil.
Soil
As mentioned, we planted the seeds under 0.5” of soil – Miracle-Gro Flower and Plant Potting Mix, if you’re interested. Over the 31 days, some of the little shoots struggled to stay above the soil, especially when water moved the soil around. In these cases, we gently scraped away some of the soil so the shoots could get through.
Watering
We watered the seeds every day, which the instructions told us to do. However, to be more specific, after each plant sprouted we switched from just watering the top soil to alternating between that and filling the tray they were sitting in.
Grow Lights
Since we did this experiment in January, natural sunlight was in short supply. We used three grow lights spread across all our plants, 4” to 6” above the tallest shoot. The lights were on from 6am to 8pm, so the plants think it’s summer (lucky them).
Temperature
January is a little cold for plants! Initially we kept them in the garage, but when that proved too chilly, we moved them into the house next to a window, where the air temperature was around 68F to 70F. To help keep the soil a steady spring-like temperature of 72F to 75F, we also treated them to a heat pad.
Air Current
Plants like a gentle breeze: it helps them develop strong stems and roots, and provides the leaves with a regular supply of the carbon dioxide they need for photosynthesis. It also helps prevent rot (ew) and mites (double ew). To mimic this condition indoors, we set a small oscillating fan on its lowest setting to turn on and off between 6pm to 8pm.
Video
Key Takeaways
All Our Seeded Products Sprouted
All of our seeded products produced at least one shoot. One even had a shoot grow taller than the control seeds! Admittedly, some shoots looked a little fragile by Day 31. So we can confirm that with the right level of care, you really can get plants from seeded products – but you might not get as many as you would with a regular packet of seeds.
Earlier Sprouting Correlated With More and Bigger Shoots
One way to tell if the seeded product you’ve planted is going to thrive is how long it takes before you see shoots. In our experiment, the seeds that sprouted on Days 5 to 7 (including the control) had more shoots and grew taller by Day 31 than the seeds that sprouted on or after Day 8. And not just because they had a head start: they grew faster.
For example, the Seeded Paper Confetti (Q44864) sprouted on Day 6, and in a truly exceptional display of get-up-and-go, it grew 10mm overnight. In contrast, the Seeded Greeting Card (Q91509) sprouted on Day 10 and took 10 more days to grow 2mm.
Seeded Products Are Quite Demanding
It’s safe to say we put just a teensy bit more effort into caring for our plants than the labels on our products said they would need. They all say something along the lines of “plant in soil, put pot in sunlight, water, enjoy.” We stopped just shy of reading ours a bedtime story. So while you can try the label’s relatively relaxed version of caring for seeded products, our intense regimen suggests that the more effort you put in, the more you get out.
Our Top Three Seeded Products
Although all six of our seeded products produced at least one shoot after 31 days, three of them literally stood out above the rest.
3 Tree-Shaped Plantable Holiday Ornament (Q88422)
Your appreciation of this product hinges on how you feel about the absurdity of turning a tree into paper and that paper into a tree shape, and then planting the tree-shaped paper to grow tiny trees, aka flowers. If you thrive on such riddles or are at the very least prepared to overlook them, this product is an option for you. It only grew two shoots but one of them was very sturdy, measuring 30mm (1.18”) on Day 31.
2 Eco-Friendly Sprout Pencils (Q66014)
Here we have another product made from a tree (wood, in this case) that is planted to grow into a small version of a tree. Oh the hubris. Anyway, these pencils also did a nice job, producing two shoots, with the tallest hitting 48mm (1.89”).
1 Seeded Paper Confetti (Q44864)
Instead of throwing confetti all over the place, throw it in a plant pot with some soil and grow flowers. (That’s the original “If life gives you lemons.”) The Seeded Paper Confetti produced five shoots, one of which grew to 120mm – that’s nearly 4.7” – which is even taller than the tallest shoot in our control pot. And if you just can’t resist the existential crises provoked by the other two products already mentioned, you can order the confetti in a flower shape.
The Bottom Line
We managed to get all of our seeded products (as well as the control) to grow at least one shoot over 31 days. Three of the shoots were still on what you could politely call the dainty side by the end of the experiment; but the other three were definitely actually very real plants! So don’t feel silly telling people to plant their promo pencils and paper: They’ll thank you five to eight days later.
| Q# | Product Name | Image + Clip | Number of Shoots on Day 31 | Tallest Shoot Height on Day 31 (mm) | View Product |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Q44864 | Shaped Seeded Paper Confetti |
|
5 | 120mm | View Product |
| Q61990 | Seeded Paper Packet |
|
1 | 0.5mm | View Product |
| Q66014 | Eco-Friendly Sprout Pencil |
|
2 | 48mm | View Product |
| Q88422 | Tree Shaped Plantable Holiday Ornament |
|
2 | 30mm | View Product |
| Q91509 | Premium Seeded Paper Greeting Card |
|
1 | 8mm | View Product |
| Q91542 | Premium Seeded Paper Business Card |
|
1 | 1mm | View Product |
| Control Seeds |
|
8 | 74mm |
Natasha Lavender
Natasha is an experienced writer and editor who has covered topics including technology, health and safety, business, and pop culture. Her work has been published by Good Housekeeping magazine, Forbes, Success, and more.
