Common Seed Paper Dos and Don’ts

Paper is part of everyday life—from greeting cards and drink cartons to shipping boxes, notepads, and letters. Seed paper, however, stands apart from the paper you’ll find in office supply stores or on bookshelves. Made with recycled fibres and embedded seeds, it has a naturally textured feel and a thicker, more tactile quality for printing. Because of these unique characteristics, there are a few important considerations to keep in mind before using it.

From printing to planting, here are some important things to remember when using seed paper:

1. DO use a top-loading ink-jet, offset, screen-printing, or letterpress printing
DON’T use a laser printer to print on seed paper
The seeds in seed paper are selected for their smaller sizes, which are suitable for printing. However, some types of printers may ruin the paper if used, including laser printers that kill the embedded seeds. Always run a test print first to see what works for your design, and read our Plantable Paper Printing Guidelines before starting.

2. DO plant seed paper under a light dusting of soil (approx. 1/8″)
DON’T plant seed paper under a thick layer of soil
Tiny sprouts need room to grow. Too much coverage is hard for them to breakthrough, so don’t overdo this part!

3. DO use at least around 7pt fonts
DON’T use small fonts in your artworks
Keep in mind that fonts vary in weight and size. Thin fonts may need to be large. Sizes of 7pt may look larger or smaller in one font type versus another. Whatever style you choose, make sure the text is readable after printing.

4. DO keep the paper in a dry place so the seed doesn’t germinate
DONT get seed paper wet before you are ready to plant it
Seeds are on a mission to grow. Water tells the seeds it’s time to sprout, so keep the seed paper in a safe spot.

5. DO use seed paper to package light-weight items such as cosmetics or jewelry.
DON’T use seed paper to package heavy/bulky items
Our seed paper packaging is manufactured sturdy and specific to lightweight products. After all the time and care put into packaging your products, you’ll want to make sure your packaging holds strong from assembly to shipping.

6. DO eat the herbs and veggies that you can grow from seed paper!
DON’T eat seed paper
Adding the fresh herbs grown from seed paper at home to everyday meals is encouraged. Seed paper is not edible, so keep it in the soil.

7. DO plant seed paper within 2 years while the germination rate is still high
DON’T wait too many years to plant seed paper
Though it’s still possible to grow seed paper past the 2-year mark, chances are you’ll grow more blooms if you plant the paper before then.

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Considering seed paper for your next project? Learn more about how seed paper works and see photos of seed paper growing.