We recently purchased the soil cube tool from Deeply Rooted Organics.  We have been starting seedlings indoors using Jiffy pots and pellets.  This technique has worked fairly well for us but it has become more and more expensive each year as we have begun to start more and more vegetables, herbs, and flowers.  After hearing about the soil cube tool on an episode of The Survival Podcast we decided that we would try it out.

[Soil cube tool with wooden tong]

Soil Cube Tool

The soil cube tool is used to make approximately 2″ soil blocks for starting seedlings.  You put your soil in a container, scope the soil into the soil chambers, compress the cubes using the push bar, then lift the soil cube tool to release the soil block.  It seems simple enough, but it really does take some practice to get the technique down.  My first tray of 32 soil blocks were usable but did not come out as nice even blocks.  As I got into the next tray of 32, I really started to get the technique down.

[First 2 trays of soil blocks created using the soil cube tool]

Why Use Soil Blocks for Starting Seedlings

Soil blocks created using the soil cube tool are suppose to decrease the shock on the seedling when transplanting it outdoors in the garden.  As opposed to starting your seedlings in plastic containers, Jiffy pots, Jiffy pellets, etc, Deeply Rooted Organics claim that the seedling roots won’t penetrate the outside of the soil block.  The soil block acts as the container and the growing medium.  When its time to transplant, you just dig your hole in the garden bed and place the soil block in it.

 DIY Seed Starting Soil Mix

I used a recipe for mixing my own seed starting soil that was very similar to the one provide when one purchases the soil cube tool.  Here is the seed starting soil mix I used:

• 3 parts peat moss
• 1 part sand
• 1 part perlite
• 1 part garden soil
• 2 parts well composted manure
• add water until the mix has an oatmeal consistency

I know these aren’t some of the most self-sufficient, sustainable ingredients but this is what we will use for now.  Eventually I would like to experiment with using garden soil and other medium found on our own property, like stump dirt.  I always prefer to sow seeds outdoors if possible instead of indoors.  Plants started from seeds sown outside seem to be much stronger and healthier to me.  The seeds that were sown in the soil blocks were 32 Yellow of Parma Onions and 32 Red Wethersfield Onions.  I started these onions indoors by seed and will probably plant another 50-60 onions outside from sets around March 1st.

Initially I feel the soil cube tool is going to be a great investment for growing healthy vegetables, herbs, and flowers. It seems to be durable and of good quality.   I plan on following up with posts showing the status of seedlings and to see if their roots penetrate the soil block, as well as how the seedlings do once moved to the greenhouse and finally when they are transported to the garden.

If you have any experience using the soil cube tool, feel free to leave a comment to let us know how it worked for you.