How-To: Garden to Go

By Jessica Wilson
I don't know if you've heard or not, but my mister and I are hitting the road at the end of the month and we will be leaving our wee garden behind for good. I'm quite attached to the garden — it has provided us with oodles of fresh greens, herbs, fruit and flowers for quite some time. We've been collecting and saving seeds from it for years and since we'll be hitting the road and crash landing with so many friends I have decided that maybe this fabulous seed stash of ours would make for nifty host and hostess gifts. And since I will be sharing with them, I thinking sharing with you is just as nifty. Pull up a lounge chair, grab some seeds from your garden (or some you have scavenged), and get ready to share with just a bit of vintage pizazz.

Materials

Small clear glass jar with lid, clean
Assorted seeds from your garden
Vintage costume earrings and/or small pins
Needlenose pliers
E-6000 or other super glue
Paper
Pen
Small hang tags
String or embroidery thread

Directions

Step 1: The first thing you will want to do is decide on which seeds to give. There are 2 things to consider here: one is which plants grow best together and the other, purely for aesthetic reasons, is which seeds are interesting to look at. So gather your seeds and choose, choose, choose away. A mix of herbs and flowers make for a pretty easy garden to start. If your jar is large enough, hollyhock seeds look fabulous in their pods, as do flax seeds in their smaller round husks. You will want to have a balance of small and not-so-small seeds; otherwise you'll end up with a jar that looks like it's filled with debris.

Step 2: Wash and dry your jar and lid. A dust-free lid makes a better home for your glue. If your lid is cluttered with a logo or a not-so-happy color, sand it a little to give it some tack and add a coat or two of paint. You can also blast it with some spray paint, if you choose.

Step 3: Select a few favorite pieces of the costume jewelry you have assembled. Pins and earrings work best. If you have something with a larger lid, you may wish to use a couple of pieces. Use pliers to twist and remove the pin and earring backs of your selected pieces. I used the pliers to grasp and twist away until the earring hinge popped off. Any tiny screws or pieces that are left behind should be okay — a thick glob of glue will help balance the piece out

Step 4: Make sure your lid is dry and dust-free. Squeeze a glob of E-600 to the back of your jewelry and press down onto your lid. Repeat for the remaining lids and pieces you have gathered. Set aside to dry for at least 4 hours.

Step 5: List the seeds you used on a small piece of paper. You can get fancy and pretty this up any way you choose, use a typewriter, or simply print them out with a thin-tipped marker. I added each seed next to its name here just so you can see which seed is which. Roll your list up like a tiny scroll and tie with a bit of string or embroidery thread, leaving a tail about 6" long.

Step 6: Pop your tiny scroll into the jar with the tail of thread hanging out over the edge. Next, add the seeds you selected. Give a little shake here or there until the seeds are settled in a pleasing way. Set aside. I used small science specimen jars but baby food jars would work as well as those tiny sample jars of preserves, mustard, or caviar. You can find some neat tiny jars here.

Step 7: Gather your small hang tags and decorate as you please. Tuck the tail end of the tag's string into the center of the scroll and gently hang outside the lip of the jar.

Step 8: Once the glue is dry on your lid, seal up your garden to go and get ready to give! Happy planting!