degradable pots made from newspaper?

[paranoid mandroid]

can anyone tell me if it is safe to use newspaper to make pots to start things off in? i.e. as a replacement for peat pots?

[paranoid mandroid]

[Svea]

well, lots of people do it. you are worried about the ink, i guess?

svea ~ happy newspaper pot user :)

[paranoid mandroid]

yes, because i've read allsorts about carcinogens in ink and i was wondering if the plants could absorb these and in turn affect the vegetables which come from the plants.

[Kepouros]

I`ve been burying newspapers under my vegetables, and using it in my compost heaps, for over 20 years, and it doesn`t seem to have done me any harm yet.

[Merry Tiller]

I believe about a quarter of what I read, most people that write this stuff about everything being unhealthy and "bad" for you have a vested interest. Making pots from newspapers is far more useful than reading them
Anyway soil contains carcinogens and so does the air we breathe

[kenkew]

It's the only form of landfill that makes sense!

[Greenfingers Jo]

Just for info. Paper mills regularly give/sell deinked and dewatered paper pulp to farmers. Its a good source of nitrogen whih is released on the second year of application and it can be used on fields wherer edible crops are raised.

Though most inks are now non carcingenic and many are biodegradable

Jo

[paranoid mandroid]

the kind people at the times answered my email very quickly and they said -

There is not nowadays any problem with printing inks (at one time printing ink contained lead and cadmium), but there is a problem with glossy magazines. Newspaper is fine but it does need scrunching up.

;D

[Diesel]

Has anyone got any pictures of the process of making pops from paper?

I had a search but the topics had no pictures by the time I got to them

[slugcatcher]

There is a link on A4A somewhere as I have read it myself, but sorry I dont seem to be able to find it.

Maybe it will get reposted after this thread.

Ron

[Gadfium]

It's over in 'top tips' section, half-way down the page... Paper Pots MkII; the pics seem to have disappeared from the thread... try a post and see if they can be re-inserted?

[tomatoada]

Just get a rolling pin and 4 pages of a tabloid size newspaper.  Roll 2/3rds round the rolling pin and twist the end not on the rolling pin so you make half a christmas craker.  It is surprising how it holds to-gether.  Stand in a bucket or deep pot.   On harrods site is a wooden thing which makes smaller shallower ones. Hope you can follow this.

[kenkew]

I'll see if I can rescue the pic's again.

[kenkew]

http://www.allotments4all.co.uk/yabbse/index.php/topic,8351.0.html
This is paper pots mk1.

[Diesel]

superb thanks kenkew

[portway farm]

Go for it!!