Make 4 lbs of seed balls - PEP BB foraging.sand.seedball

Lori Ott wrote:Could I use our soil since it is mostly clay?

Although I'm not doing this for the BB trials and tribs I wanted to get the info out.

I'm in about the same circumstances - clay soils here!

I still did the mud balls, but mine were 2" to 2 1/2" and they dried as hard as rocks. I actually went to my tool box and got the hammer out to break them up. And they were filled with wild flower mix to try and attract bees.

I had a thought that if I just dallied along the road way and threw mud balls in the side ditch we would have a whole strip of flowers growing. That didn't happen.

I grow Elderberries and sorting the bad and green berries from the good, I had quite a collection. SO, I took those out in a container and went along the side ditch and disposed of my seeds. Hopefully those will sprout at least SOME plants and from there they will take off.

I'll try the mud balls again this Spring and add some clay, compost, and sand or green sand and see if I can get those to work well enough to hold the seeds together and gently as possible drop them down in the deep side ditch and hope for the best.

Use a cement mixer, much more efficient than by hand which takes forever. This nut has already been cracked folks!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A4-bwW8PWI0

I have sandy soil here for the most part,  so I used a bag of cheap dollar store clay cat litter (100% zeolite- only ingredient).   Worked perfectly.   Added some sandy soil and used composted rabbit manure tea.   Shook the bin and it made perfect balls just like the original demo video.  Didn't take any time at all.  Drying hard it good imo,   they're easiler to bring with me when I hike and walk the dogs and toss them around.   The ones that end up in the right spot will grow, or add to the diversity of the seed bed in that area..   this was a really fun BB.  

I've been formulating seed sets for my hugel bed, for my orchard, and to guerrilla garden new apple and apricot trees near me. The species that are in all of the balls are:
(annuals)
mustard,
calendula,
marigold,
tillage radish,
red orach,
(perennials)
dandelions,
comfrey,
clover,  
green onions,
and garlic

Then in my orchard mix, I have added alfalfa, and in the tree guild mix, I have added apple and apricot seeds.
I mixed these seeds with clay and compost and a bit of water at a time. After making the balls, I weighed them. Sorry, my scale wouldn't go over 1 pound for some reason, so I took lots of pictures of small batches to show more than 4 lbs. Then I dried them for using in the spring.

Austin Durant wrote:Made seed balls at PTJ 2021! I even used processed willow candy as the manure part.

Seeds included:
Apple (off to the upper right side of mixing trough in pic because I hand pressed them into each ball)
Buckwheat
Sepp grain seeds
Cherry
Black locust
White Dutch clover

First 2 pics are for the bb

So a lot of the gardening/woodland BB's want you to plant x number of (tree/bush) in rows to show % sprouted. Would it be possible to do a "guild mix (at least 5 species)" and then encase 1 (tree/bush) seed per ball for making a perfect poly culture for the chosen plant?  So using the quote as an example the guild mix would be clover, buckwheat, and Sepp grain as perennials 2 more annuals and 1 of the trees seed in the center.

Aurora House wrote:So a lot of the gardening/woodland BB's want you to plant x number of (tree/bush) in rows to show % sprouted. Would it be possible to do a "guild mix (at least 5 species)" and then encase 1 (tree/bush) seed per ball for making a perfect poly culture for the chosen plant?  So using the quote as an example the guild mix would be clover, buckwheat, and Sepp grain as perennials 2 more annuals and 1 of the trees seed in the center.

I like Aurora's concept of Guild Balls.  It makes more sense to me than how the BB is currently written.  Maybe someone can help me understand, but I keep thinking about the competitive exclusion principle, imagining all these perennials and annuals fighting one another for nutrients over the years.   (Either the maple will win, or the mulberry, or the apricot, or the apple, or the black locust, but not all four in the same inch, right?)  In nature, I just don't think I have ever seen six plants sharing the same 1 inch event origin of root space.  

So as I am making my own seed balls, I'm skipping this BB and making several smaller 1/2" to 3/4" balls, each tailored with a tree, a nitrogen fixer, a pollinator-friendly plant, and maybe a biennial rooting crop or a vine.  Plus some dedicated N2-fixer balls to go around the broader area.  Fewer seeds per ball, less competition, wider coverage area, more balls.

I encourage folks to take pictures of their results over the years, so we can make comparisons!

Here is my re-submission for making at least 4 lbs (fresh weight) of seed balls/bombs -  PEP BB foraging.sand.seedball:

I used the same batch of seeds as my separate 20-lb (approved) submission here >>> permies.com/p/1504070
           
To document completion of the BB, I have provided the following:
- A picture of the seeds in a mixing container
- The balls/bombs being created
- A picture of the finished balls on a scale showing the weight
- A listing of the seeds I used:

Clover (red, crimson, white, golden), paiute orchard grass, common vetch, field mint, sainfoin, cherry seeds, apple seeds

So the example video says equal parts dry clay and compost - this is 5+# of wet clay I harvested off a beach. How heavy should the compost be?
Also does anyone know how long the clay needs to be seawashed to be "bentonite"?

I've been excited about doing this BB and have lots of seeds! Here are the ones I used:
Rattlebox
Zinnia (Giant Double)
Sunflower (Autumn Beauty)
Poppy (Shirley)
Bachelor's Buttons
Cosmos (Sensation)
Creeping Thyme
Wild Bergamont
Mammoth Dill
Nasturtium
Mullein
Lemon Balm
Fennel
Alfalfa
Perennial Wildflower Mix.
Shady Wildflower Mix.

I mixed one part sawdust, two parts compost, and four parts red clay. The sawdust keeps moisture in because our compost does not do that well. I will be very happy when these start to come up!

Alright start with money shot 4# <.
Perennials -alums (chive and onion) legume+ alfalfa umberphrase (camomile and parsley) and main tree.
Annuals - amaranth, lettuce, and wheat.
And played with the rocket assistance solar dehydrator as suggested by the Duke himself.