Throw and Grow: Restoring ecosystem with seed balls.
A fun activity to contribute for greening the ecosystem.
Environment Day was celebrated across the globe on 5th June, with the surge in pandemic, this year all events were celebrated virtually across the globe. Social lab celebrated Environment day virtually and on ground as well. Our ground team took an initiative to restore the lost habitats at various locations in Maharashtra by planting more than 8000 seed balls. Enlighten yourselves with the concept of seed balls and how they contribute in greening the ecosystem in this blog.
Seed ball is a clay ball which consists of a variety of seeds rolled within soil and mixed with compost. The technique of making seed balls was rediscovered by Masanobu Fukuoka, a Japanese natural farming pioneer during the period of the second world war. This was used to increase food production without disrupting the lands allocated for traditional rice cultivation. Seed ball technique was also used in ancient Egypt to repair farms after annual spring flooding of the Nile river. Seed balls not only help in fertilizing land but is also a fun activity which brings people together. Making seed balls is an easy task which requires good quality soil, compost, seeds and water. Our team started preparation for making seed balls a week before Environment Day at five locations, Shirur Kasar, Kaij, Ashti and Wadwani in Beed district of Maharashtra, and Shindkheda in Dhule district of Maharashtra. Native seeds are preferred for seed balls as non native seeds will invade the local diversity creating an imbalance in the ecosystem. Our team had the knowledge about the native species whose seeds were collected by hand picking. We have used the native seeds available like Tamarind, Neem, Gulmohar, Jamun (Java Plum), Peepal (Sacred Fig), and Babul seeds for seed balls.
How to make Seed balls
Soil, being the most important component for seed balls, should be nutrient rich. Compost is mixed with the soil in a ratio of 25:75. An easy way to remember this is the ratio of five parts soils to three parts compost to one part seeds. The compost we used was made locally in the respective municipal councils. First soil and compost need to be mixed very well, add some water to it till it becomes thick paste, make sure excess amount of water is not added. After the mixture is prepared, add seeds into it and roll it into a ball. Balls should be about the size of a quarter, that is about 5–7cm in diameter. After carefully rolling the seed balls, air dry and then store them in a dry place.
Planting seed balls
The plantation of these seed balls started on the occasion of Environment day and continued for a week. You can either throw them (yes literally throw) on barren lands, or plant them directly on the land. One thing which needs to be taken care of is, the land where you’ll be planting the seed balls should not be too dry. That’s it your seed balls are planted and over a few months enjoy the greenery. Although the rains will help them grow, but every once a while watering the lands where seed balls are thrown or planted would be good.
With the team’s effort we were successful in planting more than 8000 seed balls and took a step forward for restoring ecosystem. In the district of Beed, 1507 seed balls were planted at Shirur Kasar, 1750 at Kaij, 2400 at Ashti and 1500 at Wadwani and in the district of Dhule, 1000 at Shindkheda. This activity is not only helping in ecosystem restoration but also making people conscious and responsible for taking care of the environment.
Benefits of Seed balls:
- Easy to make: Making seed balls is easy, you just need soil, compost, seeds and water and willingness to do something for greening the environment.
- Can be thrown and grown anywhere: Seed balls being easy to carry, are versatile and can be thrown and grown anywhere, provided that the land is not too dry or already occupied with other vegetations.
- Brings people together: Planting requires time and patience, as it involves many steps, and cultivating a land is a long term activity which requires machinery and manual labor as well. But with seed balls, all you have to do is make and throw the balls. Making seed balls could be group as well as individual activity, and is definitely a fun activity for kids. Not only making seed balls bring people together, but it also lights a spark of responsibility in people for protecting the environment.
Habitat loss is a real concern, plus heavy use of fertilizers, pesticides and climate change all together is posing a huge threat to our ecosystem. Throwing and planting seed balls is just a small but effective step to bring back what is lost and a way forward for greener and healthier ecosystems.
Do check out our posts about seed balls on our Instagram page.
Contributed By- Ashlesha Karande, Communication Executive at Social Lab
Social Lab Environmental Solutions is a waste management company, which helps brands take-back and scientifically dispose of post-consumer plastic waste of their products. Brands take our services to fulfill Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) obligation under Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2018.
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