Dollar Store Deals: Secrets to Scoring Cheap Seed Starting Supplies

I have a confession: I’m a dollar store junkie. I especially love going to the dollar store to get my car camping fix.

If you’ve ever wandered the aisles of your local Dollar Tree, you might be overwhelmed by all the cheap and practical car camping goods you can buy, especially for cooking in camp.

I always stock up on dish rags, scrubby sponges, plastic tablecloths, aluminum pans, aluminum foil, food containers, and zip-top bags on my dollar store sprees. I also replace utensils (especially grilling utensils) that get lost or left behind at campgrounds and cabins.

You know what else the dollar store is good for?

Cheap seed starting supplies.

While I always encourage repurposing and reusing containers you already have around the house, sometimes you need to buy a few things to round out your collection, and the dollar store is a great way to get started with minimal expense.

Anyone who says seed starting is an expensive endeavor should look beyond the traditional garden centers and nurseries, and even beyond the gardening aisle of their local dollar store.

Strange as it sounds, the best seed starting supplies are actually found in the non-gardening aisles, and they can save you a lot of money, especially if you just want to try things out.

But before I go into what you should buy, I’ll explain what you should never buy from the dollar store, no matter how tempting the deal may be.

Disclosure: If you shop from my article or make a purchase through one of my links, I may receive commissions on some of the products I recommend.

A lot of cheaper soil is either very dusty or full of bark, and if it’s at the dollar store, you’re likely to find other undesirable materials in it too: rocks, twigs, gnats, who knows?! I’ve also noticed that the bagged soil at my local dollar stores don’t say what’s actually in them—which raises red flags for me.

(I’ve been using these same gloves for years and love them. For lighter-duty tasks, I prefer these buttery soft leather gloves. If you want more options, check out my reviews of the best gardening gloves.)

In a pinch the cheapies will work, but think of them as disposables so you won’t be disappointed when you blow a hole through the fingers.

I also rarely wear gloves for everyday gardening tasks, and never when I’m seed starting. I like the feeling of soil between my hands—not to mention the smell of fresh earth—and my gloves only go on for heavy weeding, lifting, picking, or shoveling.

They’re not as sharp or durable as heftier tools from reliable brands, and you’ll end up replacing them sooner than you think. There is nothing more frustrating than a tool that doesn’t perform or breaks in the middle of a job—I’ve been there.

(Though to be fair, I do have a dollar-store trowel that’s been with me for a few years, but only because it’s a backup that gets used once a year to stir up soft, fluffy potting soil.)

That said, here are the things you should buy from the dollar store, and with proper care and storage, those cheap seed starting supplies can last several seasons.

This multipurpose tub works well for mixing soil and amendments (especially if you’re making your own potting mix), moving compost, bottom-watering small pots, and hauling supplies to and from your potting bench.

Together with a roll of plastic cling wrap (just cover the top and poke a few holes in the plastic), you can make a mini greenhouse for starting seeds in a warm environment without the need for heating mats.

These things are so versatile. They make great drip trays for starter plugs, seedling flats, planter boxes, or lots of little pots.

When you’re ready to harden off your seedlings, cookie sheets make it easy to transport all the containers in and out of the house.

Similar to the cookie sheet above, but not really sturdy enough if you plan to move your seedlings around.

On the upside, these aluminum pans are huge and work well as drip trays for lots of different pots.

If I need to repot seedlings, I usually have a row of these lined up on the table like so: two or three aluminum pans for holding all the seedlings, one filled with potting soil, and another for the actual potting task.

You can also poke some holes in the bottom of these pans (for drainage), fill them with seed starting mix, and use them to sprout your seeds.

To protect your indoor surfaces from drips and spills, a thin, rubber-backed mat that you can hose off is a practical solution.

You can also use them as a cheap landing pad for muddy shoes before or after you walk in the door.

I’m a fan of these paper pots when I don’t have the time to make newspaper pots at home. Because of their size, they’re great for starting seeds for plants that don’t handle root disturbance well (such as squash or spinach).

They last just long enough until my seedlings are ready to be transplanted, and I can plant them right in the ground with my seedlings or simply add the paper pots to the compost pile.

I usually keep a couple of packages around as back-up containers when I run out of reusable plastic pots.

Poke some holes in the bottoms of these plastic cups with a nail, and you’ve got instant seed starting pots you can reuse for a season or two.

They’re also a good choice for potting up excess seedlings, starter plants, cuttings, and divisions you want to gift to friends.

For seed starting, I always use a spray bottle to moisten the soil without unearthing the seeds.

They might seem flimsy at first, but I’ve had good luck with my dollar-store spray bottles. I think they’re able to last a few seasons because they’re only used for a short time and then stored away.

You can also use them for mixing up a small batch of DIY insecticidal soap.

When your seedlings have moved into larger pots, you can start watering them with a regular watering can.

I like to keep a few of these around the yard so I never have to go searching for one if I need to top off a container. Dollar stores are also good places to find smaller watering cans if you have kids that like to help in the garden.

A cheap and easy way to label a whole season’s worth of plants. I like to write on the blades of plastic knives (which typically have a wider surface) and then stick them in the soil.

(One thing I’ll mention, as I get a lot of questions about this, is you should avoid using plastic forks as a cat deterrent. There are many other ways to keep cats out of your garden that aren’t such an eyesore.)

If you can find them, wooden craft sticks are also handy for marking seedlings in the short term, but they’ll eventually mold or rot.

Write the name of your plant on a clothespin (plenty of permanent markers can be found in the school supplies aisle) and clip it to the edge of your pot. Instant plant marker!

These plastic ones will last the longest, but wooden clothespins will do in a pinch.

If you plan to start your seeds using the coffee filter (baggie) method, both of your supplies can be found in the same aisle.

Cheap zip-top bags are also handy for storing seeds that you’ve saved, among a hundred other uses around the house.

This is a great score from the dollar store. You can keep all your seed packets organized in this covered container, and store your plant markers, clips and ties, extra bags and coffee filters, and other supplies in a second one.

If you’re a seed hoarder like I am, you can take it one step further and categorize your seeds by bin.

For example, all your nightshades in the first bin, legumes in the second bin, squash and melons in the third, herbs and flowers in the fourth (and so on). Or if your seed collection is smaller, you can store all warm-season seeds in one bin and cool-season seeds in another bin.

When it’s time to start seeds, all you have to do is grab a bin and go. (I talk more about good seed storage techniques in this article.)

Label the bins with a Sharpie and stack them on a shelf for quick, convenient access to all your seeds when it’s planting time.

I’m a fan of this method because the transparent bins make it easy to check at a glance what you may be running low on at the beginning of the season.

I’ve found all kinds of caddies in the organization and kitchen aisles; these are the same baskets you might use to store toiletries.

But for seed starting, they’re an excellent way to keep all your supplies organized in the closet, shed, or potting bench.

Think: hand tools in one caddy, plant markers and spray bottles in the next caddy, and gloves and twine in another.

I stock up on dollar-store towels to use as cleaning rags to wipe down tools and mop up spills. You really can’t go wrong with them for the price.

Related: Make this simple tool cleaning station to clean your garden tools fast

I assume this tiny hamper is intended for tiny loads of laundry (a few of my jeans would fill it to the top!), but it’s perfect for keeping all your gardening supplies together and tidy.

When your plants start producing, it’ll make an excellent harvest basket. You can also gather all your root vegetables in the basket and hose them off before bringing them inside the house.

Store your soil, vermiculite, perlite, compost, and fertilizer in multiple buckets to mix and match as needed for your perfect potting mix.

You’ll find endless other uses for a bucket in the garden, like carrying bulbs, seed packets, small stakes, compost tea, mulch, and water from place to place.

In a pinch, you can also use buckets to cover seedlings and frost-sensitive plants if a cold snap is expected overnight. (Just remember to uncover them in the morning.)

I usually just shake out or hose off my pots between uses, but if you notice a lot of your seedlings dying from damping off or growing fungus on the soil, it’s a good idea to give your pots a more thorough cleaning with soap and hot water.

Read next: Why you don’t really need to disinfect your plant pots

Scrubbers and sponges are abundant at the dollar store, so you can keep a set especially for your garden to wipe off tools, clean your potting bench or utility sink, or scrub the soil clinging to your root vegetables before you bring them inside.

This post updated from an article that originally appeared on February 19, 2014.