6. Plant Seedling Starters

Newspapers can be folded into small, biodegradable pots perfect for starting seeds indoors.

How to Use:
Cut a newspaper sheet in half, then fold it into a small pot shape and tuck in the flaps. Fill with soil, plant your seeds, and once the seedlings are ready, you can plant them directly into the ground — pot and all — without disturbing the roots.

7. Pest Control

Newspapers can deter common garden pests like slugs, beetles, and even birds.

How to Use:
Lay sheets of newspaper around your plants to act as a barrier for slugs and beetles. You can also roll up newspaper into tubes — pests will crawl inside overnight, and you can discard the traps in the morning. To protect seedlings from birds, loosely cover them with newspaper to confuse and deter the birds without harming your plants.

8. Preparing Planting Areas

Newspapers are great for sheet mulching — a method to prepare new planting areas by smothering weeds and grass.

How to Use:
Start by clearing the area of large debris. Lay down 5–10 layers of newspaper to cover the ground completely, overlapping edges. Wet the papers thoroughly to hold them in place and promote decomposition. Then, cover with compost or topsoil. Over time, the newspaper breaks down and adds organic matter to your garden bed.

Final Thought

Before tossing out your old newspapers, consider giving them a second life in your garden. These simple, sustainable methods not only reduce waste but also improve the health and productivity of your garden naturally.

Happy gardening!