Don't Toss Those Toilet Paper Tubes — Grow Delicious Carrots!

Growing carrots (Daucus carota subsp. sativus) can be quite difficult, but this great hack might just do the trick for you by reusing toilet paper tubes. The most common issues with growing carrots are getting them to germinate and, once they begin to grow, dealing with cutworms that can cause extensive damage to the plant. Both issues pose a serious barrier to producing thriving, healthy, and edible carrots for your home, but with the help of toilet paper tubes, you can make sure to give your carrots the best chance.

This hack works really well because it lets you start your carrots and have them germinate in a safe environment before planting. Then, once you transplant the carrots into the ground, the lip of the tube serves as a barrier to protect your carrots from nasty cutworms. And not only will you be protecting the carrots, but the toilet paper tubes themselves will decompose, increasing the soil's carbon content for your carrots by acting as compost. So, stop tossing your toilet paper tubes and grow delicious carrots this season.

To grow carrots in toilet paper tubes, you will want to start by collecting as many tubes as you will want carrots. Before you use the tubes, you need to ensure you remove all paper or adhesive that might be left over, as that won't decompose as well as just the cardboard. Next, fill the tubes with soil, very lightly packed to allow space for growth, and make sure to leave room at the top to provide a barrier for cutworms. Make a small ¼-inch hole at the top of each tube and put 4 seeds in each hole. Cover the holes with more soil. Then place all the rolls with the seeds on a tray, where they will remain until they germinate.

Once the leaves begin to sprout, you are ready to plant the carrots in the soil. To ensure the tubes will not deteriorate, you should thoroughly wet the bottom half of them before planting. Then, put the roll into a well-worked garden bed, but don't completely bury it. To protect against cutworms, leave the dry lip of the tube above the soil surface. Once in the ground, fill the soil back in around the tubes, water regularly, and you'll have delicious carrots for your kitchen in no time.