Garden seeders go a long way in making farming easier and more productive. You don’t have to worry about the right depth, the spacing, or the number of seeds to plant at each spot. These tools can help you do it right. Better yet, you don’t have to bend anymore, making farming a fun experience too. You can cover larger farms within a short time.
Garden seeders range from simple tools that you can build yourself, to the commercial ones that come with all the necessary features. We have reviewed some of the top seeders in the market today. Before making that investment, please check them out, as well some factors that you should consider.
Garden Seeder Reviews
Best Overall
Key Features
Rating: 4.5/5
This is a versatile garden seed planter that features several plates that are convenient for different types of plants. It also ensures precision when planting.
Our Verdict
The simple mechanism makes it easy to handle seeds of different sizes, regardless of the size of your farm. The customizable plates are even better, especially if you run a commercial farm.
Best Budget
Key Features
Rating: 4.6/5
This garden planter has always been a favorite for most farmers. Having been in the business for a longer time than the other companies, Earthway has perfected their craft in manufacturing high-quality gardening tools.
Our Verdict
It is a convenient garden seed planter for small scale to medium-scale farmers. However, commercial farmers who would love to have more control over the seed plates may have to look for other heavy-duty options.
Best for Commercial Planting
Key Features
Rating: 4.2/5
Earthway 2150 is not a typical garden seeder. Unlike most that have small trays, it has a plate capacity of 50 pounds. It also acts as a broadcast spreader that you can use for other purposes on your lawn.
Our Verdict
This tool is ideal for commercial planting and spreading. If you don’t want to deal with interchanging the seed plates, or the seeds getting stuck, this seed planter suits you.
Best Combo
Key Features
Rating: 4.1/5
Hoss has an excellent reputation in manufacturing some of the best farm equipment. With The Hoss Deal, you not only get a seeder, but you also get a weeding hoe and a plough.
Our Verdict
This tool is less versatile than the Hoss Garden Seeder, but it’s best for certain types of soils. It’s more reliable, more productive, and handy in other gardening practices. It’s also the best for growing potatoes.
Key Features
Rating: 3.8/5
The Chapin 8701B is another convenient but straightforward garden seeder. It’s designed to last for a long time, and it can work with several seed plates. They have also eliminated the seed skipping problem you may experience in the Earth 1001-B.
Our Verdict
This is a light-duty garden seeder, and it has the necessary functionality for its price. However, its structure may not work on hard soil, so make sure you till the land first before using the planter.
Buying Guide
Garden seeders vary in sizes, shapes, and functionality. We may have inclined towards walk-behind seeders, but there are others that you may consider for specific uses. Below are some types of seeders in the market today.
Push Seeders
Push Seeders are also known as walk-behind seeders. Just like the name suggests, they often have two wheels and you push them from behind as they drop seeds and cover them with soil. They are the most common and quite convenient for general usage.
Pull Garden Seed Planter
These are also known as tow-behind seeders. They are often attached to tractors and ATVs and pulled around the garden. They are the best if you have a huge piece of land.
Jab Planter
Jab planters may also be referred to as stab planters. It’s merely a long tube with seed metering functions. So you press the ground and release the seeds. Some have an extension that allows you to apply the appropriate spacing. The covering of the seeds and compacting has to be done manually. That’s why walk-behind planters are still the best solution.
Below are some factors to consider when buying a seed planter;
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
1. How does a Garden Seeder Work?
Garden seeders include two wheels, a seed plate, a hopper, a trench, and a mechanism for covering the soil after dropping the seeds. The front wheel is connected to the seed plate attachment. So every time the wheel turns, it turns the seed plate. The seed plate then scoops the seed and places it in a slip or an opening that leads to the created furrow. The numbers of seeds dropped depend on the tray you’re using.
The trench creates the furrow. Some seeders use a disc coulter as the trench, but many other tools can be used. After placing the seeds, there’s a mechanism to cover the seeds with soil. This could be a chain drag or a flap. The back wheel then compacts the soil after covering the seed. Some seeders also feature a row marker that marks the next row, making sure you maintain straight lines.
2. How do I Prepare my Garden for Seeding?
First, you should check the health of your soil. Check the pH, nutrients levels, and soil structure. If any of these aspects are affected, there are many ways to fix it. Adding organic matter can improve the soil’s structure as well as the pH. Secondly, you should till the land. Tilling makes it easy to create furrows where you need to place the seeds. How deep you’ll dig should be determined by the crops you want to grow. You can also add some water if the moisture levels are too low.
3. How do You Make a Seed Planter?
You can make a simple or a complex seed planter from recycled materials around your home. One of the simplest forms of a seeder is using a PVC pipe. If you always find it hard to bend when planting, you can cut a PVC pipe based on your height and drop the seeds through the opening, and they will fall right into the furrow.
You can take it up a notch and add a spacer. You do this by using a T-connector to attach a smaller pipe that matches the appropriate spacing for the seeds you’re planting. For instance, you can cut a 6-inch pipe when planting corn. So after you drop the seeds, you can accurately determine where to drop the next. If the diameter of the tube is too small, you can attach a funnel, or split bottle that also works like a funnel.
There are more sophisticated ways to do it as you’ll find in these videos;
Final Thoughts
In conclusion, the Hoss Garden Seeder is one of the top seeders in the market today. As mentioned earlier, Hoss has been in the business of farm equipment for a long time, giving you more reason to trust their products.
The company did its best to create a more versatile tool by including 13 trays to handle several sizes of seeds. Some of the plates can also be customized to meet specific needs. This seeder also features a disc coulter that can make furrows in different types of soils.
The chain and back wheel also ensure that the seeds have enough soil and the appropriate compacting to prevent it from being carried away by the wind. It’s also durable thanks to the powder-coated steel frame and wooden handles. The hopper may be smaller than in most models, but most customers confirm that they still managed to use it as it is on larger farms.