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What’s a Seed ball?

Seeds balls are an ancient technique for propagating plants from seeds without opening up soil with cultivation tools such as a plow.

The rediscovery and popularization of seedballs (or “Clay Dumplings” as he called them) in modern times is typically ascribed to Japanese natural farmer and philosopher Masanobu Fukuoka.

As with many natural farmers, Fukuoka believed that tillage over large areas is laborious, destructive to soil health, and ultimately not needed and thus a waste of time and energy. Thus, seedballs have become an important aspect of many natural farming and conservation enterprises around the world.

--- Permaculture News



  1. Abstract,International Journal of Current Microbiology and Applied Sciences, 2019 ‘Seed balls’ are prepared by non-governmental organizations and enthusiastic school children to trees grow trees rapidly for ecosystem restoration. However, there is immense scope for technically improving the seed...
  2. Abstract,International Journal of Agriculture Innovations and Research, 2018 Poor and erratic rainfall, poor chemical soil fertility and low water holding capacity of widely spread sandy soils are major constraints in the pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum (L.) R. Brown) cropping system of the West...
  3. Abstract,Journal of Agriculture and Rural Development in the Tropics and Subtropics, 2019 This study deals with the development of the seedball technology in particular for dry sowing under Sahelian conditions and pearl millet as crop. At first, our participatory evaluation in Senegal showed that...
  4. Seedballs Kenya has pioneered a method of mass producing seedballs for low cost and efficient reintroduction of trees and grass species into degraded areas in Africa. Seedballs are inexpensive and can be easily dispersed over large areas which are often hard to reach. Our indigenous seeds,...
  5. Erratic germination of sugar-beet seeds is rather common. Some varieties and progenies germinate more rapidly than others. Inhibitory substances present in the seed ball have been shown to delay or inhibit germination. In contrast, the author has observed in certain progenies of sugar beets that...
  6. Seedball is a cheap “seed‐pelleting‐technique” that combines local materials, seeds and optionally additives such as mineral fertilizer to enhance pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum(L.) R.Brown) early growth under poor soil conditions. The major objective here was to study the mechanisms behind...
  7. What’s a Seed ball? Seeds balls are an ancient technique for propagating plants from seeds without opening up soil with cultivation tools such as a plow. The rediscovery and popularization of seedballs (or “Clay Dumplings” as he called them) in modern times is typically ascribed to Japanese...
  8. Regeneration and restoration methodologies of tropical ecosystems on Costa Rican pastureland and farms are limited to primarily natural regeneration, direct seeding, tree planting, and stake planting. Seedballing is a common practice in Japan used to reduce predation and labor costs and increase...
  9. 2018-01-20 This collection aims to provide a reference for policy makers and practitioners working in areas related to bioenergy in rural areas of sub-Saharan Africa. This encompasses those in the energy, agriculture, forestry, environment, finance and business sectors, among others, who are searching for...
  10. SeedTheGlobe is a Seeds and Seedballs Company. We design tools to make Seedballs, and are developing a Seeds store of Indigenous and wilder Superfoods. Our mission is to provide new sources of income for small farmers and Indigenous peoples, while helping them regenerate Nature. Because this will...

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