Grow a Garden with Seed Bombs

Maya Drozdz and Michael Stout were walking through their downtown Cincinnati neighborhood thinking about how to combine their love of design and urban renewal into a saleable product when they hit upon an idea. Why not make seed bombs—small clumps of clay, seeds, and compost—that, with just the flick of a wrist or a well-aimed slingshot, could transform a vacant lot into a garden for birds and wildlife? “We live in a historic inner city neighborhood and it’s definitely a place that could use some beautification,” Drozdz said.

To make the products, the entrepreneurs followed USDA guidelines to include hardier native plant seeds and avoid invasive plants. Then they packaged the marble-sized bombs in muslin bags printed with a snazzy typeface and watched in awe as customers snatched them up.

Today, their seed bombs are carried nationally in stores like Anthropologie and Restoration Hardware. Meanwhile Drozdz and Stout have expanded from wildlife habitat and regional flower seed bombs to herb and edible flower ones (visualingual.com).