HOW IT’S MADE
From fibre to something that can grow
Seed paper sits somewhere between papermaking and planting. The challenge is not simply to make a sheet of paper, but to create a useful printed material while keeping viable seeds inside it for what comes next.
01 — THE FIBRE
It starts with paper fibres
Before there is a card, tag, invitation, or sheet of seed paper, there is fibre. Paper material is prepared and processed into a pulp that can be formed again into a new sheet.
The characteristics of this pulp influence the finished paper: its thickness, texture, strength, appearance, and how it behaves during printing and converting.
02 — THE SEEDS
Then comes the living part
Seeds are what turn ordinary paper into plantable paper. The variety used can change according to the project, destination, planting environment, paper specification, and available production options.
They must be introduced into the material in a way that avoids unnecessary conditions that could reduce their ability to germinate later. This is one of the key differences between seed paper and conventional paper manufacturing.
At this stage, we are making two things at once: a sheet that needs to work as paper today, and a carrier for seeds that may be planted tomorrow.
03 — SHEET FORMING
The paper begins to take shape
The prepared material is formed into sheets. Water is removed and the fibres settle together, capturing the seeds within the structure of the paper rather than simply attaching them to the surface.
Natural variation is part of the result. Seed position, fibre pattern, surface texture, and small differences between sheets can remain visible, giving the material a tactile character that is very different from highly coated commercial stock.
04 — DRYING
Removing water without forgetting the seeds
Freshly formed paper contains a large amount of moisture, so drying is necessary before the sheets can be handled and converted into finished products.
With seed paper, the drying stage also needs to take the embedded seeds into account. The objective is to produce a stable, usable sheet while avoiding unnecessary exposure to conditions that could compromise the material’s plantable purpose.
05 — PRINTING
A plantable material becomes a communication tool
Once the paper is ready, artwork can turn the material into something useful before it is ever planted. Logos, typography, invitations, product information, illustrations, QR codes, planting instructions, and campaign messages can all become part of the finished piece.
Seed paper has a naturally textured surface, so artwork should be designed for the material rather than treated exactly like smooth coated paper. Fine details, small typography, colour coverage, and print method may need to be adjusted according to the project.
06 — FINISHING
The sheet becomes the product
The final stage is converting the printed paper into the format the project actually needs. Sheets can become invitations, cards, hang tags, labels, inserts, promotional pieces, packaging components, or other custom paper products.
Cutting, shaping, folding, punching, assembly, and other finishing decisions are determined by the final application. This is where an unusual material becomes something ready to be used, shared, mailed, attached to a product, or handed to a customer.
FROM PAPER TO EXPERIENCE
Made to be used before it is planted
The production process matters because seed paper has two jobs. First, it has to work as a physical paper product. Later, the same object can be placed into soil and begin a completely different stage of its life.
Have a product in mind?
Tell us what you want to make, how many pieces you need, where they will be used, and how you want them to look. We can then work backward from the finished product to the appropriate paper, seed, print, size, and production specification.
