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If you grow your own food (or aspire to!),

You’ve already heard that starting seeds saves you tons of money and allows you to grow varieties you can’t get otherwise.

That’s true, but incomplete.

--> You also have to keep those seedlings alive, which requires careful watering. <--

It’s *really* hard to water seeds and seedlings just right.  And when you get it wrong, you lose your baby plants.  Over-water and you get damping off, mold and disease.  Under-water and you get dry, crispy dead baby plants.

ORTA’S UNIQUE WICKING TERRACOTTA COMPLETELY TAKES THE GUESSWORK OUT OF WATERING

~FILL THE RESERVOIR ONCE A WEEK~

Full disclosure:  I like to forget about my seedlings for a few days at a time.  Perhaps because I’m going out of town.  Or I’m just busy being a mom and going to work, and I need some stuff in my life to take care of itself!  Filling the reservoir once a week means just that – top it off on Saturdays and you’re good to go.

~NO PLASTIC.  NO RAT POISON.~

Orta pots are made from terracotta, manufactured in California with strict attention to exactly what goes in the clay that will be touching your food.  

Lots of commercial clay formulations contain barium carbonate (a.k.a. Rat poison) but we leave that s#!t out.  (Before you throw out all your pottery - barium carbonate is far more more dangerous to those of us making the clay than in final products.  We just like to be extra cautious where we can.)

Also:  No plastic anywhere.  Not in the products.  Not in the packaging. 

It’s Earth Day 2023 for goodness sake. 

Time to stop poisoning ourselves and the earth around us.  No?

~STARTING SEEDS WILL CHANGE YOUR LIFE.~

Bold claim, I know.  Hear me out:

• Once your seed starting game is up and running, you’ll save a bundle on nursery starts and produce.  But you already knew that.
• You’ll grow foods and flowers that you (and your neighbors, family and friends) never knew existed
• You’ll develop a *relationship* with seeds, and feel yourself more deeply intertwined with cycles of plant life
• You’ll probably start saving seeds.  Once seeds are familiar, you’ll see them everywhere.
• You’ll become a seed steward, caring for seeds and plants from one (plant) generation to the next, perhaps eventually passing your knowledge on to the next (human) generation.

Seed starting isn’t super easy, but it’s also not that hard.

Have you tried one of those cute kits that claim to be super easy?  Like you’ll get strawberries growing in a thimble or tomatoes from a soup can?  And all you get is a scrawny seedling that tips over and dies?

That didn’t work.  So what do you try next?

The unfortunate truth is that when it comes to seeds, most gimmicks and “easy” kits lead directly to sadness and failure.

And that’s a problem not just for that particular batch of seedlings, but because it gives you the sense that *you* are the failure.  (You’re not!)  If you can’t make the “easy” kit work, you must not have what it takes for seeds, and then you give up forever.

If that simple, mistaken belief sticks with you, you miss out on a lifetime of discovery in the world of seeds.

The fact is, most gardeners don’t ever develop a solid seed-starting program.

Whether they’ve been stymied by “easy” kits or by the tricky watering schedules of growing in egg cartons, early attempts at seed starting can be tricky and discouraging.

And of course that’s a problem for you, but it’s also a problem for US, collectively as humans on Earth. 

With massive biodiversity losses all around us, now more than ever the world needs seed stewards, and that means YOU.

Orta does not promise the impossible (like strawberries growing from a thimble).

We DO promise to take care of watering your seedlings. 

And we guarantee our pots forever.  Yes, forever.  If it doesn’t work as promised, we’ll give you your money back forever.  

We can offer such a crazy guarantee because no one, ever, has returned an Orta pot because it didn’t work.  They work.

 

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4 reasons most gardeners fail to start their garden from seed

And how we’ll help you with every single one

1. LACK OF BELIEF

MOST GARDENERS HAVE FAILED WITH SEEDS IN THE PAST AND DON’T BELIEVE THEY CAN SUCCEED

Perhaps it was the egg cartons in primary school, or reusing six-packs to start tomatoes with your kids.  Was it that strawberry in a thimble kit?  Seed starting is common enough that most of us have had a go, and most of us have failed.

Unfortunately that leads to a lifetime belief in being unable to start seeds.  But what if you’ve had the wrong tools and ideas all along?  What if you actually can do it?

Let’s talk about the specifics of how seedlings go wrong, and how Orta can help you

2. OVERWATERING

OUT OF AN ABUNDANCE OF LOVE, GARDENERS KILL SEEDLINGS

You sow your seeds, then give them a little water to settle in.  Later that day, you check.  “Are you ok seeds?  Do you need a little more water?”  And then again, 3 times a day or so until the seed pot is covered with mold and all the seedlings have tipped over and died. That’s over-watering.  And it comes from care and love, and it’s super super sad.

With Orta pots you just fill the reservoir about once a week.  And that’s it.  If you have an abundance of care, you can check and top off the reservoir daily!

3. UNDER-WATERING

GOOD INTENTIONS, BUT ONE MISSED WATERING KILLS THE WHOLE BATCH

You start the season full of optimism and vim and vigor.  You order those seeds, sow them, water them just right, not too much for about 12-15 days.  And then you have a couple big days in a row - kids, job, groceries - and wait!  The seedlings.  By the time you check, they’re dead.  Dry, shriveled, brown, dead.  Oh, the crushing shame!  And the loss!

Thank goodness with Orta pots you really only have to check once a week.  You can even go away for spring vacation during seed-starting season!

4. ONE FAILURE DOESN’T MAKE *YOU* A FAILURE

PLANTS ARE GENEROUS AND FORGIVING.  YOU CAN BE TOO.

I’ve often thought that the best gardeners are the ones that have killed the most plants, but kept going anyway.  They recover, they’re resilient (like the best plants), they learn something and they try again.

Even with Orta pots, you’ll kill some seedlings.  And that’s ok.  You’re learning.  Everyone has to learn.  And you’ll get better with every new try.

The truth is, seed starting is neither hard nor easy.  It’s a skill like cooking, that you learn with practice, and for which good tools help you do a good job.

If a grocery store tried to sell you a box the size of a ping pong ball and told you it would turn into a lasagne in the oven, you might ask if they also had a bridge they’d like to sell you.  

If a bakery told you that making cookies is an advanced skill best left to pros (and the only way to get cookies is from bakeries), you’d spot the lie miles away.

But when it comes to seeds, we’ve collectively lost our basic skills, and have become incredulous.

It’s time to re-learn what our ancestors took for granted:  You can start and save your own seeds.

Orta offers you a simple promise:  We’ll take care of the watering.  Guaranteed.

  And we’ll be your cheerleaders along the way, sending tips via email 2-3x per week, and answering boatloads of customer questions every day.

 

“I love your pots!!! Just ordered my second one . . . The joy of seeing my seeds sprout consistently is getting me through these times!” - Naomi, Los Angeles CA

  

Orta Seed Pots are for you if:

• You want to succeed with seed starting
• You want to be able to go away for a few days and know your seedlings will be ok
• You want the peace of mind that comes from knowing your seedlings are being grown in a plastic-free non-toxic container
• You’re ready to take your relationship to seed starting (and perhaps seed saving) seriously, and to pass on your knowledge.

Orta Seed Pots are NOT for you if:

• You have no problem starting seeds with the equipment you already have.  (You’re a better gardener than I am!)
• You don’t want to go away for the weekend (or spring break!) during seed starting season.
• Now isn't the right time for you to invest in high value, high reward tools.

The Ridiculously good Orta Guarantee

We accept returns for any reason, forever.  Yes, forever.

If you don't love your pot, we accept returns forever.  If there is a manufacturing defect, we will replace it forever.

Why?  Because we've received maybe 20 returns ever (mostly because customers preferred another color.)  Our pots work as advertised. 

And when the occasional inevitable manufacturing errors happen (I mean, we're talking about handmade ceramics here!) it's our responsibility to make it right.

Why not give it a try?

And at the BEST discount of the year!

But only through Friday April 28th at 9pm Pacific time . . .

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 “I just wanted to say how much I appreciate the quality and clever design of the Orta pots, the really responsible way they're packed for shipping, and for your care with your customers  . . .  All my Orta pots are in use right now. I love them.” - Diane, Feb 2022