cheap alternative to peat pots

I'm using alot of peat pots to transplant seedlings from the flat. Is there something cheaper I could use? I've thought of dixie cups. What do you use? Thanks.
Dolores

I've never looked at the site but when I Google Dave's Gardening, it shows a site that teachs you how to make paper pots. You might want to check that out.

I use cheap plastic cups from big lots or the dollar store. They run about $2 for 30 or so. I also use old plastic coffee containers and even old ice cream buckets (like pints and quarts come in). It can be a little messy but even sandwich bags can be used just remember to cut drainage holes in everything.

I've got cuttings of herbs starting in egg crates and more rooted cuttings in dixie cups, paper cups, yogurt cups (all with holes poked through, though I've found that if I'm very careful with watering I don't have to poke the holes through). I've also had success with newspaper pots. Keep in mind though that newspaper pots and even wax paper cups can get a bit discolored or even a bit moldy as time goes by. It is really a temporary situation.

I use toilet paper rolls and they do just as well as a pet pot. You can even plant them cuz they are biodegrateable (?? i cant spell!!)
its easier for me when i put a bunch together in a circle and tie them with twin or yarn. I learned this from a book by Gayla Trails about urban and small space gardening.

I had great success with egg cartons this year...peat, cow & now that new corn/whatever product just doesn't work for me when I'm starting stuff.....maybe because the egg cartons put the seed closer to the heat mat.....once they're going in the little cup I transplant them up into coir pots then to the garden....Deb

Depsi I have a bunch of egg cartons and I will give it a try. I need to restart my herbs, the freeze and wind we had just about killed all of them.... My Thai basil did not make it and that was my favorite.. As soon as I find some seeds..

what I did with them was use a carpet knife & cut a crisscross in the bottom of each cup before I put in the soil & seed, cut a crisscross in the center of each of those ribs that make the sides of the cup....the flipdown top was cut off completely and then I put the egg part into it so it gave extra stability when the pulp was wet from watering.....it really worked wonderfully....when it was time to repot into the coir pots the pulp cup was easy to peel off...I don't leave the egg cups or the coir on the seedlings when I put pot them up or put into the garden....I just don't trust the stuff to break down fast enough to not impact the roots.....this was the first year my seedlings did as well as they did....last year I used cowpots & had awful luck....Deb

Great Thank you so much...

If you use plastic or dixie cups, it's a lot easier to use a long drill bit to drill holes through a stack of cups then cutting individual holes. My sister saves her baby food containers for me and my mom saves all her annual pots/6 packs. If you go to nurseries, Lowes, Home Depot, or wherever sometimes they will have pots stacked up by the dumpster. Ask if you can have them, sometimes they'll say no- sometimes they'll let you take them. There is also the method of making 'newpaper pots'; I've never tried it but it seems easy. It might be a little time-consuming but cost-effective. Look up some threads about peat pots before you transplant. I personally hate them, but there are some who like them. At least do a little research to decide if you would like to use them or not.

Also try watching for end of the season sales at Menards, Lowes, Walmart. Sometimes you can find garden/seed starting supplies on clearance for very cheap. Usually around sep/oct here. Bonus- also a good time to find end of season perennial sales.

My favorite is 3oz plastic solo cups. I poke holes in the pots, and put a single seed in each. Stand the pots in shallow trays with water, under lights kept on for sixteen hours each day. When the seedlings are big enough, they are easy to set out in the garden, and I save the pots for next time.

If you have kids (or friends with kids) the milk containers from school lunches work great. And, since they're square, they stack nicely in a tray.

oh that's a good idea & I have a girlfriend who works in the school cafeteria.....Thank you

Papertowel rolls and toliet paper rolls is what i used this year!!!

Thank you to all who responded. I got good ideas from you that I will try.

I use news paper and make lil cups by the time the seedlings are ready to plant i put the entire thing in the ground and it is desolved by the plant awesome . fill with compost add seed water done they sprout i plant.

Egg crates, paper cups, toilet paper/paper towel rolls, yogurt containers, baby food jars, fruit cups, rolled paper/natural cloth, bricks/blocks with holes in them; basically anything you can pull the root plug out of, or that will biodegrade in the ground. Walking/driving around expensive neighborhoods, where they do a lot of landscaping, during planting or spring/fall cleaning season, you can grab piles of pots from recycling bins.
Sometimes garden centres throw out product that is damaged or beyond season. 1 year I got 1500 4" square pots from a dumpster, where they threw out an entire skid of Snow Pansys. I recycled the pots and soil, and kept the best plants for the house. You might want to ask before you raid the dumpster though in some areas, these guys didn't mind as long as I wasn't selling the product.
Another place I raided a dumpster and took a pile of overripe fruit for the seeds. Grew mango, citrus, strawberry, avocado, and some other plants from seed. Even found some banana seeds, but didn't try to grow them. Maybe there should be a thread on dumpster gardening.