Send a Growable Card to Clients

I recently received a wonderful greeting card from Walmart. It is made of special seed paper that can be grown into a plant. For a company on the sustainability journey, the card itself delivers the message. I love it so much that I tracked down the card manufacturer.

When I got the card from Walmart, I thought it looked a little unusual as the paper has bumps all over its surface. It reminds me of decorative art paper from specialty art stores. On the back side is instruction on how to grow the card. It is really quite simple, essentially:

• Tear the card into pieces
• Bury the pieces in a pot filled with soil
• Add water

I have not grown mine yet. But I love the card so much that I asked Walmart for the name of the card manufacturer, which turns out to be a Canadian company called Botanical PaperWorks. According to their web site, the seeds embedded in the paper will germinate and grow into a plant of flowers, herbs, or vegetables, depending on the seeds used in the paper. And the paper composts away in the soil. “Plantable paper is a biodegradable eco-paper that is made with post-consumer materials (no trees harmed for this paper!) and embedded with seeds.” You can see several photos of what the grown plants look like at Botanical PaperWorks’ web site.

In addition to a green environmental message, I also feel a card that grows conveys a sense of development, progress, nurture, and a promising future … perfect for sending out to clients. (Disclaimer: I have no relation with the card manufacturer.)

Photos by Carbon49