As a homeschooling mom of 3, coffee is my best friend. A couple of years ago I stopped using K-Cups because of how much waste they produced and switched to a French Press. I’ve since added a pour-over coffee maker to my caffeine arsenal as well. With how much coffee we go through, having practical uses for the coffee grounds only seemed logical.
Instead of throwing your coffee grounds away, use them for these practical projects in your
7 Practical Uses For Coffee Grounds In The Garden
1. Fertilize the garden.
No matter where you live, the soil rarely contains the nutrients needed in order for plants to have optimal growth. AND plants are out there absorbing what nutrients there are in the soil leaving it depleted. Fertilizing with coffee grounds is great because they contain these key minerals:
- nitrogen
- calcium
- potassium
- iron
- phosphorus
- magnesium
- chromium
They’ve also been linked with absorbing metals in the soil that can be harmful.
How to use: Sprinkle coffee grounds around the plants you want fertilized.
2. Insect repellent
There’s nothing worse than finally getting your garden going only to have little bugs invite themselves to a harvest dinner. You know what also stinks? When it’s a beautiful evening and mosquitoes are out snacking on you. Coffee grounds can help this as well.
How sway??? There are certain compounds found in coffee that are toxic to insects. You can use coffee grounds to keep mosquitoes, fruit flies, beetles and other pests away.
How to use: In the garden create a barrier around the plants that you want to keep insects out of. For general insect repellent, set a bowl of coffee grounds in the area you’re in.
3. Attract worms
Worms are great for your garden. They naturally turn the soil as they squiggle through. And you know what? They LOVE coffee–who would have thought I had this in common with them!
How to use: In a bucket, combine soil, coffee grounds and worms. Add the mixture to your plants and the worms will handle the rest!
4. Enrich compost
Just like how the coffee grounds enhance the soil when you put it directly on there, it enriches your compost! Using coffee grounds in your compose has also shown to decrease greenhouse emissions by 40% and give a richer compost product.
5. Increase the harvest of carrots and radishes
Carrots and radishes LOVE coffee!
How to use: Just mix coffee grounds with your seeds as you plant them and then plant as directed.
6. Change the color of hydrangeas
Did you know that by changing the pH in the soil you can change the color of hydrangeas? These are some of my favorite flowers and I found this out when I met with the people from Endless Summer Hydrangea. In fact, they even sell a product that will do this for you. But because of the pH of coffee, you can just use the coffee grounds to change your hydrangeas to blue!
How to use: Sprinkle coffee grounds around the base of hydrangeas.
7. Keep cats away
While cats are really great at keeping snakes and other pests away, they tend to not care about your plants that you’re working hard to make beautiful. But they are NOT lovers of coffee! Who knew?
How to use: Sprinkle some coffee grounds in an orange peel in the area you want them to keep out.
How To Store Used Coffee Grounds
The easiest way to do it is to have a mason jar that’s waiting to be filled. I keep mine under my kitchen sink and I also add egg shells to the mix since they’re really great for plants as well. Once it’s filled, I move to where the rest of my gardening supplies are! Easy breezy.
Do you use coffee grounds in your garden?
