Coffee Grounds

[DancingLady]

I have heard that coffee grounds make a great fertilizer. A couple of coffee shops in my town even dump all their used grounds into plastic bags which they tie up and leave in a bucket for people to pick up and take home if they want some for their yard.

I have also heard that putting it on top of the soil is great for keeping slugs away.

My question is: What plants are coffee grounds good for? Are there any that would be unhappy with coffee grounds being used in their soil?

 

[David Wechsler]

In preparation for our home gardens being on the St. Louis Sustainable Backyard Tour this last year, we covered most of our exposed soil with coffee grounds and not only did it make the ground look great, it smelled awesome too.

To answer your question, I haven't seen away of out plants being harmed by the grounds in any way.

 

[Chuck]

Coffee grounds are an excellent soil amendment adding organic mater and minerals to the soil. It is also a very mild fertilizer with low amounts of NPK

 

[Ian]

not only did it make the ground look great, it smelled awesome too.

Mmmmmmmmmm, I had never thought about the smell. OK, I'm convinced .

Starbucks in our town has big bags of free coffee grounds, but I'm sure that others would give them out if asked (after all, it saves them disposal costs!).

 

[Chuck]

Mmmmmmmmmm, I had never thought about the smell. OK, I'm convinced .

Starbucks in our town has big bags of free coffee grounds, but I'm sure that others would give them out if asked (after all, it saves them disposal costs!).

Don't forget tea. It is just about as good as coffee grounds and the bags decompose too

 

[Carolyn]

I never throw away coffee grounds or tea leaves. I always add them to my kitchen compost can (used lidded plastic coffee can) along with vegetable scraps. Sometimes I add eggshells if I have time to rinse them, otherwise the protein left in the shell will make the compost smell bad fast.

 

[Gliss]

I use coffee grounds in my compost containers. During the summer months when my tomato plants need a boost, I will put them directly into the soil around them. From what I understand they contain nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium and can be considered acidic. I'm not sure the exact amounts of these minerals are in the grounds, my guess is that it may vary with brands and strength of brew.

You may want to see about testing your soil's PH level to be sure; a high PH would want a less acidic fertilizer, from what I understand. My soil tends to be low, so It works great for me.

Bonus slugs hate coffee grounds and cats aren't too fond of them either!

 

[Trellum]

I have heard that coffee grounds make a great fertilizer. A couple of coffee shops in my town even dump all their used grounds into plastic bags which they tie up and leave in a bucket for people to pick up and take home if they want some for their yard.

I have also heard that putting it on top of the soil is great for keeping slugs away.

My question is: What plants are coffee grounds good for? Are there any that would be unhappy with coffee grounds being used in their soil?

Awesome! What a cool coffee shop! Over here coffee shops can't bother to do such an eco friendly thing, they just dump their coffee grounds. I have heard coffee grounds make a great fertilizer.

 

[helagumamela]

I have heard about this, too. In fact, Starbucks branches here in my country sell coffee grounds for plants. My grandmother bought some bags before for our pine tree. They smell so good and are good fertilizers.

 

[DancingLady]

That's wonderful to know. I will definitely start saving my own grounds again now that I know its good for all the plants. I was a bit concerned about acid for a while, and I was too lazy, but now that I've been reading about gardening again I am getting motivated to make next season the best it can be. Coffee grounds will be an easy way to start improving the soil.

 

[Rosyrain]

Since my coffee pot is right next to the sliding glass door to my back porch, it is easy for me just to pull the filter and spread the grounds around the bushes in my yard. I only get to use a couple of teaspoons per day, but it is better than not putting any grounds out there at all. The grounds at Starbucks are very popular (because they are free) and so they are usually gone by the time I get there. You have to go early in the morning to get some.

 

[headfullofbees]

The caffeine perks up your plants too!

 

[gata montes]

I have heard that coffee grounds make a great fertilizer. A couple of coffee shops in my town even dump all their used grounds into plastic bags which they tie up and leave in a bucket for people to pick up and take home if they want some for their yard.

I have also heard that putting it on top of the soil is great for keeping slugs away.

My question is: What plants are coffee grounds good for? Are there any that would be unhappy with coffee grounds being used in their soil?

As I also use coffee grounds and tea in my garden - I too would agree with everything that has already been said - in that - yes coffee grounds are excellent - as a soil conditioner, for adding to the compost and make a great slow release fertilizer too - particularly as coffee grounds generally contain 1-2% nitrogen, 0.3% phosphorus, 0.3% potassium along with many other micro-nutrients.

With regard to your other questions regarding slugs and what else coffee grounds may be used for - you may find this helpful

http://www.gardenmyths.com/coffee-grounds-for-your-garden/

as not only does if tell you just about everything you could wish to know about using coffee grounds in the garden but also sheds some light on some of the myths regarding the many uses of coffee in and around the garden too

 

[SamClemensMT]

Ah ha! This is great. I drink so much coffee. Now I can put the grounds to good use out in my garden. That's fantastic. I hate wasting stuff.

 

[Twinsmommy31]

This sounds like a great and natural way to fertilize the soil. I am definitely going to try this. I am sure the smell would be wonderful and it would keep some of the pests out.