You don't need to spend a lot of money on fertilizers! With these DIY versions produced from ingredients found in your pantry and backyard, your garden will thrive!
Organic gardening is as popular as ever, and the methods we use have a significant impact on our health as well as the health of the earth. You can use a variety of all-natural fertilizers in your garden or with your potting soil.
Some of these fertilizers can be created or collected at home with typical pantry or backyard items. Here are six of our favorite home-made fertilizers that you can make yourself at home!
6 Homemade Fertilizers:
Weeds:
Many of the weeds you'll discover in your gardens, like grass clippings, are high in nitrogen and will make a fantastic fertilizer. What is the solution? Fill a five-gallon bucket with weeds you've removed, but not more than 1/4 full. Then fill the bucket with water to the top and soak the weeds for a week or two. Pour this solution over your garden once the water has turned a brown color (like tea).
Kitchen Scraps:
Kitchen Scraps are absolute gold for your garden! Composting is a great way to put your kitchen and yard trash to good use. Compost takes a long time to release nutrients, so a well-composted garden can last a year or two without needing fertilizer. Compost also aids in the retention of moisture in the soil, which is necessary for vegetable gardens to thrive throughout the hot, dry summer months.
Leaves of a Tree
Collect fall leaves for your gardens rather than bagging them and throwing them out on the curb. Leaves are high in trace minerals, attract earthworms, retain moisture, and aid in the lightening of heavy soils. You can either plough leaves into your soil (or mix crushed leaves into potting soil) or use them as a mulch to nurture your plants while also keeping weeds at bay.
Ground Coffee:
Coffee has several advantages, but one of the most important is that it may be used as a fertilizer. Many plants flourish in acidic soil, including blueberries, rhododendrons, roses, and tomatoes. Recycle your coffee grinds to help your soil become more acidic. You can either top dress by dusting the used grinds over the soil's surface, or you can create "coffee" to pour over your gardens. To make garden coffee, soak up to six cups of leftover coffee grounds for up to a week, then use it to water acid-loving plants.
Eggshells:
Eggs are a rich source of calcium and potassium for our bodies, and we humans enjoy eating them for breakfast. The calcium in these eggshells aids in the formation of a robust cell structure in plants. Remove the contents of the egg, clean the eggshells, and crush them well with a mortar and pestle to use them. Spread the crushed shells over the top layer of soil in a uniform layer. The shells would be absorbed by the earth on their own.
Peeled bananas:
We have a habit of tossing banana peels away, oblivious to the fact that our tiny garden requires them the most. Banana peels are high in phosphorus and potassium, which can help your plants grow stronger, produce more fruit, and resist disease. So save the peel for your garden the next time you eat a banana.
