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maden_theshade

Coffee Drench?

maden_theshade
12 years ago

I pick up coffee grounds to throw on my grass or in the beds, or the worm bin. I read the other day you could put two cups of used grounds in a 5 gallon bucket of water overnight to create a foliar feed or drench for your plants. Anyone here ever tried it? Am wondering if this might be a good way to feed my young trees this fall.

Comments (9)

  • pjtexgirl
    12 years ago

    It couldn't hurt give it a go!

  • maden_theshade
    Original Author
    12 years ago

    if only it would kill the grubs and keep the skunk away too! I'd drench every week! lol

  • cynthianovak
    12 years ago

    I heard on NPR [probably] that where coffee is harvested the streams are free of pests.

    We use a French Press. Every day, I add more water to the grounds and doss it into a planter or bed. It seems to deter the squirrels from planting pecans in pots...for a while.

    I started dumping it in the window box planter and the feral tom cat stopped wizzing there. I tried dumping it where the young rats were, but they figured it out. I haven't noticed many anole's or insects on the plants in the box and I haven't noticed any plant complaining either.

  • melvalena
    12 years ago

    I started separating my coffee grounds from the compost stuff and using them only on the hydrangeas. I read somewhere that putting your used coffee grounds around them will make them blue. No blooms this year so I can't say if that worked or not.
    They aren't complaining about it.

    But for the first time in over 15 years my compost bin has ants!!! After some research I discovered its the coffee grounds that kept the ants out.

    I suppose I need to start getting grounds from another source cuz I can't drink more coffee.

  • maden_theshade
    Original Author
    12 years ago

    I pick mine up from Starbucks. But there seems to be a lot of competition for them! I may have to chat up the lady at the 7-11 and see if I bring her a bucket if she'll put her grounds in it for me.

  • ltcollins1949
    12 years ago

    I use coffee grounds on my acid-loving plants. However, one time I had two big pots of azaleas that I put the left-over coffee in every day along with the coffee grounds. For a while they did GREAT, but then they finally died! Since they were in pots, I think that they probably died of too much acid I'm sure. Be careful where you use them. And if you have acidic soil be careful too. You can change the ph of you soil too far one way or the other. From what I've read the leftover coffee grounds are very beneficial without any harm to the plants, but that the coffee can cause some problems.

  • cygnwulf
    12 years ago

    Back when I first started using the coffee, I had a blueberry in a pot that was doing very poorly, it barely grew any at all between April and July. I dumped about half a pot of cold coffee on it without thinking about it, and a week later saw several new leaves. I gave it more again that week, and by the end of August it had doubled in size, and kept going strong till the end of November. I've had similar good results with other acid plants. Haven't grown hydrangea, though, so I couldn't say for sure, but it could help.
    I like to spread my stale coffee around, just like any water soluble fertilizer, I don't want to overdo it. Once every week or two, along with regular watering. I've read a lot that says most of the acid comes out during the brewing process, so most of the grounds still go in the compost heap or whatever lasagna bed is being built at the time, or sometimes scattered on the lawn.

  • cynthianovak
    12 years ago

    thanks for the warning. I've got lots of plants and will do my best to remember where I've been and where I'm going with those grounds.

    c

  • maden_theshade
    Original Author
    12 years ago

    I've also read that the acid brews out, so the grounds are mostly neutral. But even if they weren't, I'm in Austin and our soil is alkaline. I finally convinced my DH to quit putting eggshells outside. We don't need any more calcium in the soil!

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