How do I use coffee grounds and egg shells to help my plants?

Nancybauman
by Nancybauman
I save them but what do I do with them and which plants do they help?

  8 answers
  • Johnavallance82 Johnavallance82 on Jan 08, 2018

    Most plants will benefit, especially Hostas and plants that seem to attract Slugs and Snails......

  • Inetia Inetia on Jan 08, 2018

    Egg shells will only add nutrients to soil that is highly acidic and only if ground up into a powder.

    http://www.gardenmyths.com/eggshells-do-they-decompose-in-the-garden/

  • Sandy Butzke Sandy Butzke on Jan 09, 2018

    I put them in my blender and place around my roses in the spring.


  • Jlnatty Jlnatty on Jan 09, 2018

    I'm a lazy gardener - I don't dig my fertilizer into my planting areas before planting. I break down egg shells in my hands to small bits and sprinkle them on top of the soil (I do remove the mulch first) and mix into the soil a bit with a pronged fork for working soil. Then I recover with the mulch and forget about it for a year. The egg shell bits will break down over time. I don't drink coffee anymore, but when I did make coffee from ground beans I would just dump the coffee grounds into the top soil and mix into the top layer or so of soil with a pronged fork the same way I do the egg shells. Worked for me. I use one or both on all annuals and perennials in my beds, but not for potted plants (I stick to a well known brand name fertilizer mixed in water for those; a litle goes a long way).

  • Margaret Green Margaret Green on Jan 09, 2018

    We use a lot of eggs so I save the shells in a large bowl. Every now and then we squish them up to make more room. Then when the bowl is full, it's dumped in an empty garden bed. We save our coffee grounds in a container just outside. When it is full it gets dumped in the same garden bed. In the fall we add tree leaves and several lawnmower loads of grass. In the spring, it's tossed and turned with a shovel, then ready to plant. And I start the whole process on another garden bed that won't be used for planting for one season.

  • Lisa S. Lisa S. on Jan 10, 2018

    I use the egg shells to make a barrier around as the slugs will not cross over. I break them up to small pieces. The sharp pieces will cut them, so they leave the plants alone. And safe for pets.

  • Melanie Monroe Depointe Melanie Monroe Depointe on Jan 12, 2018

    I have put eggshells in a glass when I use them. Let sit for at least and hour but the longer the better. The stinkier the water the better but it's atrocious! Plants LOVE it! They thrive. My cat loves sneaking a lick or too as well.