/ Tuesday, June 4, 2013 / 8 Comments / ,

Happy World Environmental Day!

One of the many ways we can do to help to reduce food waste is by turning our kitchen scraps into garden food. Those scraps make great fertilisers! The best part is that some of those scraps are so easy to be repurposed and by doing so, we are also helping to save the environment.



Coffee grounds

Coffee grounds contain nitrogen, magnesium and potassium that can enrich the soil. Periodically, sprinkle a handful of the grounds on the soil around the base of the plants and on your lawn for greener and healthier grass. Acid-loving plants like azalea, gardenia, rose, hibiscus, ixora, allamanda and citrus plants love coffee grounds.

Fresh coffee grounds are too acidic for feeding the plants. If you get a large quantity from a coffee outlet, dry the grounds in the sun first before storing. Otherwise you can just spread a thin layer of the used coffee ground directly onto the soil.



Tea leaves

Occasionally, re-brew tea leaves and use the cooled mild tea to water plants like orchids, ferns and acid-loving plants - like us, they love tea as well :-) You can also sprinkle new or used tea leaves on the soil or bury in the ground around a plant. When watered, minerals will be released and absorbed through its roots. Rose loves the tannic acid found in the tea.

Egg shells

Rinse, dry and crush egg shells. Add the crushed shells into the planting hole. Grind them into powder for faster decomposing. Egg shells are high in calcium carbonate which helps control blossom-end rot disease. Even the calcium-rich water used for boiling eggs can be re-used for watering plants.

Banana peels

The phosphorus-and-potassium-rich peels help plants to grow healthily, form flower buds and resist diseases. Many gardeners use the peel to feed their roses for more blooms. Flatten a banana peel and bury in the soil at the base of a plant. For potting up seedlings or young plants, cut or grind the peel before mixing into the soil.

Fruits and vegetables

Like the rest, chopped vegetables and fruit are ideal for composting. Well-made compost have both macronutrients and micronutrients that improve soil quality to ensure delicious produce and bigger yields.

When kitchen scraps end up in the landfills that is lack in oxygen, they generate methane which contributes to global warming. Every effort counts when it comes to maintaining the beautiful planet we all live in.

This is an extract from my article published in the New Straits Times on 1 June 2013.
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8 comments:

KL said...

I constantly do that. All my compost is made up of all our kitchen scrap.

Stephanie said...

Well done, KL!

Unknown said...

Very nicely explained here, Steph. I don't waste any scrap/peel from my kitchen. But the cooled mild tea for watering ferns and orchids, that's new to me. I'll be incorporating that now.

Love the fact that you contribute regularly to The Straits Times! Our weather has cooled down a bit...it's 33 degrees today. And you're right about the water...am drinking like a fish!

Happy gardening!

Joey Ray said...

Very useful tips! I will use these suggestions in plant nursery & will let you know about them in next comment. Thanks for sharing & cheers!

Stephanie said...

Kanak Hagjer, Joey Ray, you're welcome! I look forward to reading your updates :-) Cheers, Stephanie

Kathy Hodge - Online PhD UK said...

I really love the compost idea. It is refreshing to use old scraps and turn them into the nutrients needed to make luscious plants. This is an awesome idea and thank you for all the wonderful information.


My homepage | Online PhD UK Programs

Stephanie said...

You are welcome, Kathy Hodge! Composting helps save this beautiful planet we all live in :-D

Kian said...

Hi
We are from Ratus-Epilog Sdn Bhd and we are selling Organic Natural Compost in small (7litre) and jumbo bag (40kg).
We also sell organic fertiliser and organic concentrated fish essence.
We have plant tissue culture lab as well and we currently doing Revotropix Paulownia, ginger, vanilla, various bananas species
Do contact us at 016-3600911 (Kian) or 03-80251603 or
visit us at www.ratus-epilog.com

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I enjoy gardening and visiting nurseries and garden retailers. Here I will share what I see with reviews and ratings, from 1 (poor) to 5 (excellent).

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