Saturday 31 May 2014

How to Use Recycled Coffee Grounds in Your Garden


Composting with Coffee Grounds
Old coffee grounds are one of the best ways to add nitrogen to your compost pile, which is often a lacking element in urban or suburban composting. They can go right into the compost pail, and just give the pile a bit of a stir when you add the pail with the coffee grounds, to make sure they spread out well in the pile. You want to spread them out not only for the added nitrogen, but because they are great at retaining moisture and keeping your pile active.
Another plus: they don’t stink when kept in a plastic bag, unlike much other composting material. 
Coffee Grounds as Fertiliser

Another frequent use of old coffee grounds is as an organic fertiliser. They work well anytime you want more nitrogen and moisture in the soil, such as when you’re digging new planting beds for heavy-feeding vegetables, fruits and flowers. You can mix the coffee grounds right into the soil with a garden rake after you have turned the bed over well. Plant your new seeds or seedlings as usual, and they’ll love the nitrogen, sprouting up fast. If you’re fertilising container vegetables or houseplants, turn coffee grounds into a gentle liquid fertiliser by diluting it with water in a bottle or jug and shaking it up before each use.


Slugs Be Gone with Coffee Grounds
An unexpected bonus for many gardeners who use coffee grounds as a mulch or soil amendment around nitrogen-loving plants is that coffee keeps away crawling pests, and is especially good at repelling slugs and snails. A border of coffee grounds around plants or gardens is nearly a guarantee of slug-free gardening.
The caffeine in the grounds acts as a poison absorbed through slugs’ and snails’ skin, and they’ll avoid it thoroughly. If you have plants that slugs love, such as lilies, hostas or tender spring bulbs, surround them with some coffee mulch.

Vermicomposting with Coffee Grounds

While the list of substances that can be composted using worms is different from a plain old compost pile, coffee grounds can be used in vermicomposting with as good results as anything. In fact, their gritty texture helps the worms digest other waste.
The principle of worm bins is that the worms eat the scraps you add, then excrete a nice, dark, humus in return. But worms, like birds, have gizzards that require sand, cornmeal or other fine, gritty substances to break down their food.
Coffee grounds serve this function in a worm bin, as well as having a mulching effect on the bedding, which keeps worms moist and happy.

Wednesday 28 May 2014

Meditererranean Herbs That Flourish In Poor Soils


If you have nutrient poor soil don’t despair, you have the beginnings of a great Mediterranean herb garden.Not only do Mediterranean herbs thrive in nutrient poor soils, they are drought tolerant, they don’t require much maintenance, most are perennial and they are flavourful and aromatic.
Some of the most common Mediterranean herbs are rosemary, thyme, oregano, and sage, all of which like the same growing conditions; full sun, sandy well draining soil, good circulation and a neutral pH. 
Here are four Mediterranean herbs you can grow in even the sandiest soil:

1. Rosemary - an evergreen must in the Mediterranean herb garden with it’s musky scent and needle-like foliage. Grows as beautiful shrub with pretty bluish-purple flowers and besides decorating the place, is extremely helpful in the spicing up wide variety of dishes and creating various spice blends.2. Thyme - another highly fragrant variety for a windowsill. Warm and slightly peppery flavour goes well with many dishes, salads, spice blends and makes a wonderful, soothing cup of tea. Grows as evergreen shrub and sets pretty white flowers. Blends well with rosemary and other mediterranean herbs.3. Oreganooregano has a robust scent and taste. Its trailing habit makes it a good ground cover or spiller for containers.Goes well with meat dishes, marinates, blends well with variety of spices, including rosemary, thyme and sage. Beautiful companion to above mentioned rosemary and thyme.4. Sage - a low shrub with velvety foliage and a distinct aroma sage is wonderful in the garden or windowsill. Adds extra spark to meat and fish dishes, marinates, blends well with variety of herbs. Four well blending herbs for a tasteful and highly fragrant herb garden!