Homemade Fertilizer Series Part 4 - Egg Shells

Hi everyone !!

I hope you are liking this series of homemade fertilizers. Comment below if you have tried the first 3. Today we will be discussing the 4th homemade fertilizer, which is from EGG shells!! 

Though I haven't personally tried this fertilizer as we do not consume eggs, but I have researched this and they offer surprising benefits to a wide array of plants. They are organic, natural, and a rich source of calcium which helps plant growth. So this time instead of tossing them to the dustbin, toss them to your garden!! 

Detailed Process: Eggshells can be used in many forms. One could use it as a powder, tea, seed starter, or directly in the compost. Let's discuss each process in detail. 

• Eggshell tea: Rinse the eggshells in warm water, make sure you clean the yolk residue with a finger. Dry them in the sun for a day. Grind them into a fine powder. Take 2 spoons of this powder and mix with 4 liters of water. Boil it for a few minutes, it helps the shells release nutrients faster. Strain the water into a jar and leave it outside for 2 days. Make sure you sealed the jar. Dilute it with water and pour it to your plants. Make sure you give this twice a month to your plants. 
• Eggshell as Seed starters: Crack a raw egg in 3/4 portion and remove the yolk part. Rinse the eggshells in warm water, make sure you clean the yolk residue with a finger. Dry them in the sun for a day. Make a small drainage hole at the bottom using a pin to prevent overwatering. Add some seed starting soil to shell and add 2 to 3 seeds in one shell, make sure you cover the seeds with more soil and sparkle some water. Place the egg in a holder and place it on a sunny windowsill where it won't be disturbed. Transplant the egg shell to new pots as it is when the seedling has 1 to 2 sets of true leaves. 
• Compost: One can toss these eggshells for compost making at home. It helps to speed up the decomposition. 
• Powder eggshell fertilizer: Rinse the eggshells in warm water, make sure you clean the yolk residue with a finger. Dry them in the sun for a day. Grind them into a fine powder. One can use them directly, but crushing helps in the decomposition faster. Store them in a sealed container and sprinkle them whenever you want to add some fertilizer to your plants. Mix crushed eggshells directly into potting soil when re-potting or transplanting plants. One can mix this eggshell powder with tea/coffee grounds or banana peel powder to boost the growth. 
• Snail Repellent: Crushed eggshells can help repel pests naturally in the garden thanks to their sharp edges. Instead of grinding the shells into a fine powder, crush them loosely by hand, leaving the sharp edges intact. Spread the shells on the soil around plants that are being attacked by snails and cutworms to deter these pests.

Benefits: Eggshells are made almost entirely of calcium carbonate crystals. The average eggshell also has other nutrients the soil needs, including phosphorus, magnesium, and traces of sodium, potassium, zinc, manganese, iron, and copper. Since many plants take calcium out of the soil during the growing process, you might want to add some back. Calcium is essential for helping plants absorb nitrogen, which is an essential nutrient for most garden vegetables.

Questions:

1) What should be the quantity and how frequently one should give them to plants?
Ans: 1 spoon for medium-sized plants and 2 spoons for big plants. Frequency should be once a month. 

2) Will increasing the frequency of this fertilizer will enhance growth?
Ans: No, this will ultimately reduce the growth as it will increase the acidity of the soil, which plants might not support and eventually die. 

Thanks for reading!! 
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Homemade Fertilizer Series Part 3 - Banana

Hi everyone !! 

I hope you like my first 2 blogs. So today we will discuss the 3rd most effective homemade fertilizer, which is BANANA!! 

Did you know banana peels make one of the best fertilizers for plants? I didn’t until I started using it and saw my plants responding. They turn out to bloom healthier, greener, more flowery. Banana peels are a rich source of nutrients like Potassium, phosphorus, and calcium, along with a host of other minerals your plants need.

Detailed Process: Banana peels can be used in many forms. One could use it as a powder, tea, or directly in the compost. Let's discuss each process in detail. 

• Banana peels tea: This fertilizer uses nutrients leached from banana peels to give your plants a mineral boost. To make it, chop 2 to 3 banana peel and place them in a jar filled with water. Let it sit for 3 to 4 days. After 4 days, strain the banana peel from liquid, mix the liquid with a half bucket of water. Water your plants or spray them as usual with your banana tea. 
• Chopped Banana peels: One can bury them at the bottom of the pot when repotting a plant. 
• Compost: One can use these peels for compost making at home. It helps to speed up the decomposition. 
• Powder fertilizer: Dry some banana peels in the sun for 2 to 3 days. Grind them and your banana fertilizer is ready. Store them in a sealed container and sprinkle them whenever you want to add some fertilizer to your plants. One can mix eggshell or tea/coffee grounds with it to boost the growth.

So the bottom line is never to throw your ripe bananas or banana peel. Freeze them in a self-seal bag until you are ready to use them. 

Benefits: Banana peels contain some of the highest concentrations of potassium, more than 40%, that you can find in most compost items. They are also high in calcium, manganese, magnesium, sulfur, and sodium.  Sodium helps plants to exchange water at the cellular level, magnesium, and sulfur help to produce chlorophyll, the most beneficial part of plants, and essential to the process of photosynthesis. Calcium is essential for helping plants absorb nitrogen, which is an essential nutrient for most garden vegetables.

Questions:

1) Can we use it directly without fermentation?

Ans: No, fermentation helps in the decomposition of banana peel.

2) What should be the quantity and how frequently one should give them to plants?

Ans: Quantity is similar to the amount you pour water to plants. Frequency should be twice a week. 

Thanks for reading!! 

Comment below if you have any more queries. Do follow us for future updates

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Homemade Fertilizer Series Part 2 - Starch Water

Hi everyone !! 

Do you have plants stuck for fertilizer due to lockdown?? 

Yesterday we talked about homemade NPK fertilizer, today we will talk about what more your plants need. So here goes our second homemade fertilizer for plants, STARCH WATER. 

Starch water is basically the residual water left after rinsing and boiling eatables like potatoes, rice, macaroni, or pasta. The white residual water is a rich source of Starch. The next time you boil or steam some vegetables on the stovetop, don’t pour the water down the drain. Once the water has cooled, pour the vegetable water in your garden or planting containers to “fertilize” your plants instead of wasting it.  

Detailed Process: Cool down the starch water if it is boiled water. Leave it in a jar or a bowl for 5 to 6 days to ferment. Also, cover the jar or bowl with cotton cloth, allow air to pass through. After 5 days shake it, take 1/10 of this fermented starch water and mix with 9/10 portion of mil and again leave this for 5 to 6 days to ferment. After the complete process takes this mixture and mix with 20 parts of water and pour them to your plants.  

Benefits: Starch water mainly has lactic acid and very minimal NPK qualities. Starch water + Milk + Time = Lactic Acid Bacteria. It creates lactic acid bacteria, which significantly improves soil health by decomposing any organic matter and reducing any chance of unwanted pathogens associated with decaying material. It will also remove foul odors associated with composting and manure. This starchy water will allow the growth of indigenous bacteria. Milk will be used to isolate the desired bacteria needed for the best fertilizer possible while the unwanted bacteria will die off. 

Questions

1) Can we use it directly without fermentation?
Ans: Yes, one can pour this starch water without the fermentation process, but only after cooling and dilution.

2) What should be the quantity and how frequently one should give them to plants?
Ans: Quantity is similar to the amount you pour water to plants. Frequency should be twice a week. 

3) I usually add little salt while boiling macaroni. Can I use this starch water?
Ans: Never use salted starchy water as it may harm plants.

Thanks for reading !! 
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Home Made Fertilizer Series Part 1 - Tea/Coffee Grounds

Hi everyone!! Do you have plants stuck for fertilizer due to lockdown?? 

Tada!! This series is for you, as we will be discussing 7 homemade fertilizers, which shows very good results in a little time. 

Plants need three things to survive and thrive: Potassium, Phosphorus, and Nitrogen. That's why people buy NPK fertilizer, mostly to enhance the growth of plants. I have never been a fan of chemicals in the environment. In fact, I do organic whenever I can, and that includes the fertilizers that I use for my plants. The great thing about organic fertilizers is you don’t have to worry about your plants containing harmful chemicals plus, it saves your money. Most of them can be made with things that you already have. What is garbage in your kitchen can actually turn into treasure into your garden. DIYing your fertilizer is a great idea, and we all love to DIY, right? 

The first and the easiest is the tea/coffee grounds leftover or used tea leaves. We all prepare chai/tea/coffee in the morning and always throw the chai patti after we are done, but little we know that it is the best fertilizer for plants. So next time when you make chai, take the used chai patti to fertilize your plants. 

Benefits: Tea/coffee grounds leftover or used Tea leaves are a rich source of Tannin and other nutrients like Nitrogen, Phosphorous, and Potassium. Tannin generates tannic acid, which maintains the PH level of your soil and acidic soil loving plants love it. Nitrogen generally helps in the photosynthesis of plants. They also help in weed suppression. Adding iron/calcium tablets or eggshell residue with tea residue will be a lot more beneficial. 

Detailed Process: Collect your tea/coffee grounds, leaves, or bags for a week in a vessel. Rinse this leftover 2 to 3 times in water to remove the milk and sugar from it. Dry it in the sun for 1 to 2 days. Now one can use it on plants like tomatoes, roses, blueberries, or acidic soil loving plants. 

Some Common Questions

1) I usually add ginger and cardamom in tea, so can I use that tea powder for plants?
Ans: Yes, one after rinsing the residue 2 to 3 times in water can use it.

2) What should be the quantity and how frequently one should give them to plants?
Ans: 2 to 3 spoons for medium-sized plants and 4 to 5 spoons for big plants. The frequency should be twice a month.

3) Will increasing the frequency of this fertilizer will enhance growth?
Ans: No, this will ultimately reduce the growth as it will increase the acidity of soil which plants might not support and eventually die.

4) Can we give only for acidic soil loving plants like tomatoes or roses etc.?
Ans: No, this can be given to all types of plants but give in a very small amount.

5) Can we give unused tea leaves or tea/coffee grounds directly to plants?
Ans: Tea/Coffee leaves or grounds contain tannin in them. It is reduced once they are "cooked" (the brewing process) which is believed to make it less harmful to the plants. So never use it directly.

6) Can we use it in the potting mix?
Ans: Yes Tea/Coffee leaves or grounds can be used in the potting mix as a replacement of per-lite. 

Thanks for reading!! 
Comment below if you have any more queries. Do follow us for future updates
Stay home Stay safe Stay connected. 
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