If you’re looking to get the most out of your summer blooms, one gardening expert has shared a simple yet effective fertilising hack that can help your roses and hydrangeas thrive
As the mercury rises, many green-fingered enthusiasts are witnessing their flowers burst into bloom and with the right fertiliser, you can easily encourage more plentiful blossoms. Feeding roses, hydrangeas, and a host of other summer-flowering plants at this time can prolong their blooming period, ensuring they remain vibrant and colourful for an extended duration.
Carol, a gardening expert and founder of The Gardening Cook, has revealed that one of the top feeds for summer blooms is coffee grounds, as they provide a nutrient boost to help plants flourish.
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She advised: “Don’t throw out those used coffee grounds. There are lots of ways to put them to use in your garden. More to the point, there are certain plants, such as hydrangeas, camellias and roses that just love them!”
Coffee grounds are a fantastic source of nitrogen, a vital component for flower growth, and also contain trace amounts of other nutrients like potassium, phosphorus, and magnesium, which contribute to plant health.
Moreover, they can enhance soil quality as coffee grounds promote aeration and water retention, which is particularly crucial during the summer months when droughts and extreme heat can stress plants, reports the Express.
Carol said: “[Coffee grounds] work especially well camellias, hydrangeas, and roses. Not only will you have healthier plants, but you will also save money on garden fertiliser, and know that you are being ‘green’ as a gardener.
She added: “She said: “Using leftover coffee grounds for roses and other plants that like a boost in nitrogen is a natural way to add fertiliser to your garden plants without the use of harsh chemicals.”
How to use coffee grounds in the garden
Once you have applied the coffee grounds, water the ground generously to help them mix into the soil. Make sure to only feed flowers coffee grounds every four to six weeks as too much nitrogen in the soil can create a nutrient imbalance.
You can also combine coffee grounds with other food scaps such as banana peels and egg shells which are other excellent sources of nutrients for plants.
Carol said: “Old coffee grounds combined with egg shells also makes a great compost tea when combined with rainwater. It can be used to fertilise your plants.”
However, coffee grounds can also work as a natural pesticide to keep slugs away but also keep away ants and mosquitos as it can overwhelm these insects’ senses and make them believe they are in a dangerous area
If you also wish to keep your flowers and crops from being eaten this summer then sprinkle coffee grounds near the entrance of your garden, around flowerbeds and vegetable patches to keep critters away.
Carol said: “Coffee grounds are also known to deter slugs and snails, so sprinkle them around plants that these pests love, such as hostas broccoli and Brussels sprouts. They are the perfect organic DIY snail deterrents.”
