Tomatoes and strawberries are fruits that evoke thoughts of summer sun – and you can maximise any potential harvest by making sure to properly fertilise them
Tomatoes and strawberries, the quintessential fruits of summer sunshine, can yield a more bountiful harvest with proper fertilisation. If you’re looking to ensure your tomatoes and strawberries thrive, learning how to fertilise them correctly is key to enjoying a cornucopia of succulent fruits come summer.
Gardeners might look beyond traditional shop-bought chemicals and consider utilising coffee grounds as a natural growth boost. Jim and Mary Competti from the This Is My Garden blog hail coffee grounds as one of the “easiest and best ways” to ensure a “bigger and better harvest than ever this year” for your tomatoes.
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The Compettis have divulged: “Coffee grounds have all kinds of uses when it comes to improving soil and helping plants grow.”
They perceive coffee grounds as having the power to significantly elevate the health of tomato plants: “But as beneficial as spent grounds can be, it’s perhaps with the beloved tomato plant where they truly take their powers to the next level.”
The remarkable suitability of coffee grounds for tomato plants lies in their possession of “two key attributes” that prove “extremely beneficial” to both the young seedlings and mature plants.
These used coffee grounds are loaded with three vital nutrients adored by tomato plants – nitrogen, phosphorous, and potassium, reports the Express.
Importantly, these nutrients are readily available in a form that allows quick absorption by the tomato plant when integrated into the soil. Moreover, the ability of spent coffee grounds to “retain a tremendous amount of moisture” contributes to the production of plumper and juicier tomatoes.
Gardeners are buzzing about the versatile uses of coffee grounds for their tomatoes and strawberries, with gardeners like Nicole Metzger singing its praises as an “absolutely good fertiliser”.
When it comes to tomatoes, a spoonful of caffeine magic – three to four tablespoons of coffee grounds blended into each planting hole’s soil – can boost moisture retention around the roots.
Metzger hails coffee grounds as not just any fertiliser but “could be the best fertiliser option for strawberries if used properly”.
For strawberry plants that thrive in acidic soil, the first tip is sprinkling coffee grounds straight to the base, nourishing the shallow root system once watered.
Mixing these multitasking grounds with garden soil at a one to four ratio before planting offers another sublime solution. Or why not steep the grounds in water for a couple of days?
The result: an incredible, nutrient-packed liquid fertiliser tailor-made for your strawberry patch.
Mix about half a cup of coffee grounds into a gallon of water and allow to soak for 24 to 48 hours, stirring occasionally. This will enable the nutrients to disperse throughout the water, creating an all-natural liquid fertiliser.
