Don't Toss Those Coffee Grounds!
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Most of us start the day with a cup of coffee – but once the pot is brewed and the grounds are tossed, we never think twice about where they end up. Yet those dark, fragrant leftovers that most people throw in the trash are actually garden gold.
“Plants that thrive in more acidic soil can benefit from freshly brewed coffee grounds,” says Elizabeth Jones, a seed librarian at the Jefferson Public Library. “Some of these include blueberries, tomatoes, carrots, fennel, beans, beets, aster, and blue and pink hydrangeas.”
Maricel Gentile, the renowned chef and ingredient expert who owns Maricel's Kitchen, has seen success with leafy green and fruiting plants. “Tomatoes like nitrogen early in the season, and the coffee seems to give them a boost,” she says. “My peppers, lettuce, spinach, and carrots also seem to do well.”
However, avoid adding fresh coffee grounds to plants that prefer alkaline soil. “Some examples include lavender, geraniums, snapdragons, rosemary, and most of the Mediterranean herbs,” says Howe.