Surprising One Ingredient DIY Fertilizers

Gardening costs a lot of money. You may have heard this myth before or even believe it. For the last few decades, people thought they had to spend a lot of money to buy all of the fertilizer and tools they needed to plant a garden. But do you know, even simple things like making your own plant food and DIY fertilizers can help you save a lot of money?

You don’t need to buy fertilizer from the store. And a natural fertilizer will keep your outdoor and indoor plants healthy and free of synthetic ingredients found in most commercial fertilizers. On top of that, you don’t need to buy anything new from the market. Most items are readily available in your home and are considered waste otherwise. Sounds interesting, Right! Continue to read the whole article and choose your favourite DIY fertilizers.

Benefits of DIY Fertilizers 

• Unlike chemical fertilizers, DIY fertilizers are gentle on the environment. It has long-term environmental advantages since they are less likely to pollute lands and rivers.
• The plants do not instantly absorb it. 
• These DIY fertilizers can endure heavy rains and irrigation cycles that could wash chemical fertilizer away. 
• The soil structure gets improved.
• DIY fertilizers help in the retention of nutrients and moisture in the soil. 
• Unlike commercial fertilizers, DIY fertilizers retain a significant number of beneficial soil organisms lost during the processing process. 

Easy DIY Fertilizers From Scraps

(1) Eggshells 

Just like we humans enjoy eating eggs for breakfast because they are high in calcium and potassium, our plants could benefit from them. Eggshells are another item that you undoubtedly have a lot of during the week and usually discard. It’s time to give your eggshells a second life by converting them into DIY fertilizers. It is highly effective for potted outdoor and indoor plants.

• Eggshells are high in calcium carbonate and contain other nutrients needed for plants. It also helps to moderate the acidity in the soil.
• The calcium in these eggshells aids in the formation of a robust cell structure in plants.Soil low in calcium can cause tomato blossom end rot and other plant disasters.

How to Use Eggshells?

Method 1

1. Remove the contents of the egg, clean the eggshells, and thoroughly crush them with a mortar and pestle.
2. Spread the crushed shells evenly over the top layer of soil.
3. The soil would absorb the shells on their own. This recipe is one of the easiest DIY fertilizers.

Method 2

1. You can combine a gallon of water and 20 eggshells to form a spray.
2. Boil the shells in water for a few minutes before leaving them overnight.
3. Strain the shells and fill a spray bottle with water to spray directly into your soil.

(2) Grass clipping

Did you know that newly cut grass is high in nutrients that plants need to grow? If you have a garden, the worst thing you can do is throw away your grass clippings. So no more discarding of grass clipping. Make a fine clipping and Prepare easy DIY fertilizers for your outdoor and indoor plants.

• These DIY fertilizers help to add essential nutrients to the soil. They’re an excellent supplier of nitrogen. 
• In addition, potassium, phosphorus, chlorophyll, and amino acids from these DIY fertilizers will improve your soil health.

How to Use Grass clippings ?

Method 1

1. Spread the chopped grass clippings evenly over the bottom layer of soil.
2. Cover with the remaining soil.
3. Because grass clippings are composed of 80 per cent water, they break down quickly.

Method 2

1. Fill a five-gallon bucket halfway with fresh lawn clippings, then cover with water.
2. You’ll need to set this aside for five days.
3. Dilute DIY fertilizers by adding 10 cups of fresh water to one cup of tea and poured onto the soil.

(3) Coffee Grounds

Every day, most of us have coffee grounds leftover. It is a DIY fertilizer that is available in almost every kitchen worldwide.Suppose you have acid-loving plants in your yard, such as nasturtiums, daffodils, marigolds, sweet potatoes, parsley, potatoes, etc. In that case, this DIY fertilizer is a must-have on your gardening list.

• While this is an excellent fertilizer for flowers such as roses, hydrangeas, and magnolias, you can also use it to encourage the growth of vegetables in your garden.
• Coffee has the potential to maintain the appropriate levels of nitrogen and acid in such plants.These Coffee ground DIY fertilizers are also helpful in repelling pests and encouraging earthworms into your garden soil.

How to Use Coffee Grounds ?

Method 1

1. Let the coffee grounds dry in an oven at low heat.
2. Alternatively, leave them on a paper towel for a few hours.
3. Sprinkle dry coffee grounds on the base of your plants.

Method 2

1. Soak about six cups of ground coffee in 5 gallons of water.
2. Allow it to sit for 2-3 days, and then saturate the soil around your plants.
3. You can use these DIY fertilizers in many indoor plants.

(4) Banana Peel

We regularly toss banana skins in the trash, unaware of the idea that our tiny garden may need them. Instead of throwing away the banana peel, save it for your garden next time you eat one. High nutrient content of bananas are helpful to humans while nutrients in peel could be beneficial to our plant babies in the form of DIY fertilizers.

• Banana peels, high in phosphorus and potassium, will help your outdoor and indoor plants grow stronger, produce more fruit, and resist disease if you prepare these DIY fertilizers.
• In addition, banana peels contain a significant amount of calcium, magnesium, and sulfur.

How to Use Banana Peel ?

There are many ways to use the peels for making DIY fertilizers.

Method 1

1. You can dry them out, grind them up, and mix them right into your soil.
2. This recipe shows wonder results in repotted plants.
3. You can also just bury a banana peel in the soil to decompose.

Method 2

1. For three days, soak banana peels in water.
2. Then, spray your plants or seedlings with the spray to add the nutrients they need. It is a good DIY fertilizers recipe for your house plants.
3. The only thing to be careful with banana peels is to watch out for insects. If the insect population is in excess, just use dried form.

(5) Tea

Is it possible to use tea as a fertilizer? Yes, of course! You’ll have a good lot of used tea leaves every time you make a nice cup of tea, which you may or may not have any use for. Furthermore, you may have a tea that you dislike or have passed its expiration date.

• Acid-loving plants, like coffee, benefit from tea as a fertilizer. Because tea includes citric and tannic acid, it aids in soil pH maintenance.
• DIY fertilizers from tea can also provide essential nutrients like Nitrogen, Phosphorus and Potassium.

How to Use Tea ?

Method 1

1. When you’re drinking or pouring your tea, drain the leaves and set them aside to chill. Alternatively, remove it from your drink if you’re using a teabag.
2. Then cut it open to allow it to cool for making DIY fertilizers.
3. When the leaves have cooled, mix them into the soil.

Method 2

1. Alternatively, you can soak fresh tea leaves in water.
2. Then pour the water directly into the soil, which would make an excellent DIY Fertilizers For Your Plants.
3. Also, as organic matter, they help establish soil texture, making it simpler for plants to absorb water and nutrients.

(6) Wood Ash

Light up your fire pit – then uses the ash to help your garden grow. Wood or coal ash from a furnace, stove, or fireplace is best spread to garden beds before planting to be utilized as  DIY fertilizers. It may be preferable to do this shortly before planting to avoid knocking over or damaging your plants while the ash into the soil.

• Potassium and calcium carbonate are plentiful in fireplace ash. If your soil is overly acidic, it will help balance the pH so that your plants can absorb the nutrients present in the soil.
• Wood ash  DIY fertilizers are a simple substitute for lime, a typical agricultural fertilizer that helps regulate pH in the soil while also supplying magnesium and sulphur.

How to Use Wood Ash ?

Method 1

1. Apply a 2-inch layer of ash to the bed’s surface.
2. Work it with a rake, cultivator, or shovel.
3. Then simply sow your garden, as usual, knowing that the fertilizer is already present and available to the plants.

Method 2

1. If your soil is alkaline, do not use fireplace ash.
2. It should also not be used around acid-loving plants unless you want to make hydrangeas pink.

(7) Aquarium water

If you clean your aquarium or fishbowl every few weeks, store the water to use in your garden. Because of fish waste, aquarium water becomes hazy, stinky, and dirty over time. This same waste makes aquarium water so beneficial to your plants, as it adds natural fertilizer and nutrients to your soil.

• The DIY fertilizers from aquarium water are also high in nitrogen, one of the most important elements for healthy plants.
• These DIY fertilizers are beneficial to all plants, but they are especially beneficial to spinach, lettuce, and other salad greens since nitrogen encourage healthy green growth.

How to Use Aquarium Water ?

Method 1

1. Simply set aside the water when you change out your tank or bowl and utilize it to irrigate your plants. It’s really that simple.
2. If you have a salt-water tank, you won’t be able to utilize aquarium water for DIY fertilizers because the salt may harm the plants.
3. Also, if you’ve added any chemicals to the water, you shouldn’t use them on plants produced for human use.

Other DIY Fertilizers

(8) Vinegar

Many of us have heard about the advantages of using vinegar in gardens, particularly as a herbicide. But do you know you can use vinegar in DIY fertilizers too? But it doesn’t provide nutrients. Acetic acid is made up entirely of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen, which the plant can obtain from the air. However, vinegar helps in managing the pH of soil.

• Vinegar is another fertilizer that will increase the alkalinity of your container plants. It not only increases alkalinity but also keeps ants at bay. Vinegar also aids in the removal of weeds from plants.
• As vinegar has acetic acid, it may also help plants with important processes like cell growth and division. Besides roses and other houseplants, you may also use these DIY fertilizers on veggies growing in your garden.

How to Use vinegar ?

Method 1

1. When watering your plants, always dilute 1 cup of vinegar in 2 gallons of freshwater before using.
2. Just spray it over the plants.

Method 2

1. Refresh cut flowers.
2. For each quart of water, add two tablespoons (30 mL.) vinegar and one teaspoon (5 mL.) sugar.

(9) Epsom Salt

You’ve probably heard of Epsom salts’ wonderful therapeutic properties. But did you know that these minerals are also a potent superfood for your garden? It is a simple, inexpensive and no-fail option for DIY fertilizers. Chemically it is magnesium sulfate.

• Sulphur in Epsom salt is also useful, assisting plants in forming essential enzymes and proteins. It can boost the magnesium in the soil.
• These magnesium sulphate  DIY fertilizers can increase the uptake of key minerals, including nitrogen, phosphorus, and sulphur.

How to Use Epsom Salt ?

Method 1

Sulphur is rapidly lost during the germination process.

1.  Yellowing and curled mature foliage may suggest a magnesium shortage.
2. For each foot of plant height, spray one tablespoon of Epsom salts in 4 cups of water. Magnesium is absorbed well on leaves.

Method 2

1. Fill each hole with one tablespoon of Epsom salts before planting a new rose shrub.
2. Spray established roses with 1 tsp salt per gallon of water in the spring and again in the summer.

Conclusion

If you are on a journey of organic gardening, practising minimalism, or vocalizing for a sustainable lifestyle, you are in the right place. Take a look at these nine simple natural DIY fertilizers recipes to make your own plant food and give your garden a little extra boost.

Then, before you use any DIY fertilizers in your whole garden, try it out on a few plants. Some fertilizers work better with certain soils, plants, or gardens because they have more or less what they need to grow. You will be able to figure out which homemade plant food works best for you if you try it out first.