Homemade Fertilizers for Your Plants
The use of homemade fertilizers has gained momentum in recent years. This is because more and more people are caring for and maintaining indoor and outdoor plants, alongside growing their own crops.
Fertilizers are essential for the growth and development of plants, as they provide them with the nutrients that are missing from the substrate. In this article, we’re going to explain the types of homemade fertilizers that you can make and use at home. Take note!
Homemade fertilizers for your plants
Given the growing need to take care of the environment, homemade fertilizers have relegated the use of chemicals that ultimately destroy other living species such as bees and birds. When you finish reading this article, you’ll discover that you already have access to all the natural products you need to keep your plants healthy.
Banana skins
Potassium (as a fertilizer) regulates the uptake of carbon dioxide (CO₂) and maintains the turgor pressure of cells. This means that it prevents the leaves from wilting prematurely. It also helps in flowering.
Bananas have a high concentration of potassium and you can use them as a homemade and organic fertilizer. You can boil a liter of water with four to five banana skins for 20 minutes. Then use a strainer, keeping just the liquid. Put the liquid to cool before pouring it into a spray bottle with which you will spray your plants every 15 days.
Eggshells as homemade fertilizers
By making a homemade fertilizer with eggshells, you can provide your plants with an extra source of calcium. This is an essential nutrient for the plant to grow and to help it become resistant. So don’t throw away any eggshells because they’re a valuable source of calcium.
In order to make the homemade fertilizer with eggshells, you’ll need about ten of them. Bring two liters of water to boiling point and add the shells. The resulting liquid will be used to water your plants every so often. Now, you can also crush the eggshells and scatter them around the stems of your plants.
Iron nails as homemade fertilizers for your plants
We’ve all had problems when iron nails become rusty and we believe that they’re no longer good for anything. The truth is that you can give them a second use when it comes to feeding your plants. Being made of iron, using them to feed your plants provides the benefits of this metal, making them grow healthier and stronger.
Using them is very simple: take a handful of rusty nails and leave them in a bottle with mineral water for at least a week. As the days go by, you’ll notice that the water turns the same color as rust. Take some of this water and apply it with a spray bottle on the substrate.
Refill the bottle of nails with more mineral water and repeat. It’ll be a constant source of iron for your plants.
Aspirin
Another homemade fertilizer that helps plant growth is made from common aspirin. In addition to being good for human health, (according to medical recommendations), these drugs are healthy for plants.
To make your homemade fertilizer with this product dilute one tablet in a liter of water. Use this liquid directly on the leaves and the substrate. Repeat this process every three weeks and in the shade, to prevent the direct sun from burning the plant.
Homemade fertilizers with coffee beans
Homemade fertilizer made with coffee beans will provide your plant with a very important nutrient: nitrogen. This stimulates the development of leaves and roots, so it’s better to use it in the first phase of plant development.
Coffee as a homemade fertilizer can be used in two ways: whole coffee bean or coffee residue. No matter which one you choose, mix a good amount of either with the substrate or soil where your plants are planted.
Importance of fertilizers
All plants need care and maintenance to grow properly and the use of fertilizers contributes to this. These products provide macro and micronutrients that boost growth via nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium. There are others that contribute to flowering and others that make plants more resistant.
Try some of our suggestions at different stages. All of these homemade fertilizers will help you to have a sparkling garden that your neighbors will envy.
All cited sources were thoroughly reviewed by our team to ensure their quality, reliability, currency, and validity. The bibliography of this article was considered reliable and of academic or scientific accuracy.
- IFA. Asociación Internacional de la Industria de los Fertilizantes. (s. f.). Los fertilizantes y su uso. FAO. Recuperado 29 de septiembre de 2021, de http://www.fao.org/3/x4781s/x4781s.pdf
- VITRA. (s. f.). La gran importancia del Potasio en las plantas. Agrovitra. Recuperado 29 de septiembre de 2021, de https://www.agrovitra.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/Potasio-Fernanda-Habit.pdf
- Vaca Tubón, J. M. (2019). APLICACIÓN FOLIAR DE CALCIO EN EL CULTIVO DE FRESA (Fragaria sp.) OBTENIDO A PARTIR DE CÁSCARA DE HUEVO DE GALLINA. UNIVERSIDAD TÉCNICA DE AMBATO FACULTAD DE CIENCIAS AGROPECUARIAS.