Thursday, December 1, 2011

Mostly about coffee...


The Benefits of composting coffee grounds




Over the last few months I have become somewhat, and only somewhat, of a coffee coniseour. I have quit my old Folgers days and moved on to the art of grinding and brewing the perfect cup. It is a lot of fun and since I will probably have my cup a day for a long time, I like to think I am having a good cup a day.
Note: this sounds like it only about coffee, but the garden comes in later if you stick around...
Since we are on the rabbit trail, I will tell you a few quick things that will help you on your coffee tasting journey. 1) Burr grinders are better than the rest. They grind at a slower speed therefore not reheating and possibly burning the beans. 2) You will find many many articles for and against refrigerating the beans in storage - I could not taste a difference. This could be because I am not the master of the taste buds or that it doesn't matter.
In my opinion, coffee is like wine - drink what you like, and like what you drink. People have told me this or that is the best, but just because some "expert" says that it is supposed to be delicious, doesn't mean that I think it is. If you go through life trying to like what everyone else does, it will be a long row to hoe. Currently I am experimenting with Newman's Own.
Well, with all of this coffee, there happens to be a lot of grounds left over. Most people would just toss them in the garbage can and move on. I, however, toss them into the compost heap. I've done this many times and assumed that it was a good thing, organic and all, and the plants would some day thank me for all of my hard work. It seemed like something to delve into deeper, and I was happy to find out that all of my hard work wasn't in vain for nothin'. In fact I am going to begin targeting my daily grind at specific plants.
Coffee grounds are high in nitrogen, making it a very good mulch for fast-growing vegetables such as tomatoes and bell peppers. It will also help suppress late blight.
Something else you may not have known is that the grounds also deter slugs and snails. It can be applied mixing the grounds into the dirt around your slug prone plants or if you are rich just give them a cup of Joe in the morning.

So, enjoy your drinking and feel good knowing you are helping your plants along as well!


10 ways coffee grounds could improve your life...
1. Soften and add shine to hair, by rubbing coffee grounds in it while you are washing it! For brown hair, coffee grounds add highlights.
2. Use coffee grounds to exfoliate your skin. Pat on skin, massage over skin, rinse. Who knew folgers coupons would do wonder to keep your face clean!
3. Fertilize plants. Old coffee grounds are nutrient-rich for plants that thrive in an acidic soil. Just toss in some of the used beans when you are watering them!
4. Get rid of pesky slugs and snails in your garden by adding in some coffee grounds. Slugs and snails definitely don’t appreciate folgers coupons!
6. You can also use coffee grounds to repel ants and even cats!
7. You can also deodorize a freezer. Place a bowl with used coffee grounds in the freezer to remove unwanted odors. Add a few drops of vanilla to coffee grounds for an even better result!
8. Remove furniture scratches with wet coffee grounds.
9. Dye fabric, paper or Easter eggs. Simply add used coffee grounds to warm water and let sit a bit to create a dye.
10. After you give your dog a bath, rub coffee grounds through the coat of your pet. Coffee grounds are said to repel fleas.


check out this article...


All about Coffee

2 comments:

  1. Wow- I didn't know this about the coffee grounds. I have a couple of azaleas and they did poorly this year. Mostly because of the lack of rain since July, but also because we have very alkaline soil in Minnesota.
    I also planted some blueberries this fall, so I will be depositing the grounds around these also. Gardening doesn't have to be expensive and chemically done to be done well. I also appreciated the tip on the grinder. Ours is on it's last leg, so we will check out where to get one of these. Thanks for the tips!

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  2. I've heard that the altiimate experience ,is roasting your own raw beans. I have never taken it that far. I like the idea though.

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