Coffee grounds - a reminder

solid7

solid7

Just wanted to remind everyone how valuable coffee grounds are.  Because I've been busy, and therefore negligent, I've gotten away from using them over the last couple seasons - but yesterday, I went to a local coffee shop, and picked up about 30lbs of spent grounds.
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Coffee grounds are a great top dress.  They supply supplemental slow release nitrogen.  They have an added benefit of repelling ants and aphids. (not even kidding - ant colonies disappear almost overnight)  And, when you add some worms to large containers, top dressed with coffee grounds, they get turned into vermicompost, in place.
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I have several 30+ gallon containers that I laid down ~2" of coffee grounds on, and then scouted several of my feral red wigglers in the backyard - colonists from bins past. 
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This thing was crawling with ants yesterday, and had a massive aphid farm going.  It's on a screened porch, so I don't get enough help from my insect army.
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Today, there's no ants in sight.  They seem to absolutely hate coffee.
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The kids love it, too.
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Never knew the virtues of coffee grinds. You'd think they're very acidic and ng for plants..?
 
S O does very strong organic coffee beans every morning for us, grinds just get thrown out... Got todays and about to give my Scorpion a top dress of french roast and a little worm castings mixed in...
 
 
 
acs1 said:
Never knew the virtues of coffee grinds. You'd think they're very acidic and ng for plants..?
 
S O does very strong organic coffee beans every morning for us, grinds just get thrown out... Got todays and about to give my Scorpion a top dress of french roast and a little worm castings mixed in...
 
 
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Once they're spent, they're barely acidic. 
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That's one of your SRP there, by the way.
 
Some have suggested that coffee grounds are not good for the garden.  I've not found that to be the case.  In either coir, peat, or soil.  Just a top dress, though.  I don't mix them in.  Not sure if that would have an effect, but once my plant has put down roots, I don't like to interrupt them. (hence the worms to do the work for me)
 
solid7 said:
 
We like to french press, so naturally, the planters just outside the kitchen are so convenient...
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I put a lot of Ceylon cinnamon in the French press along with the coffee - would that be detrimental?
 
Uncle_Eccoli said:
 
I put a lot of Ceylon cinnamon in the French press along with the coffee - would that be detrimental?
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I always discard our cinnamon stick in either the compost or raised beds.  Haven't found it a problem, myself.  
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There is a slight concern with caffeine - some people claim that caffeine can inhibit plant growth.  I've never really had this happen, but I always take pause to ask if that's a regional thing...  maybe some other influencing factor.
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My best advice, is that if you're unsure, just do a test on a plant that you can afford to sacrifice.  It's also good to have a "control", so that you can see the difference between 2 like for like specimens.
 
solid7 said:
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That's one of your SRP there, by the way.
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Very nice... I trained it early as a young seedling how cope with ants and aphids... lol
 
Is it true your central Florida black Aphids are as big as skeeters...?
Its a monsoon here now, my lake is over flowing again, getting ready for the inevitable black aphids invasion the rain brings. Can see the snakeheads jumping....
 
I really don't see many black aphids here.   I'm a beachsider...  Maybe a mainland thing.  Familiar with them, but have rarely seen them.
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Snakeheads carcasses - minus the filets - make great fertilizer, btw.
 
I regularly make a big pitcher full of cold brew every week or so that leaves me with around two cups of grounds.
 
Maybe I ought to try dumping  them onto the surface of my peppers that seem to be ailing to see if it makes them any greener.
 
I'm also a touch curious as to whether other insects like whiteflies or leaf miners will find the smell off-putting.
 
I can't ever really tell if whitefly are repelled by it, or not.  Usually I get them handled by other means.  I don't really give much thought to leaf miners.  They make a few ugly leaves, but all in all, they aren't a problem.  My plants outgrow the leaf miners, and they finish their life cycle relatively quickly.
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It rained the last couple of days, so I now have coffee grounds that are forming that nice white fuzzy mold at the surface, that I always like to see when I add organic amendments.  There's a food web being built in/under there.
 
It rained is an understatement. I spotted some toms this morning and literally squeezed water out of the rootball like it was a soaked rag.
 
sirex said:
It rained is an understatement. I spotted some toms this morning and literally squeezed water out of the rootball like it was a soaked rag.
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I was just noticing that I left a 2 cup measuring cup outside, and it's completely full...
 
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