Why You Shouldn’t Throw Away Citrus Peels: A Tip From Experienced Gardeners

Every gardener has faced the problem of finding the perfect fertilizer for all his plants at once. However, it’s not that simple. With the huge choice of fertilizers and all kinds of dressings, their range of action is quite limited. Moreover – each fertilizer is designed for specific plants and few chemicals can be used for at least half of the vegetable garden.

Understanding the huge list of herbicides, pesticides, organic fertilizers, growth stimulants, insecticides and other subtleties of gardening is quite difficult. And if you are not a professional botanist – almost impossible.

Orange peels – why you shouldn’t throw them away.

Many gardeners have long since come to the conclusion that citrus peels are quite beneficial to the soil. With its abundance of essential oils, it’s a very good way to improve soil fertility.

The peels are buried in the ground near the stem of the plant at a depth of no more than 5-7 cm. This method is used both for indoor flowers and for plants living in the open ground.

Orange peels can also be added to a compost pit and used in the spring. In this case, the citrus fruit will enrich the soil with nitrogenous fertilizers and help the seeds to germinate faster.

Citrus peel as fertilizer – What’s the use?

The usefulness of citrus fruit for gardening is hard to overestimate. The fact is that tangerine peels or lemon peels, for example, are no different from mineral fertilizers. The only difference is that you are using a natural product, not a chemical.

Due to their high potassium and phosphorus content, orange peels are a quick, reasonably priced, and safe way to help your plants get stronger.

A huge plus of citrus-based fertilizer is that in addition to being a great fertilizer, it’s also the perfect way to get rid of bugs and ants. The essential oils repel pests, so you’ll not only enrich the soil but also protect your plants.

What plants benefit from citrus dressing

If we talk about what is fed with orange peels, it is almost all indoor flowers. Tincture on citrus peels is great for callanhoe, violets, and asparagus. Also, the citrus infusion is optimal for azaleas, myrtles, and many other inhabitants of your windowsill.

Outdoors, and orange peels fertilize flowers, currant bushes, and raspberries.

How to make citrus fertilizer

If we talk about how to use citrus peels as fertilizer, there are several ways.

Citrus peels can be added to a compost pit. Gardeners recommend feeding plants with this fertilizer in early spring.

Fresh orange or tangerine peels can be buried in the ground near a green favorite that you want to help get stronger. The most important thing is to bury it not deep, no more than 5-8 cm. Also, note that you have to be extremely careful not to damage either the stem or the root of the plant.

A safer way is to use dried citrus peels. In this case, the peels of mandarins, oranges, and lemons should be dried and ground to a powdery consistency using a blender or meat grinder. Such fertilizer can be used as bait by simply pouring it on the open ground. The main condition – the additive must be placed near the stem of the plant, and you can add no more than 1-2 tablespoons per room flower. To enhance the effect, the plant will need to be watered.

Another way to use citrus as a fertilizer is a tincture. If you do not know how to use mandarin peels for this purpose, just stock a three-liter jar and a plastic lid.

In fact, a tincture is the easiest and most accessible fertilizer from citrus peels:

  • Fill a three-liter jar one-third full with the peels;
  • Pour boiling water into the jar up to the “shoulders”;
  • Cover with a plastic lid;
  • We were put in a dark place for a day.

The resulting solution is ideal for feeding both indoor and garden plants. It should be used in between waterings.

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Written by Emma Miller

I am a registered dietitian nutritionist and own a private nutrition practice, where I provide one-on-one nutritional counseling to patients. I specialize in chronic disease prevention/ management, vegan/ vegetarian nutrition, pre-natal/ postpartum nutrition, wellness coaching, medical nutrition therapy, and weight management.

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