Coffee Grounds and Gardening with Slugs
I had a new gardener tell me of her slug controlling exploits in the garden using coffee grounds and pouring coffee around and while I didn't exactly tell her she was wasting her time spraying yesterday's coffee on them to "kill them", I didn't exactly tell her she wasn't.
I took the road of least resistance and gave her this url to read. This is hard data from experiments on slugs and coffee grounds. And even if this used material doesn't kill slugs (it might deter them a little) it can and should be used in the garden.
Which is good news because I surely like my morning coffee.
And the rock beside the pot is a long-ago Father's Day present from some kid I know. :-) Where else does one put a rock ?
posted by Doug Green @ 11:18 AM
5 comments
5 Comments:
OK, my turn to give you a URL to read.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/417915a
This is the abstract for a scientific article on the value of using brewed coffee to kill and deter slugs. So while you were correct that the grounds accomplish little in the battle against slugs (although considerably more in improving the soil), the joke about not pouring coffee into the garden was the exact opposite of the truth. Go ahead, pour the cold coffee around your hostas. It will actually work.
Sorry, Doug. I was inattentive yesterday and fired off my comment too quickly. I've done penance in today's post on my blog.
We have large variety of Hosta's, about 165 different ones. We too like our coffee every morning and I throw them away, can't wait till tommorrow to try it.
Betty, Cornwall, Ont.
Doug says: I've included this abstract here but please note that this *isn't* coffee they're talking about - it is caffeine.
And when you read the entire article, you'll discover the data I give you on the link in the article will indeed give you the concentrations of caffeine you require to deter and kill slugs. It will also give you the concentration of caffeine in coffee.
And coffee doesn't have it. :-( As the url in the linked article points out.
But the grounds are good organic matter - and it doesn't hurt so why not...
I had a rock in my soap dish, but that confused my Father in Law terribly. It was like a practical joke I never intended gone horribly awry.
Oops.
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