Cooking Coffee Grounds

I hate wasting things at the cabin. Every morning we make a pot of joe, so one thing we have lots of is coffee grounds. In the summer, I save them for the garden. In the winter I've been burning them in the wood stove. Then I got the idea of "cooking" them dry. Now I can store a winter's worth in a ziploc bag ready for spring planting.

In the garden, coffee grounds have many uses including mulching, composting and pest control.

Coffee grounds are high in nitrogen and that makes them good for fast-growing vegetables like tomatoes. One article said they also help prevent blight.

What really interests me is deterring and killing slugs. While I don't think using grounds has solved my slug problem, I think it has reduced the damage to my strawberry plants. Another tip was to mix triple strength instant coffee and spray the ground around susceptible plants. I haven't tried that yet, but next season my lettuce sure could use some help.

So if you like a cuppa joe to start your day and want to be ready for spring planting, try cooking your grounds dry and saving them. Your plants will thank you. -- Margy