Hydrangeas ‘will turn a deeper blue’ with 1 natural item
A Facebook group dedicated to fans of David Attenborough and those passionate about helping and nurturing the environment may have hit the jackpot with this simple gardening tip.
By using one suggested household item, users are claiming it results in “deeper” colours of your plants.
One group member shared their advice in a post, saying: “Throwing away coffee grounds is one of the worst things you can do –they’re an invaluable resource for both home and garden. Discarding coffee grounds is a mistake, as they have multiple practical uses.”
The gardening enthusiast went on to explain that the grounds are rich in potassium, which means they act as a natural fertiliser, enhancing plant resistance, and are excellent for composting.
Coffee can also help to attract earthworms, improve soil health, and often can be used to repel pests, such as slugs and moles.
It seems the commentator is right, as someone else from the group added that coffee grounds have helped them; they wrote:
“Hydrangeas turn a deeper blue [or] violet when coffee grounds are added to the soil.”
Another chimed in, adding: “I have been using [coffee grounds] for 20-something years; sometimes directly onto veggies and berries, and sometimes into my compost mix.”
From the coffee pot to the compost pile, grounds have plenty of benefits, with many group members sharing their own successful tips. One person commented: “Over four years or so ago, I spread coffee grounds throughout our three-quarters of an acre garden.
“The site is on top of a hill, heavy clay, minimal topsoil, yet the garden and increasing population of earthworms are thriving – no irrigation. I couldn’t recommend coffee grounds highly enough for improving your soil and plant health.”
It’s not just these online gardeners that believe coffee grounds are the answer to bold and bright hydrangeas, American Scientist shared that the ingredient can help to boost PH levels.
It states: “The colour of many hydrangea blooms acts as a natural pH indicator for the soil in which the plant grows. Because of this trait, gardeners can chemically manipulate hydrangea bloom colours using soil additives.
“Homespun recipes abound for changing the pink blooms of a hydrangea to blue: pouring vinegar or lemon juice on the soil and mulching the plant with coffee grounds.”
The site shared that this strategy tends to make soil more acidic, eventually transforming the bloom color of the flowers to blue.
The Environmental enthusiasts in the David Attenborough group also went on to explain that coffee can be useful not just in our gardens, but inside our homes too.
They wrote:”In the home, coffee grounds effectively absorb odours, making them useful for freshening the refrigerator and other areas.
“When mixed with essential oils, they also provide a pleasant aroma. Furthermore, they can cover scratches on furniture, naturally darken hair, soften hands, and help maintain the colour of dark clothes in the wash.”