Green gardening: Transform orange peels into powerful plant food
Sometimes, just watering plants is not enough. Remember to fertilize regularly so that they can dazzle us when they bloom. For geraniums, you can use something that usually ends up in the trash.
1:12 PM EDT, August 18, 2024
Many people invest in expensive fertilizers that provide the necessary nutrients for proper growth. Not everyone realizes that you can make them yourself. Plus, we will do this using a zero-waste method.
Homemade fertilizer from orange peels
Geraniums are incredibly popular plants. They thrive both in gardens and on windowsills. Many people also decorate their balconies and terraces with them. They are not only easy to grow but also impress with their small yet spectacular flowers. However, before they bloom, it is crucial to provide them with the right conditions. Orange peels can help us with this.
It turns out you can make homemade fertilizer for geraniums from them. Orange peels are a source of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, which positively affect the plant's root system and leaves. The citrus scent can also help get rid of garden pests.
How to make homemade fertilizer for geraniums
To prepare homemade fertilizer for geraniums, we only need orange peels, which most likely ended up in the trash before. The first step is to dry them well. To do this, you can use an oven preheated to about 285 - 300 degrees Fahrenheit (bake for a maximum of 2 hours).
After cooling the dried peels, they should be thoroughly crushed — until they become a very fine powder. The final product only needs to be sprinkled around the geraniums and it's ready. Many specialists also advise covering the resulting fertilizer with one layer of soil.
It is also worth knowing that this fertilizer works not only for geraniums but also for fuchsias, begonias, heathers, and hydrangeas.
