Orchids are perennial flowering plants with evergreen leaves. These varied and colorful tropical flowers are easy to grow indoors but require care. To do this, you can use natural fertilizers to fertilize them and promote their flowering. However, discover the value of watering orchids with a solution of coffee grounds.
After brewing a good cup of coffee, do not throw away the coffee grounds as they are very beneficial for the plants. You can use it to make a liquid fertilizer that you can use to water and fertilize your orchids.
Why water orchids with a coffee grounds solution?
Fertilizing plants is important. This nourishes them and provides them with the essential elements for their proper growth. Plants should only be fertilized during their growth phase. In winter it is advisable to stop all fertilization and for good reason the plants go into a dormant period and fertilizing during this period could promote stunted and weak growth and make the plants vulnerable to disease and pest infestation parasites.
Also read: Most people put the orchid in the wrong place, that’s the reason why it doesn’t bloom
When growing beautiful orchids indoors, consider fertilizing them with coffee grounds. The latter is a fertilizer that is highly valued by houseplants. In fact, it provides them with nitrogen and phosphorus, which plants assimilate in the long term, as well as potassium and magnesium, which plants assimilate quickly. These inputs promote plant growth and make them more resistant to disease. However, care must be taken not to use too much coffee grounds so as not to affect the flowering of the plants.
However, coffee grounds are very beneficial for orchids because they contain the nutrients this flowering plant needs. In fact, phosphorus promotes photosynthesis in orchids, nitrogen stimulates their cell renewal and enables abundant flowering. Potassium promotes the good growth of this plant.
How to prepare a fertilizer for orchids based on coffee grounds?
To fertilize your orchids, you can make a liquid fertilizer using coffee grounds. To do this, simply mix the leftover coffee that you collect from your coffee machine in a container with two liters of water. Stir and let the mixture sit in a cool place for 24 to 48 hours. Then strain the solution and water the orchids with it.
Note that it is advisable to fertilize these plants every 21 days in the spring when the buds appear. In summer, orchids need fertilizer every 7 days. However, it is important not to fertilize orchids in winter as this is their vegetative rest period.
In addition to watering your flowering plant with this liquid fertilizer, you can make a rich potting mix for your orchids by mixing ¼ coffee grounds with ¾ garden soil.
What mistakes should you avoid when using coffee grounds to fertilize orchids?
Before using coffee grounds on your orchids, note that it is not recommended to place them at the base of plants affected by aphids or scale insects. This could make the infestation worse.
Read also: Stop watering orchids with water: water them with it for spectacular flowering
It is also not recommended to use coffee grounds to fertilize young orchids. This could slow their growth. If you want to spread the coffee grounds around the orchids, remember to dry them first before adding them to the substrate. Using it wet can encourage mold growth. Note that the coffee grounds can be saved to use later to fertilize your orchids. Just try to keep it in a cool place.
You don’t have to have a green thumb to beautify your orchid. With this trick you provide your plant with all the nutrients it needs for its growth.
Also read: How do you get your orchids to bloom again? The step-by-step instructions