Coffee Grounds
My husband is a BIG coffee drinker, so we always have a lot of used coffee grounds at the end of the day, which would normally be chucked in the bin. That was before I found out that used coffee grounds are an excellent recycling product!
I actually first discovered this at my local Starbucks, where I saw they were giving away used grounds in cute bags labeled “Grounds For Your Garden” (okay, I’m a sucker for packaging).
“..Coffee grounds can provide a valuable source of nutrition for your garden. The proper amount to be used depends on the condition of your soil and what you are growing…”
Thank you, Starbucks! So since then, I’ve been using the black stuff in my garden, yielding excellent results, although I admit that I haven’t gone as far as to use them for vermi-posting (worm composting), but I really should, once I get over my squeamishness with the little crawlers.
There are a whole host of other things you can do with used coffee grounds, some of which I wouldn’t really recommend, like putting it on your face as a mask/exfoliant (wouldn’t it stain?) or on your pets as a deodorizer, grooming aid or even for fleas (I read somewhere that it the caffeine could be toxic to animals).
But here are the things worth trying:
1. Touching up scratches on wooden furniture – use a q-tip to scrub it on.
2. Use as an insect repellent – sprinkle on areas to keep ants and other garden pests away.
3. Use as a natural dye (not on your face!) on fabric or paper (I actually used this when making treasure maps and “olde” invitations for my kids’ pirate party)
4. Use as a fridge or closet deodorizer (some suggest filling an old nylon stocking – but I find that a bit strange)
5. Use it in your fireplace as a dust guard when cleaning.
Photo via INeedCoffee