StuckInYYZ

I'm not sure. I don't usually rinse the shells, I have a small plastic takeaway bowl that I toss the shells in when I use eggs. They usually dry out overnight. There might be some leftover egg white in the shell, but not much. Then I just toss them into the mortar and when I have some time, I just grind the shells and pour into a bag. The coffee grinds (don't have often as I don't drink a lot of coffee, but I do get them... I also mix tea grinds as well) need to be dried as well. Then starting in the spring, I have plenty of material... I just mix in handfuls of what I have, then sprinkle in the garden and the lawn. The lawn doesn't like it as much, but this usually gives me some pretty nice tomatoes and lots of raspberries.

One thing about the tea and coffee grinds... when you're drying them out, you have to spread them out and I would recommend setting out a fruit fly trap nearby. Doesn't happen often, but occasionally you get large numbers of fruit flies.

corky

What are you growing in your garden? Coffee grounds might not benefit everything.

gaobest

good point. Only real thing is a Meyer lemon tree. Nothing else has had success except different plants. We tried Apple trees. I still think about scallions and onions. Ooh maybe today I’ll sweep up the leaves.

StuckInYYZ

Scallions don't need a lot of space. If you have a reasonably good condition topsoil, you're good to go. Just stick the white end in and prune as you eat. I use an old recycling tub and snip 2-3 stalks a week to add to whatever I'm cooking.

Bitter melon seems to take the mix pretty well. Although I've only done it one season. Might have to try some other veges.

(I'm having an easy day today... not usually online this much)

corky

Well a Meyer lemon tree is a wonderful thing to have. I mooch lemons (Meyer and Eureka) from friends & luckily they have plenty to share. I love them.
There are lots of veggies that are very easy to grow if you use them a lot. Herbs are pretty easy too.

YVR Cockroach

They do like an acidic soil.

Must be the robusta variety. As the old saying goes, "puts hairs on your chest" (or chest on your hairs).

ILuvParis

So, does your plumber thank you? When your wife washes her hair, they don't dissolve, do they?

StuckInYYZ

They do (tomatoes) but I never expect the plants to survive the winter and to grow back bigger every year. I'm not complaining as it's free ingredients. But it's something interesting to see.

YVR Cockroach

Must have indeterminate tomatoes. Surely not outside? Post a photo. If you have found a perennial cultivar of tmato, you cold make a fortune.

YVR Cockroach

The other stuff your plumber, or at least the power drain snake business thanks you for is rice, pasta, tea, (saturated) fats and anything else that swells in water and is sticky.

LapLap

I don’t have a big garden, it’s lovely, but very shady with only a few sunny patches.
I sowed seeds at the end of January and the seedlings are in a rigged waterproof “nursery drawer” which is temporarily attached to the inside of my bedroom window. The tomatoes will go in the sunny spots. Am also growing (trying to germinate currently) green shiso/perilla seeds which are en expensive herb but are generous providers over the summer for a range of foods. These will go in the 50% sun, 50% shade areas where they thrive. This year, I’ve already sown “in situ” wild garlic seeds, a leafy, highly aromatic plant where you eat the stems and leaves rather than the bulbs. These should do well somewhere shady as they tend to grow in forests. Apparently they do well in acidic soils.

And that’s where this thread has come in useful! Hadn’t considered coffee grounds for the wild garlic, so that’ll what I’ll be doing. Also, I knew about crushed egg shells (and finely chopped human hair - keratin) for tomatoes but hadn’t come across advice for coffee for these plants either. Thanks to all who suggested it!

StuckInYYZ

In the front, I know of cherry and heirloom tomatoes... At one point I remember planting beefsteak as well, but I don't think they came back. If they come back again this year, I'll take a photo.

Now I'm curious... I should start planning in case they don't come back...

chrisl137

Our grounds go in the worm composter in SoCal, and in PDX they either go out with the compost pickup, into a compost bin we keep, or straight into the garden to repel slugs. Slugs (and snails, presumably) are repelled by the caffeine - cheap coffee from robusta beans tastes worse but is probably a better snail repellent.

Darren

She uses a basin to catch them, so no plumbers. I don't know the purpose, to be honest. I learned not to ask.

bitterproffit

I used to dump the grounds down the drain, I use a reusable gold filter. I also used to put egg shells down the drain and run the garbage disposal.

A costly plumbing visit has cured me of that habit. Apparently, the coffee grounds and any oil/grease and egg shells combine together to form the hardest substance known to man (sarcasm). Seriously, it was like cement in my outgoing pipe. It was quite a mess.

Now I tap out the grounds in the trash to get most of it, throw the eggs shells out too, and try to avoid putting a lot of grease down the drain as well.