If you eat eggs, your garden is in luck! Eggshells contain a good dose of calcium but also provide magnesium, sulfur and potassium to the plants. These nutrients help build healthy bone structure in plants leading to stronger plants and healthier fruit. Eggshells are especially beneficial for tomatoes, peppers and the likes.
Apart from plants, eggshells also help in the germination of seedlings.I added eggshell powder to my seed-started mix and saw great results. Now that we’ve studied enough chemistry & biology let’s shift focus to gardening and explore

EGGSHELL USES IN THE GARDEN

ADDING EGGSHELLS TO COMPOST

Yes, that’s the most common practice (easy as well). Just toss the eggshells into your compost pile for an extra boost of nutrients. You can also toss them into your ECOBIN if you need faster nutrients.

APPLYING EGGSHELLS DIRECTLY TO PLANTS

You can do this but they will take their own sweet time to decompose so do not expect quick results. In fact, if the plant is short lived, you may actually be preparing the soil for the next plant instead of the current.

LAYERING EGGSHELLS WITH SOIL

This is what I like to do. In a normal terracotta pot, start with a layer of soil. Collect eggshells and layer over it. Repeat till the pot is filled. Let it decompose. Use some of this soil while potting or transplanting. It can also be used to sow seeds.

EGGSHELL POWDER

This is a quick way to add nutrients to potted plants or seeds. Powdered eggshells decompose faster and add nutrients quicker to the soil. This is why it a great things to add while sowing seeds. Scroll to the bottom of this post to learn how to make eggshell powder at home.

HARDBOILED EGGS WATER

The quickest way. Don’t throw the water used to boil eggs. Let it cool and feed a plant of your choice. It’s an instant booster drink for plants.

EGGSHELL SHAKE FOR PLANTS

Blend a few eggshells with coffee powder and a banana peel in water. It is a health drink for flowering plants or plants that appear yellow/weak.

DETER PESTS WITH EGGSHELLS

Crush some eggshells with your hands and add to soil if you want to get rid of slugs and snails. The sharp edges deter pests. It is for the same reason that we do not add crushed eggshells to seedlings or small delicate plants.

Now that we have summed up some of the unique eggshell uses in the garden, let’s learn how to make Eggshell Powder at home.

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• Collect eggshells in a container and let them dry completely. I collected a month’s worth of eggshells to get a good quantity of powder.

• Add them to a dry grinder jar and give a good whirl. At this point, be careful. Eggshell powder is very fine and flies all over the place. Do not open the jar lid immediately. After about 2 minutes open the lid, shake the jar and repeat the process a few times. Hold on, this takes a bit of patience.

• Sieve the powder into another container. It will fly all over the place again and you may be breathing some of it so take necessary precaution.

• You will be left with some coarse powder. Now you can grind this again and repeat the process or just add this residue to compost or a pot.

• Congrats! Eggshell powder is now ready. You may store it or add to pots/seeds immediately. I used mine as a top layer over seed starter mix and the results are noteworthy! Eggshell powder promotes quick growth and healthy &strong seedlings.

That’s it folks! I hope this was helpful. Do share your tips and experiences about eggshell uses in the garden.

Till then,

HAPPY GARDENING

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