You don’t always need to go out and buy specialty products for your Garden. Sometimes the best things for your plants are those right under your nose! While you’re spring cleaning your kitchen, keep an eye out for  these common household items that can give your greenery a welcome boost.

From the Fridge

Egg shells – along with other organic waste such as fruit and veggie rinds, egg shells are great for composting

Beer – slugs love beer so it’s no wonder it makes such a great homemade slug trap

Soda(flat) – add a bit of this to your compost pile and it will act as a catalyst, speeding up the decomposition process and shortening your wait time of rich organic fertilizer

Ice cube tray – Unused ice cube trays are great for for holding little seedlings!

Empty water bottles / milk jugs – Turn this trash into treasure by transforming them into bird feeders

From the Pantry

Cayenne pepper – Squirrels eating your flower bulbs? Dust the bulbs in this spice before you plant them to deter these nuisance nibblers.

Coffee grounds – Makes great compost!

Cornmeal – put some in a jar and let slugs eat it; it expands in their stomachs and kills them

Baking soda – changes soil composition

From the Drawers

Notepad – Whether blank or filled, a notepad has its place in the garden. Keep new ones in your shed to make notes about what needs doing and make plans for your seasonal tasks. As long as the notepad isn’t too filled with pen ink, the pages can be used as compost.

Pennies – scatter around your plants that are vulnerable to slugs as copper deters slugs and snails

Twist ties – those little pieces that come on bread bags can be quite useful in the garden. Use then to secure drooping stalks and bind up chicken wire fencing.

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