# Coffee grounds?



## Mutt

Seen DLtoker say something about using coffee ground tea as a fert. Whats the deal with that?


----------



## HGB

slow-release nitrogen.

Dilute with water for a gentle, fast-acting liquid fertilizer.  Use about a half-pound can of wet grounds in a five-gallon bucket of water; let sit outdoors to achieve ambient temperature.


----------



## Mutt

so use fresh grounds? or would left over work?


----------



## DLtoker

I go to Starbucks... This time of year they have pre-made bags full of used grounds so it's easy to nonchalantly pick up a bag of free ferts.  In the winter months, however, a special request must be made for them to save their grounds.


----------



## HGB

what DL said bro

try local zipy mart to :hubba: 

take em a bucket and say let me hual the used grounds off for you


----------



## Mutt

I grind my own....big coffee drinker here. So don't forsee a probem gettin grounds 
Thanks guys...after seein all your organic grows....i am getting converted.
Still gotta start a worm bin tho.


----------



## HippyInEngland

http://earth911.org/blog/2007/04/02/composting-with-worms/

Hippy


----------



## MrPuffAlot

Ok just a couple of questions:

1.  Use new coffee grinds??   or spent/used coffee grinds enough??

2.  Make a diluted pot of coffee and feed plants?  Or use as soil topping?
and if so how much??

thanks


----------



## Hick

http://www.acornsprings.com/index.php?men=garden101&mod=pages&idp=58&id_ctg=80


> Yet another occasional use for coffee grounds is as a fertilizer. There are varying reports on its nitrogen-phosphorous-potassium anlysis. It all really depends on the variety of coffee and how it was processed, but it's a safe bet that whatever the grind, coffee grounds have plenty of nitrogen &#8211; as high as 2-3 percent. And let us not forget it's high acid level, which is great for azaleas and roses, but a problem for plants that prefer a higher pH.


----------



## MrPuffAlot

Hick said:
			
		

> http://www.acornsprings.com/index.php?men=garden101&mod=pages&idp=58&id_ctg=80


 

Read the web page..
To bad it isn't MJ specific..

So good for MJ or NOT?? and how to use it??
feed plants as watered coffee as fert?? or Soil topping?
and how much??

Ive been saving coffee grinds in my store this morning, I probably
got like 5lbs of spent grinds as I type.. From Hazelnut, French vanilla
Regular Columbian supreme and Decaf.

Thanks


----------



## MrPuffAlot

bump


----------



## HGB

yes good for MJ and or your worm bin


----------



## MrPuffAlot

HGB said:
			
		

> yes good for MJ and or your worm bin


 

I just want to be sure of something.

Do you use the Coffee spent coffee grinds through the 
WHOLE GROW??  VEG and FLOWER?

or  Just in VEG state??

My girls are in FLOWER, and aren't they suppose to (N) deficient 
during the last couple of weeks.

FEED as watered down coffee??  or Soil topping? and HOW MUCH..??

I just want to be sure sure about this stuff.
I would hate to mess my girls up, after 2 months of TLC.


----------



## pastor420

If you're already in flower then don't worry about it with this run.  But definitely include it with the next run!

When I mix up soil I use 10-20% coffee grounds in with the Perlite/soil mix.  Not only do you have a great fertilizer, but it helps build the soil too.

And don't forget to mix in some compost as well.


----------



## HGB

MrPuffAlot said:
			
		

> I just want to be sure of something.
> 
> Do you use the Coffee spent coffee grinds through the
> WHOLE GROW??  VEG and FLOWER?
> 
> or  Just in VEG state??



use spent grounds and post 2 has how to mix  

being a slow release of N i stop at week 2 of flower

soz took so long to reply


----------



## louis

> .....And let us not forget it's high acid level, which is great for azaleas and roses, but a problem for plants that prefer a higher pH.



I may be mistaken, but haven't I read here that mj hates acid?


----------



## clever_intuition

Mj like a medium which is higher on the acidic side. 6.5 - 7.3, Thats what I have learned?


----------



## Mr.Wakenbake

coffee grounds are mainly used to lower the pH in organic gardening along with it's suble supplementing of nitrogen and other needed food. I wouldn't use it in flower and i would only use it if you have a pH problem. Otherwise just stick with a good organic bottled fert or a good organic fortified soil ...

KISS man... keep it simple stupid...


----------



## Elephant Man

Mmmmm....coffee....my plants love it as much as I do.



> The Starbucks coffee compost test
> Lab report: Those free grounds really are good for your soil
> Used coffee grounds make good soil amendments. Thats the buzz among gardeners lately. But what do your coffeepots leftovers really add to the soil?
> 
> To find out, Sunset sent a batch of Starbucks used coffee grounds  the company gives them away for free  to a soil lab for analysis. Turns out the grounds provide generous amounts of phosphorus, potassium, magnesium, and copper.
> 
> They also release nitrogen into the soil as they degrade. And theyre slightly acidic  a boon in the Western climate.
> 
> Dig or till them into the soil to a depth of 6 to 8 inches.
> 
> FULL REPORT
> 
> The following information was developed for Sunset by Soil and Plant Laboratory Inc., Bellevue, WA.
> 
> Summary: Use of Starbucks coffee grounds in amending mineral soils up to 35 percent by volume coffee grounds will improve soil structure over the short-term and over the long-term. Use of the coffee grounds at the specified incorporation rates (rototilled into a 6- to 8-inch depth) will substantially improve availabilities of phosphorus, potassium, magnesium and copper and will probably negate the need for chemical sources of these plant essential elements.
> 
> The nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium guaranteed analyses would be as follows for the coffee grounds:
> 
> Nitrogen: 2.28 percent
> Phosphorus: 0.06 percent
> Potassium: 0.6 percent
> 
> Available nutrient levels: The pH or reaction of the coffee grounds is considered slightly acidic and in a favorable range at 6.2 on the pH scale.
> 
> Salinity (ECe) is a measurement of total soluble salts and is considered slightly elevated at 3.7 dS/m. The primary water-soluble salts in this product are potassium, magnesium, sodium and chloride. The potentially problematic ions in sodium and chloride are each sufficiently low as to be inconsequential in terms of creating problems for plants.
> 
> The availabilities of nitrogen, calcium, zinc, manganese and iron are quite low and in some cases deficient. Thus, the coffee grounds will not supply appreciable amounts of these essential plant elements when used as a mineral soil amendment.
> 
> However, the availabilities of phosphorus, potassium, magnesium and copper are each sufficiently high that there will be a very positive impact on improving availabilities of these elements where the coffee grounds are used as a mineral soil amendment. The coffee grounds will negate the need for additional sources of phosphorus, potassium, magnesium and copper when blended with mineral soils.
> 
> In summary, the available plant essential elements which will be substantially improved where the coffee grounds are used as a soil amendment, include phosphorus, potassium, magnesium and copper.
> 
> Total nutrient levels: Each cubic yard of these coffee grounds contains a total of 10.31 lbs. nitrogen, of which 0.01 lb. (0.09%) are available. Thus, even though available nitrogen is considered deficient in this product, there still remains over 10 lbs. of total nitrogen per cubic yard of coffee grounds. Thus, nitrogen is primarily bound in the organic fraction and is unavailable to plants until soil microorganisms degrade the organic fraction. Through this process, the nitrogen is converted to plant available forms. Over the long term the coffee grounds will act like a slow release fertilizer providing long-term nitrogen input which can then be utilized by plants.
> 
> Nearly all potassium and all magnesium are in the available forms. This means that immediate availability improvements for these two elements will take place when the coffee grounds are blended with mineral soils. About half of the copper and calcium are in their immediately available forms.
> 
> All other plant essential elements are primarily bound in the organic fraction and will thus be subject to slow release over time as soil microbes continue to degrade the organic fraction.
> 
> Physical properties: Virtually all particles passed the 1 millimeter (mm) screen resulting in a product which is very fine textured. Each cubic yard of the coffee grounds will supply an excellent amount of organic matter, measured at 442 lbs. organic matter per cubic yard. At the use rates indicated in this report, the input of organic matter will be substantial and will result in considerable short-term and long-term improvement of mineral soil structure.
> 
> Carbon/nitrogen ratio: On the basis of dry matter bulk density (452 lbs. per cubic yard), organic matter content (97.7%) and total nitrogen (2.28%), the estimated carbon/nitrogen ratio is about 24:1. This means that there is more than sufficient nitrogen present in the coffee grounds to provide for the nitrogen demand of the soil microorganisms as they degrade the organic fraction.
> 
> Use rate: Based on the overall chemistry and physical properties of the coffee grounds, they can be utilized at rates similar to other organic amendments when used in amending mineral soils. These data indicate that 25-35 percent by volume coffee grounds can be blended with mineral soils of any type to improve structure of those soils.


----------



## dmack

My dad used to use coffee grounds in his soil when he used to grow. Always wondered where it all went. lol


----------

