Feeding Plants from the Kitchen, Part 1 - Banana Tea
Updated: Aug 31, 2020
Make an easy tea, smoothie and juice from kitchen scraps to fertilize plants.
In Introduction Feeding Plants from the Kitchen, we learned some basics about plant nutrition, specifically the maconutrients N-P-K (nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium) . Starting with this blog, we will take some basic kitchen scraps and turn them into plant fertilizer for the plants. We begin with bananas.
What's In the Kitchen
Bananas
As they decompose, banana peels act as a slow-release fertilizer, adding potassium, nitrogen, phosphorus and magnesium to the soil.
Banana Peel Tea
This combination feeds and strengthens plants while helping them fight disease and pests.
Fill a 2 quart jar about three quarters of the way with water.
Set the jar of water in fridge.
Whenever you eat a banana, put the peels in the jar. You can cut them into small pieces, if you'd like.
Leave it for 2-3 days, no more than 5.
Strain the peels, reserving the water from jar to spray on your plants.
Keep the Soaked Peels!
The soaked peels are also fertilizer. Here are two options:
Dehydrate peels on parchment paper in the sun, use a dehydrator or oven. they turn black, then grind peels into a powder and work directly into the soil.
Puree the soaked banana peels in a blender, adding small amounts of water as needed - should be consistency of a smoothie. Work the puree into the soil around the plant base. This provides nourishment and slight pest control.
VKNOX is a holistic nutrition wellness practitioner, behavior change specialist, fitness nutrition educator, lifestyle transformation coach and author. She is the creator of the R.A.W. Lifestyle System.