To me, there is nothing that makes me feel more connected to nature than digging around in the dirt with my bare hands. This is why gardening is so fun and relaxing to many people. It’s a connection to the earth in a way only this simple act can create. I also like to recycle things and reuse them in any way that I can in my garden because throwing stuff out just kind of makes me sad unless I have used it more than once since I don’t always have a way to recycle a material in the conventional sense. If you are looking at more ways to use common throw-aways, including food waste, here are some tips on how to recycle household items in your garden.
How to Recycle Household Items in your Garden
Milk Jugs– These can be used for a variety of things such as making your own scoop for dirt and peat as well as making a watering can. You can even use them to create a temporary greenhouse.
Egg Cartons– Egg cartons can be used to grow seedlings in or even to store seeds in when you gather at the end of the harvest for next year.
Newspaper– You can use newspaper in your garden in a variety of ways. It can be used for making seed starter cups as well as to make your own seed tape.
Egg Shells– Egg shells are amazing for your garden and have so many uses. You can place them in your dirt to add extra nutrients and they can help keep bugs at bay. You can also use egg shells to start seedlings!
Coffee Grounds– Coffee grounds are great for gardens. You can use them in your compost to add nitrogen and they also work great if you are creating a worm farm for use in your garden. They can also keep pests away. You can also use leftover coffee in your garden in a variety of ways as well from composts to making your plants grow healthy and strong.
Orange peels– Citrus peels attract butterflies and they also help keep biting insects away. You can also use them to add some all-important nitrogen to your compost and your soil.
Beer– While most people don’t consider beer a throw-away, if you are left with some flat beer at some point, you should use it in your garden! You can make a slug and snail trap to keep them from eating up your garden and it is great to add to a compost.
An old hose– Don’t throw that old hose away! You can turn an old hose into a great soaker hose by just poking some holes in it. This is great for your plants that need lots of water but you have limited watering times or days.
What common household items do you recuse in your garden?
More Frugal Household Item Uses in the Garden:
10 Easy Easy to Recycle Egg Shells
J @ A Hot Southern Mess says
Oh! I really like the snail and slug trip idea! Good thinking! I’m going to do this for sure this year! Thanks for sharing!
Cathy says
I love these ideas, I need to start collecting and saving my milk jugs and other things! I can’t wait for my garden!
I would love for you to share this over at my new link party Making Memories Mondays going on now!
Cathy
Nikki @ Growing Up Mom says
My husband is starting his second garden at our house this year, after a flop last year (he realized it was our dirt, so he is stepping up his game this year) and these will be some great ideas for him. The beer note especially, he is a home brewer and may have some batches that he has to “struggle” through if they don’t come out great, this is a great way to use that up. Thanks for the great tips!
Liisi says
Love these ideas! Thanks for sharing 🙂
Michelle James says
I like these ideas. Such a great way to help the garden and save on garbage at the same time. I am not really a good gardener but I like to try. Maybe these will help.