"gardengal" wrote in message
...
On Nov 8, 2:09 pm, Higgs Boson wrote:
There was a long, detailed article today in Dave's Garden about using
coffee grounds to feed one's plants.

Anybody have extensive experience with this? Mine is limited to
dumping the grounds on Friday (when I make coffee for the gardener)
on nearby plants, mostly the two side-door plants, Azalea and Hebe,
as well as Roses in m rose path.

My question now relates to long-term, systematic use of coffee grounds
on roses. I can pick up grounds from coffee shops (as mentioned in
Dave's Garden article), but am looking for your real-world experience.

I live in So. Calif coastal. Soil is/was alkaline (adobe) but has been
modified over many years by me and previous owner, so I think it's
neutral (but should verify just for info).

So, if you're into coffee mulching, would you pls share your
experience.

Tx

HB

I wouldn't consider used coffee grounds (UGC's) as a fertilizer - they
are just too low in nutrients to be well-considered for this purpose
(NPK = 2.0, .3, .3 approx.). You would probably need to supplement
with something containing trace elements as well as higher
concentrations of the big 3 (NPK). But as a soil amendment or compost
additive, they are great. I would be cautious about using them as a
mulch or very heavily as a mulch.

if fallowing a garden over a season or more coffee grounds are fine as a
mulch. I have done it a number of times and the garden and soil has been
fine. Maybe not in a dry season I agree.

rob