How to Reuse Food Scraps to Add Compost in Soil for Improved Growth

Reduce the amount of food scraps you throw out by adding to compost in soil. Improve your garden soil even without a composter.

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I love gardening for so many different reasons. We raise an organic garden, starting with organic seeds so we know exactly what is and isn’t on our vegetables. It’s also a great way to save on buying organic food.

Gardening is also such a great activity to do for yourself because it can turn into a fun hobby. It’s fun and rewarding to see something that you have worked on for so long actually grow into something useful, and having your own garden will provide you with a plentiful supply of fresh vegetables to use for your own consumption.

What you may not have known is that you can actually use old leftovers of common foods that you use in your every day life and add it to your soil to actually improve the health of your growing plants, even without a composter. Although a composter has been on my list of “wants” for so long, we haven’t invested in one yet. But that doesn’t mean you can’t reuse some food scraps for your garden to help add nutrients to your soil and garden.

Banana Peels

Banana peels are a great thing to throw in with your soil because they decompose extremely well. Although they decompose well, you’ll still want to make sure you don’t just throw the whole peel in there, but rather cut it into pieces. This will help the peels to decompose easier, faster, and also keep rodents away. The benefits of banana peels in your garden is that they will help to keep away unwanted insects that could potentially ruin your garden.

Egg Shells

Egg shells are another really great thing to throw in your garden. Believe it or not, they actually break down quite well within the soil and the shells will provide a boost of calcium into your plants to help them grow better and healthier. One thing to keep in mind with the egg shells is to make sure that you wash them out and dry them completely because this will help them to decompose a lot easier within the soil.

I’ve even used egg shells as seed starters for my garden for this very reason! Once you’re ready to plant your seedlings in your garden, you can plant the whole egg shell since it will decompose. Check out this post at Viva Veltoro for more directions on how to make your own egg shell planters.

Coffee Grounds

Coffee grounds are a great additive to your soil for a variety of reasons. Adding coffee to your soil actually makes your it softer and easier to till. Coffee also helps to keep insects, snails, and slugs out of your garden where they may potentially harm your plants, and it also provides extra nutrients for plants and vegetables.

Fruits & Vegetables

It makes sense that adding fruit and vegetable food scraps back to your vegetable garden would be beneficial. Almost any fruits and vegetables will decompose into your garden and provide different nutrients for your soil. Some examples would be apple cores, citrus fruit peels, the cob of your corn, and even the ends and peels of cucumber and celery.

Yimby Tumbler Backyard ComposterIt’s an easy, green step in the right direction to reuse leftover food in your garden, even without a composter. Instead of simply throwing away peels, cores, and odds and ends of your leftover foods, I promise you it is so much more worth it to incorporate these things into your soil. Not only are you recycling them but they also are helping out your garden and providing your growing plants more health and nutrients.

What kinds of food scraps do you put on your soil and garden?