Country Lore: Reusing Tea and Coffee for Compost

You can put used coffee grounds and tea bags into your compost pile.

June/July 2008
By Clare Hafferman 
Article Tools
Print
Comments
RSS
Bookmark and Share

If you are a tea drinker, you can add used tea bags to the compost bucket. I recycle spent loose tea by sprinkling it in the garden row when planting radishes. I find it is a deterrent to the little root maggots that bite into the radishes before I get the chance.

RELATED CONTENT

If there is a coffee house near you, ask the manager to save the grounds so you can add them to your compost material. Some coffee houses also offer, for a nominal price, the burlap bags the coffee beans are shipped in. You can use these bags, dampened, to shield seeds while they germinate in the garden.

Clare Hafferman
Kalispell, Montana
Bookmark and Share
RSS | Comments | E-mail | Print

Comments

Add Your Comment

You can use this comment form to enter your personal experiences or additional information and resources that you'd like to share with Mother Earth News readers. Your helpful advice will be posted on this page.  E-mail addresses are never displayed on comments, but they are required to confirm your comments.

Line breaks and paragraphs are automatically converted — no need to use <p> or <br> tags.

New to Mother Earth News?
Sign up to share comments.
Asterisks(*) indicate required fields.
Name*
Your name appears next to your comment.

E-mail Address*
This will be your login ID.

City State Zip Code

Password*


Confirm Password*

Comments
(Offensive materials and/or spam will be removed, no HTML allowed)
Please Note: Your sign-up must be verified via e-mail before your comment is published.
FEATURED ARTICLES
MOST POPULAR


Subscribe Today - Pay Now & Save 66% Off the Cover Price

First Name: *
 Last Name: *
Address: *
 City: *
State/Province: *
 Zip/Postal Code:*
Country:
 Email:*
(* indicates a required item)
Canadian subs: 1 year, (includes postage & GST). Foreign subs: 1 year, . U.S. funds.
Canadian Subscribers - Click Here
Non US and Canadian Subscribers - Click Here

Lighten the Strain on the Earth and Your Budget

Mother Earth News is the guide to living — as one reader stated — “with little money and abundant happiness.” Every issue is an invaluable guide to leading a more sustainable life, covering ideas from fighting rising energy costs and protecting the environment to avoiding unnecessary spending on processed food. You’ll find tips for slashing heating bills; growing fresh, natural produce at home; and more. Mother Earth News helps you cut costs without sacrificing modern luxuries.

At Mother Earth News, we are dedicated to conserving our planet’s natural resources while helping you conserve your financial resources. That’s why we want you to save money and trees by subscribing through our Earth-Friendly automatic renewal savings plan. By paying with a credit card, you save an additional $4.95 and get 6 issues of Mother Earth News for only $10.00 (USA only).

You may also use the Bill Me option and pay $14.95 for 6 issues.