Teatime in the garden, for your plants

The heat wave we had offered a big boost to our gardens growth, and encouraged the faithful growers that summer has indeed arrived. The boost in vitamin D comes at a cost for both human and plant life as the intense heat can quickly sap the energy from all of us. While you are looking for a nice shady spot to enjoy an icy glass of tea, don’t forget to offer teatime to your garden as well.

Tea leaves in the garden offer a healthy boost to plants and work to deter pests. It encourages healthy leaf growth with a boost of nitrogen, potassium, and phosphorus. However in some cases, the tannic acids, aluminum, fluorine, and manganese from tea leaves may slow some plant growth so check into your tea type before top dressing or offering liquid nourishment. Acid loving plants like hydrangeas, roses, begonias, azaleas, and tomatoes will thank you. There are better alternatives though for all around teatime in the garden.

A favorite go-to that offers a nice quenching drink of potassium tea made from bananas. Simply discarding your banana peels in a watering vessel in the garden then allowing them to soak for a few days or weeks will steep a nutrient rich tea that will offer a boost to dehydrated plants, especially tomatoes. Not only is this a natural fertilizer, but it is also a fantastic way to compost spent banana peels with essential nutrients that significantly enhance the growth, health, and flowering of plants.

This organic elixir promotes healthy roots with hormones known as auxins found in bananas. The potassium compost will enhance flowering, in turn boosting fruit and veggie production. Banana tea is also high in phosphorus, boosting nutrient uptake and energy transfer. The calcium in banana tea strengthens plant immunity and lastly the peels improve soil quality by adding organic matter.

A bonus, according to the Farmers Almanac, is that aphids detest the smell of bananas, so a dose of this liquid fertilizer will send them packing. This cost-effective natural fertilizer is simple and environmentally friendly making it a perfect option for re hydrating your plants during these dog days of summer.