Don't Throw Away Eggshells: Use Them To Fertilize Your Garden

If you're a big breakfast eater, you probably go through a ton of eggshells. But, of all the different ways to use eggshells instead of throwing them out, fertilizer is the best choice. Eggshells are a fantastic way to keep your plants happy, healthy, and fruitful and it takes next to no effort to use them properly.

Eggshells are rich in calcium carbonate, a minor nutrient that helps fortify plant cell walls, and also reduces soil acidity. In particular, proper levels of calcium help support plant structure and encourage them to develop a robust root structure. It's also vital to preventing blossom end rot, when the flower of a fruit shrivels and dies on the end but doesn't fall off, creating a rotting, wet mass that destroys produce. Even if you don't get particularly fancy with it and just spread eggshells on the surface of your garden, common mammalian pests like deer and rabbits hate the sulfurous eggy smell and steer clear of them whenever possible.

Just keep in mind that it is possible to overfertilize your garden with calcium, so get a soil test done to determine how much your soil needs. Too much calcium can dilute other nutrients like magnesium and nitrogen, and may even increase your risk of blossom end rot rather than decrease it. However, once you've determined how much eggshell to use, there are really no wrong answers on how to fertilize your garden with it.

Since eggshells lack other important nutrients, you won't want to rely solely on their calcium to fertilize your garden. Fortunately, your breakfast can be an all-in-one source of nutrients if you combine the right ratio of eggshells, coffee grounds, and banana peels. Coffee grounds have plenty of nitrogen, and banana peels are packed with potassium and magnesium, so combine them with the calcium of eggshells for an early morning pick-me-up for your plants!

You can rinse, dry, and crush eggshells to create a fine powder to mix into gardening soil just before you plant your vegetables. Just be sure you don't let any shell fall down the drain, as you should never put eggshells in your disposal. Soil matters when growing tomatoes and other nutrient-hungry plants, so scooping some of this powder into your plant's dug-out hole is a great way to get your fruits and vegetables off to a strong start and establish a healthy root system as early as possible.

If, instead, you're looking for something to apply after your garden's planted, try making an eggshell tea. Boil a gallon of water and steep 10 to 20 clean eggshells overnight, depending on your garden's calcium needs. When combined with other standard fertilizers, like 10-10-10 rich in nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, an eggshell tea watering as needed all but guarantees a fruitful, healthy garden.