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Banana Peels In Garden – Compost Process, Fertilizer

Banana Peels in Garden

Hello friends, we are here with a new topic of “Banana Peels In Garden”. Using Banana peels in Garden as compost is a great method to add both organic material and some important nutrients to your compost mix. Banana peels are great for your garden plants. You should bury some peels of Banana fruit at the bottom of the hole when planting crops. You can add them to water and let them sit for a few days to make Banana peel tea, and it is an excellent fertilizer for indoor or garden plants. Composted Banana peels contribute important nutrients, potassium, and phosphorus, to the soil. Banana peel compost is probably the best method to feed your garden plants at a fraction of the cost of commercial fertilizers.

In this article we also discuss the below topics about Banana peels;

  • How to compost Banana peels
  • Banana peel for plants
  • Ways to use Banana peels in the garden
  • Are Banana peels good for the garden

A Step by Step Guide to Banana Peels in Garden

Composting is the decomposing of natural organic materials in a certain way so that the good microbes eat away your kitchen and backyard waste materials and turn them into fertilizer. Also, you can use Banana peels as an organic, side-dressing treatment for most garden plants. Banana peels are good for garden plants because they have 42% potassium, one of the 3 major components of fertilizer along with nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P).

The Effect of Bananas on Soil Compost

Banana peel compost will help to add important nutrients like calcium, magnesium, sulfur, phosphates, potassium, and sodium to healthy plant growth. Also, Bananas in compost help add healthy organic material, which helps the compost retain water and make the soil lighter when added to your garden. Banana peels will break down quickly in compost and allows them to add these important nutrients to the compost quickly than some other compost materials.

Benefits of Banana Peels in Garden as a Compost

Some benefits of Banana peel compost are given below;

  • On average, the Banana peel has about 3.5% of its weight in protein. There’s about 16% nitrogen in plant protein. That means the raw Banana peel that you throw away has about 0.6% nitrogen. It also has about 4.6% potassium. This gives you about 11.5% of potassium in the final product.
  • Also, you get other nutrients from your Banana peel compost even if in trace amounts. It has about 0.8% calcium, 0.2% magnesium, and 0.3% phosphorus. Add in 31% sugar in the raw peel that will keep the worms happy while they ferment the Banana peels.
  • All of this points to a highly nutritious fertilizer that feeds roses, vegetables, and herbaceous perennial plants without the drawbacks of chemical fertilizers. You can make a spray or a tea out of the compost and then use it on sensitive plants that prefer mild or diluted fertilizers.

Why Banana Peels?

Below are a few of the important minerals and nutrients that are contained in Banana peels;

  • Potassium (Contains 42% when dried)
  • Phosphorus
  • Calcium
  • Manganese
  • Sodium
  • Magnesium
  • Sulfur

All are important nutrients for your plants. Banana peels make an excellent cheap or free fertilizer for your garden plants.

How to Compost Banana Peels

Banana Peel Composting
Banana Peel Composting (Image credit: pixabay)

Banana peel composting provides a nutrient-rich additive for garden soil. A full-sized Banana peel takes 3 to 4 weeks to decompose. Whether you compost with the help of worms by vermicomposting, which gets hot as materials break down outdoors, Bananas break down in the procedure, adding nitrogen to the compost. Airflow is important to the Banana composting process, so turning the compost holes in it from time to time is essential.

Composting Banana peels is as easy as simply tossing leftover Banana peels into the compost. You can toss them in whole, but be aware that they can take longer to compost this way. You can speed up the composting procedure by cutting up the Banana peels into smaller pieces. Many people wonder if Banana peels can be used as a direct fertilizer to garden plants. Burying the Banana peels in the soil under a plant can slow down the procedure that breaks down the peels and then makes their nutrients available to the plant. This procedure needs air to happen, and buried Banana peels will break down much more slowly than ones that are placed in a properly maintained compost pile that is turned and aerated regularly. Thus, the next time you are enjoying a healthy Banana snack, remember that your compost pile would appreciate getting the leftover Banana peels. Steps to composting Bana peels are given below;

Step 1) Firstly, select a corner of your yard or an unused area far from outdoor living and play areas to house the compost pile. When it comes to making organic compost in the garden, the key is to select a remote and isolated corner preferable downwind so you don’t get the occasional noxious odors wafting through your window. Collect other organic materials like fallen leaves, decaying stems, dead grass, faded flowers, wood shavings, and twigs from your garden and add them to the pile in the remote corner.

Step 2) Rake the yard to acquire dead grass, leaves, and decaying plant matter, and pushing it all into the compost area. Pull and then remove dead leaves, stalks, and spent flowers from plants nearby, placing them on the compost pile. Break twigs into small pieces. Break the twigs and stems into small pieces. And, make sure to have more of these brown materials as they’re rich in carbon which is essential to the process of composting.

Step 3) By using a kitchen knife to cut the Banana peels and any discarded Banana flesh into small pieces about 1 or 2 inches. The smaller the Banana pieces the faster they will break down and compost. Brown and green matter together make a reaction that builds heat and breaks the organic material down into compost. The two types of matter must be layered.

Step 4) Continue adding produce and yard-based plant matter to the compost pile whenever you acquire any. Coffee grounds and then filters, as well as eggshells, are welcome in the compost pile. Add a little water if the pile is extremely dry and damp is ideal.

Step 5) Add the Banana peels to the compost pile along with other green materials like fruits and vegetable scraps. Then, cut all the organic materials you add into tiny morsels. They are rich in nitrogen which interacts with the carbon in the brown materials to speed up composting. Arrange compost pile into alternating layers of green and brown color materials. Then, sprinkle water all over the pile to make it damp. If it’s dry, it won’t compost properly. Keep adding other organic materials like eggshells and ground coffee to the pile along with both green and brown materials.

Step 6) As the Banana peels break down; this creates a lot of heat. By using a pitchfork to stir the compost pile at least once every couple of days. Then, this allows oxygen into the depth of the pile and mixes the different materials.

Step 7) Turn the compost pile with a shovel or pitchfork every week or so to aid the composting process and add oxygenate to the pile. Airflow is necessary for the breakdown process.

Step 8) Keep stirring the pile to maintain the temperature level and moisture level until the compost is broken down and becomes ready to use. After a week, the composting is complete and you can start using the compost in your garden.

How to Make Banana Peel Fertilizer

This simple Banana peel fertilizer makes for magical results when you feed it to your plants.

Equipment’s needed;

  • Banana peels
  • One-quart mason jar
  • Mason jar lid
  • Distilled water

Making Banana Peel Fertilizer

  • Firstly, add a Banana peel to a clean jar.
  • Fill the jar with water and then put the lid on it.
  • Let the mixture sit for a week to 2 weeks, then remove and discard the Banana peel.
  • Dilute the finished fertilizer with water in about a 1:4 ratio.
  • Enjoy happy plants and bigger yields.

How to use Banana peel fertilizer – Water your garden plants at the base with the diluted Banana peel fertilizer once a week. To get the best results, begin the growing season with this fertilizer and use it continually.

Banana Peels Compost Tea

1. Firstly, fill a container about ¾ full of water.

2. Then, chop Banana peels and put them in the water.

3. Refrigerate to preserve the liquid.

4. Continue to add chopped peels until full.

5. Strain the liquid into another container.

6. Store in the refrigerator until use.

The Banana peels will turn black color, but refrigeration will keep the compost tea fresh.

Uses of Banana Peel Compost Tea

1. To use Banana peel compost tea as a liquid fertilizer – For this, mix one cup of compost tea in one gallon of water. Use it to water around the base of garden plants.

2. To use Banana peel compost tea as a natural aphid control – For this, mix the compost tea about 1 part tea and 5 parts water in a spray bottle. Spray plant leaves and stems. Aphids hate Bananas, and also the plants will absorb the mixture for extra nutrients.

Banana Peel Plant Fertilizer Spray

What You Need;

  • 4 Banana Peels
  • 1 tablespoon Epsom Salt
  • 3 Egg Shells
  • Empty Spray Bottle
  • Water

Step 1) You can take Banana peels and either place them in a food dehydrator or place them in a sunny place outside where they will not be disturbed. Make sure they are on parchment paper or in a container so you can easily collect the dried pieces. Let these dry until they are completely dry. You may want to prepare any eggshells, leave them sitting on the counter while the Banana peels are drying so they are fully dried out as well.

Step 2) Dried Banana peels and eggshells are making fine powder in a food processor. Then add this powder and the Epsom salts to the bottle. This recipe fills a 32-ounce spray bottle. If the bottle is smaller you can either place it in a couple of bottles or half the recipe.

Step 3) Add water to your spray bottle until it’s just full. Swirl and then shake the spray until the salts and the powder have dissolved into the water.

Step 4) You can use this mixture on houseplants on garden plants. Don’t spray directly onto plants that are in full sunlight, spray into the soil around the garden plants. If you cannot get the mixture to spray, just add a little around the base of the plants.

Ways to Use Banana Peels in Your Garden

Generally, Banana peels are a rich source of nutrients like Potassium, phosphorus, and calcium, along with other minerals.

1. Banana Peel Tea

For making Banana peel tea, fill a mason jar with water, and add a Banana peel. Let it sit for 48 hours. After 2 days, discard the peel, leaving the water in a jar. Water your garden plants as usual with your Banana tea. For preparing Banana peel tea, chop Banana peels into 1/4 inch pieces, and release some of the beneficial vitamins and minerals in the peels. Bury them from 4 inches down to beneath the soil surface.

2. As a Spray-On Fertilizer

Feeding Banana peels to plants is easy. There are several reasons why many people use Banana peel fertilizer superfood as a substitute for chemical fertilizers. If you bury Banana peels, they offer rich stores of soil essential nutrients.

3. Dry the peels into a fertilizer

Similar to the spray version, you can dry Banana peels and grind them into fertilizer. Add to garden soil directly, either by sprinkling as a side dressing or incorporating into the dirt, making sure to avoid plants’ roots.

4. Create a Banana peel spray

For making Banana peel spray fertilizer use eggshells for a calcium boost and Epsom salt for magnesium. If plants are established, and you just want to give them a nutrient boost, try making a fertilizer spray. To make the fertilizer spray, you’ll need Banana peels, eggshells, Epsom salt, and water.

5. Dehydration of Banana peels

The Banana peels after dehydration are perfect. All you need dehydrate the Banana peels at higher temperature levels. After going through immense hot Banana peels will have turned into a brownish color. Then, after cooling make them into a powdered state by blending them up. Then, keep this powder as side-dressing of your garden plants.

6. Pest Control

Cut up Banana peels into the soil also will help naturally deter some pests. You can spray your peels compost tea directly onto plants to help repel aphids. Also, your plants will absorb the minerals in the compost tea through their leaves.

7. Bug Buster

Spray diluted Banana peel fertilizer on plants to repel pests like aphids. Burying chopped-up Banana peels around the base of plants will keep aphids at bay. Normally, Banana peels and apple cider vinegar make a fantastic bug trap. Then, pour a small amount of apple cider vinegar into a jar and also add a chopped Banana peel. Place a funnel in the container and discard after 48 hours and repeat the process.

8. Banana Peel Vinegar for Acid-Loving Plants

Fermenting the Banana peels will affect an acidic vinegar-like mixture. Acid-loving plants such as blueberries and hydrangeas will do better with this fertilizer, rather than the standard Banana peel fertilizer. Finely chop a Banana peel and then add it to a mason jar. Then, pour in enough water to cover the peels. Then, cover the jar with a doubled-up layer of cheesecloth and put the jar in a warm place for a week. Remove the Banana peels after a week and then cover the jar. Let the vinegar continue to ferment for another month and dilute the finished vinegar 1:1 with water and feed to plants that require acidic soil once every other week.

9. Encourage Blooming in Plants

The Banana peels have key nutrients that plants need to form big and bright blooms. Also, potassium facilitates the transfer of nutrients and water between plant cells and protects them from diseases. Therefore, a fermented Banana peel mix makes a superb side dressing for plants.

10. Prepare Your Garden Bed

The Banana peel has fertilizing and nutritive nature makes them perfect as a soil amendment. They will boost microbial growth and enable the beneficial worms to aerate and improve the quality of your soil. Make sure to bury them deeply and they might end up attracting pesky animals like moles and rabbits.

11. Keep Aphids Away

Use Banana peels in the garden are as an aphid deterrent is easy. Place chopped Banana peels just under the soil line to prevent aphids. You’ll also be adding fertilizer to the garden since as the peels decompose, their nutrients will unlock and release into the dirt.

Tips for Composting Banana Peels in Garden

In case if you miss this: Greenhouse Gardening For Beginners.

Tips for Composting Banana Peels in Garden
Tips for Composting Banana Peels in Garden (pic source: pixabay)
  • Banana is an excellent fruit that greatly suits composting since they are providing phosphorus, calcium, and potassium to the compost pile and soil nutrients. The best method is to cut the Banana peels into smaller pieces so that the decomposition process inside the compost bin is escalated.
  • You must remember that airflow is critical to the composting process. Therefore, it is good advice to rotate compost tumbler from time to time and that it is turned regularly. To keep it aerated using a compost bin aerator tool or a compost turner.
  • With a compost bin, you can open the bin and poke holes or use an aerator to ensure the microbes are kept happy with a constant oxygen supply. Also, you can always use some store-bought bagged compost from the local garden center to need some compost in a hurry.

Do Banana Peels Work in Potted Plants?

There are several methods to use Banana peels with potted plants. The easiest method for Banana peels to work in potted plants is to simply lay the peels on top of the soil. Fertilization with new plants by laying Banana peels at the bottom of the hole in the potting soil as add the plant to the pot. Similarly, cutting up the peels into 1-inch pieces makes them easy to mix with the soil in the pot. Pureeing the Banana peels with water for making an excellent liquid fertilizer for potted plants.

How to Mix a Banana Peels in the Soil

Why Use Banana Peels in Soil? Banana peels are rich in potassium content. Nitrogen is necessary for healthy growing plants; too much nitrogen can increase leaf production and decrease fruit production. On the other hand, potassium promotes fruiting and flowering, making it a good idea to use Banana peel fertilizer for tomatoes, roses, and other flowering and fruiting plants.

By adding Banana peels to compost enriches the compost with healthy, organic material. Composting Banana peels are an efficient method to ensure your plants quickly receive the nutrients from the peel. Cutting the Banana peels into small pieces and burying them around the plant will not only bring nutrients to the soil but deter pesky aphids from eating the plant. Though, be sure to use small pieces since full peels could attract squirrels and other rodents.

How to Use Banana Peels in Soil- Mixing Banana peels into the soil can be done in several ways depending on the plant’s stage. If you are looking to add a single plant to a garden or pot and haven’t planted it yet, try cutting 2 to 3 peels into small 1-inch pieces. After that, add the plant and firm the soil around it.

Carefully dig up about 2 inches of soil surrounding the plant for already established plants, and then bury the 1-inch Banana peel pieces. Fertilizing with Banana peels can be done every 2 to 3 weeks during the growing season. To save some Banana peels for later, you can dry them in a dehydrator or under the sun and crumble them into a powder and store them in a plastic bag. Then, you can sprinkle it into the soil as needed.

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