Feb 202012
by Avis Licht –
Great news for coffee drinkers in the gardening world! Although many people love to drink coffee, it has often gotten a bad rap about its health effects. Well, I’m here to say that a very reputable source has reported that coffee is very good for your health. Especially if you’re a woman. What has this got to do with your garden? Keep on reading!
Here’s what Dr. Sadja Greenwood has to say about coffee in her health blog.
“Positive news about caffeine and coffee is on the rise! Annia Galano, a Cuban chemist, recently published a paper suggesting that coffee is one of the richest sources of healthful antioxidants in the average person’s diet. It scavenges free radicals that can have damaging effects on the body. Here is a summary of recent research.Less Cognitive decline: A study found that women over age 65 who drank over three cups of coffee a day showed less cognitive decline over 4 years than those drinking one cup or less. No such relationship was found for men in this study.(Too bad for you guys.) Decaf coffee and caffeine alone did not give this protection.” That’s the good news about coffee drinking for us coffee lovers.
The better news about all those extra coffee grounds is that they are fantastic for your garden.
- They contain nitrogen, and provide generous amounts of phosphorus, potassium, magnesium, and copper.
- It is a myth that used grounds are highly acidic. The acid in coffee is reduced by the water when the coffee is brewed. What’s left is not highly acidic.
- Grounds are best used in the compost, or mixed into the soil. Don’t use them as a mulch on the surface, as the grounds tend to grow moldy and get hard.
- Worms love coffee grounds. You can safely put them into your worm bins.
Here’s a link to another article on composting and coffee. It has lots of information:Coffee grounds in the garden.
Too bad; we don’t have any coffee ground. But, I have lots of tea bags and I do compost them and put them in ground. I have heard that they are also very good for plants.
thanks, Avis – I loved reading it, finding out about coffee grounds not being acidic, and looking at the daffodils. I will start drinking decaf on my early walkabout. Had to leave regular coffee a few years ago. Sorry about the cognitive decline. Happy birthday to both you and Bob. love and hugs, s