As a British guy, it’s safe to say that I love tea. This article reveals whether plants love tea as much as we humans do. Specifically, I will highlight any benefits of tea for houseplants, why some people use tea as plant fertilizer, and ultimately if you should pour tea over your beloved plants. Let’s get started…
Is Tea Good for Plants?
Yes, tea is good for plants. It can be used to nourish and fertilize your beautiful plants, especially plants that enjoy slightly acidic soil. It’s recommended to use organic tea to limit pesticide use.
Tea leaves contain a number of nutrients, like: nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, polyphenols, theanine, antioxidants, and minerals. In fact, tea has 4.4% nitrogen, which is more than most fertilizers.
But What Else is in Your Teabag?
We tend not to think too deeply about the ingredients in our tea. Truth is, there are thousands of components in every tea bag. One component us plant lovers need to be concerned about is the presence of pesticide. I advise to only use organic tea to prevent giving your plant a good dose of pesticide.
What Plants Like Tea?
Most plants like tea, but there are a few plants that really like tea. Here we are talking about plants that enjoy acidic soil. This is because tea adds tannic and amino acids to the soil, which lowers the pH value of the soil. Plants that enjoy alkaline soil will not be very happy that they’ve be doused in tea.
Most varieties of ferns grow in slightly acidic soil. Maidenhair ferns, on the other hand, need a more alkaline-based soil. While using tea on these ferns will not actually kill them, they will not receive the same level of nourishment and growth as other ferns.
Here are some other plants will appreciate the addition of tea to make their soil more acidic:
- Oxalis
- Hydrangeas
- East lily
- Rubber Plant
- Philodendron
- Tomatoes
- Spider Plant
How to Water Plants with Tea?
Pouring tea water into the soil
When it comes to the volume and frequency of tea-infused water, things function the same way as usual plant watering. Extra tea water should not be added to the water that a plant receives on a regular basis. When you have a cup of tea and intend to use it to water your plants later that day, bear in mind how much water it has already got sitting in the soil. It’s important to let the tea water cool before pouring it over your plant.
Burying the tea bag into the soil
This is an excellent way to provide extra nutrients to the soil. Be sure to use paper tea bags rather than polyester or other non-biodegradable fabrics.
This tea bag should have been used previously. Seeking opportunities to repurpose items for our plants is one of the true joys of gardening. Burying a recycled tea bag is a perfect chance to do this every week.
Observe how the plants respond to tea during the first few days after it is added to the soil, regardless of which approach you use. Holding a log is an ideal way to keep track of everything from the consistency of their leaves to their rate of growth and overall health.
Can Tea Be Used As Plant Fertilizer?
Yes, tea can be used as plant fertilizer. In fact, it contains a lot of the same nutrients, except phosphorus. You may want to run a little experiment by comparing the results from using standard fertilizer and tea fertilizer.
If you like the results, you have yourself a much cheaper and sustainable alternative to traditional fertilizer. Finally you have somewhere to put those used tea bags!
Final Thoughts
So there we have it! Tea can allow your plants to thrive, especially those that enjoy slightly acidic soil. Using tea on your house plants is also incredibly sustainable. You’ll be doing your bit to give back to nature.
