Coffee is by far a trendy beverage consumed throughout the world. After brewing the beans, the leftover grounds are generally discarded. But you can put these leftover coffee grounds to various uses at home. They can add up to the beauty of your garden or be a part of your beauty regime. A cup of coffee will not just wake you up; the used grounds will also prove equally helpful. Here are some practical ways to use those used coffee grounds instead of discarding them as waste.
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Fertilizer For Your Garden
Soil needs to have a good mix of essential nutrients for the optimal growth of your plants, and the nutrients will deplete over time. Thus, adding fertilizers from time to time is vital to ensure that the soil carries all the desired nutrients. Coffee grounds are rich in nitrogen, potassium, calcium, iron, magnesium, phosphorus, and chromium.
Coffee grounds also attract worms, which your garden needs. You can sprinkle the coffee grounds on the soil. It must be added to the soil if you wish to grow carrot or radish plants. The nitrogen content in the grounds is also an excellent fertilizer for your roses.
Compost It For Future Use
If you do not wish to add fertilizer now, you can easily compost the coffee grounds for future use. Composting turns all-natural leftover items such as food waste and debris into compost. Adding this to your garden provides the soil the capacity to hold more water and nutrients. The quality of the compost is enhanced substantially if you add coffee grounds along with other items like leaves, shredded newspaper, eggshells, and fruit and vegetable peels. Simply put it all together in your compost bin and let it rest to form compost. Spread it in the garden soil to nourish the greens.
Repel Insects And Pests
Coffee is rich in caffeine which can prove to be highly dangerous for insects. Thus coffee grounds are widely used to repel bugs and pests. They are very effective in putting off mosquitos, flies, beetles, and other pests. Simply place the used grounds in a bowl or sprinkle them in the outdoor areas. Scattering them in the garden also keeps the slugs and snails away. Coffee grounds are an excellent pest repellent. You can also mix some coffee grounds in your pet shampoo to prevent fleas. Generally, bugs don’t like the pungent aroma of coffee grounds.
Remove Odors
Coffee grounds are rich in nitrogen that is very helpful to eliminate the pungent-smelling sulfur gas with a combination of carbon. These coffee grounds can easily absorb and neutralize odors. Simply place a cup full of coffee grounds in your fridge and see the miracle happening. There will be no pungent smell of any spoiled food.
You can fill them up in old socks or gloves and use them as air fresheners. Slide these in your shoes, drawers, in the car, gym bag, or any place that needs deodorizing. You can also rub your palm with these grounds after chopping onions or peeling garlic. The grounds will remove the pungent smell from your hands.
Effective Body Scrub
Coffee grounds act as an excellent exfoliant for your skin. It helps to take off all the dead skin and makes your skin look rejuvenated and refreshed. It would be best if you completely dried the coffee grounds before using them as a scrub. Mix the dried coffee grounds with coconut oil to create a simple scrub. You may also enrich it with some brown sugar and vanilla extract.
Rub this onto your skin and let it dry for some time before you rinse it off. It works wonders for the skin and smells divine. The coarse particles remove all the dead cells and dirt from the skin. The amazing antioxidant properties also protect the skin from the sun and improve blood circulation.
Natural Dye
You can grind and brew the old coffee beans to make a natural dye. Stronger coffee will result in a dark brown shade, while lighter coffee will make a lovely light brown shade on brewing. Put your fabric in this liquid and stir it till the cloth is well coated. Let it stay submerged for at least an hour. Pull out the fabric and rinse it with cold water. Put the fabric for at least 15 minutes in a mix of cold water and vinegar. The naturally dyed fabric is ready to use.
Tenderize Your Meat
You can use the old coffee beans to tenderize meat. Brewed coffee is rich in enzymes that make the meat tender while marinating. Brew these beans to make strong coffee, and then marinate your meat in it. You can also rub the coffee grounds on the meat to give it a caramelized flavor. Meat has a tough texture due to the presence of proteins. Thus tenderizing gives it a soft texture. The enzymes and natural acids present in coffee are very effective at tenderizing it.
Repair Scratched Furniture
With time, the wooden furniture in the house gets scratched or scuffed. Using coffee grounds is an effective way to reduce the appearance of these scratches. Mix the coffee grounds with water to form a paste of thick consistency. Dab the paste using cotton and apply it to the scratches. Let it dry for a few minutes, and then wipe it off using a clean cotton cloth. It will give a nice wooden brown color to the scratched area.
Conclusion
There are many more practical ways to use the coffee grounds, but these techniques are the best. All of this is entirely natural, practical, and inexpensive. So now, when you buy some coffee beans, enjoy the rich, flavorful cup of coffee and let the grounds do their job.
