Hi everyone! This easy fertilizer I make at home for my garden, & thought you might enjoy using it for yours as well. Let me know what you think!
INGREDIENTS
• sweet or bell peppers
• sugar (I use coconut palm in everything)
• banana peels
• water
MATERIALS
• strainer
• glass vessel & cap
• pot & stove
• paper towel or cheese cloth
• rubber band
• fridge
First you’re going to want to start off by chopping up the pepper & banana peels. As small as you can loosely get them is fine, but you don’t have to be super particular about it. Place them in the soup pot when you’re done! Only wash them before chopping if they were previously exposed to chemicals or contaminants, open at a grocery store, etc. You may also want to save the pepper seeds to dry & plant in the ground for food.
Cover the plant matter in the pot with water, so there’s about equal amounts of each. Bring them to a boil on the stove, meanwhile, mash up the plant matter in the water so its smaller particles start to disperse - you want the pulp!
After you feel like the banana peels & pepper have gotten pretty mushy, you’ll find the water has turned brown. That’s good. Mash a little more then take it off the heat to cool enough to handle.
When you’re ready, strain it over the sink, catching the fluid in a glass vessel. Compost what remaining plant matter you strain out. Hopefully your strainer isn’t so tightly woven as to not allow any pulp through, if that’s the case then take a pinch of what was strained out, mash it up extra, & place it in the vessel too. This will be “fermentation food.”
Next, add one tablespoon of sugar into the vessel for every pint of water you’ve got of the mixture. Stir it in to dissolve or swirl the vessel. Cover the opening of your container with a paper towel or cheese cloth, & rubber band rut into place.
You can leave this mix in a dark, undisturbed location. Don’t touch it for 9 to 13 days, give or take. When you’re done, take it out, put the proper cap on it then stick it in the fridge for safekeeping.
When you want to use it as fertilizer, dilute by adding 1 to 3 tablespoons for every quart of water in a separate vessel. Use this mix to water your plants & use immediately. Diluting it allows for better absorption.
That’s it! Really simple recipe, I love it because I know where everything that goes into my garden is made, firsthand. It’s either me or the elements itself which feels much better than the roll of dice which can be MiracleGro. Hopefully this formula will work for you, let me know any questions! The potassium & other nutrients from the plant matter itself will nourish in ways that growing plants typically need, while the fermentation will bring out the best in what’s present & make it more bioavailable.
Woo hoo! Thanks for reading. Happy plant parenting!
Warmly,
EEDEN xx