27.02.2016 35 576

Eggshell as a fertilizer - the benefits and use of valuable fertilizer!

Eggs are one of the must-have products on our table. What do you do with eggshells that accumulate a lot? You probably throw it out with the trash. This is not the most The best decision. It turns out that eggshells can be used as fertilizer for your garden.

How are eggshells useful for plants?

Egg shells consist of 93% calcium carbonate, which is easily digestible for plants due to its synthesis in the body of the bird. The fats, organic substances, magnesium carbonate, proteins and carbohydrates included in the shell are an excellent feeding and source useful substances.

The crystalline structure of the shell also has a beneficial effect on digestibility. In this sense, the shell is much more convenient than lime or chalk, which are traditionally used to deoxidize the soil. As is known, increased acidity soil negatively affects plant fertility. Finely crushed eggshells mixed with mineral fertilizers help to cope with this deficiency.

Eggshells are a source of nutrients for soil and plants

Table: useful substances contained in raw materials

It is recommended to use eggshells from poultry as fertilizer for the garden. The elements included in its composition are of natural origin, since the diet of poultry includes natural products. Store-bought eggs are also suitable for use, but the feeding from them is much weaker, although the calcium content in the composition is higher.

Video about the benefits of eggshells

Features of collecting raw materials

Start collecting material in winter. At that time Domestic bird begins to rush after a short break. Do not forget that the shell must be clean: protein residues will rot over time and begin to emit an unpleasant odor. Rinse the collected shells thoroughly and dry them afterwards.

Start collecting shells at least from the beginning of winter

Studies have shown that the brown shell is somewhat thicker and denser than the white one. This means that its mass is higher, and therefore the content of nutrients in it is higher.

The larger the area you need to fertilize, the more eggshells you will need. Collect required quantity not difficult if you have a lot of laying hens at your disposal or if you have neighbors who collect shells only to throw away and can easily give them to you. Otherwise, collection will take a lot of time. You can calculate the total weight of shells collected during the year using the formula: 10 g * N * 12 months - 10%, where:

• 10 grams - average weight 1 egg shell;
• N is the number of eggs your family eats during the month;
• 12 months - 12 months;
• 10% - unusable shells that will have to be thrown away

Rules for grinding shells for fertilizer

To use the material, it must be crushed. The degree of grinding may vary depending on the application. You can process clean, dried shells in a coffee grinder, mortar, or meat grinder. Another way: place the shell on a hard surface, such as a table, thin layer, cover with newspaper or cloth and tap it thoroughly with a hammer, then use a rolling pin as if you were rolling out dough. This way you will achieve a fairly fine grind.

To use the shell as fertilizer, it needs to be crushed

Use in the garden

To get good seedlings and a bountiful harvest, apply the crushed material to the soil at the rate of 2 cups per 1 square meter of area. When digging up the soil before winter, the shells can be added to the soil in small pieces.

The crushed shells are added to the soil when digging

You can also make an infusion from the shells, crushed into powder, to use as a liquid fertilizer. You will need 5-6 shells per 1 liter of water. Calculate how many shells you need, chop them and pour boiling water over them. Leave for 5 days, stirring regularly. This infusion is very good for watering young shoots of any vegetable crops, especially potatoes. It is also great for feeding eggplant and cauliflower seedlings, which are often deficient in microelements. Just remember that during the period of plant germination, the amount of such fertilizer should be moderate. But for adult plants - vegetables, any garden flowers - this feeding will be ideal.

Video about using eggshells in the garden

Benefits for seedlings

You can grow seedlings directly in eggshells

Eggshells have long been known as aid when growing seedlings. It has a very beneficial effect on tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, flower crops at the seedling stage. Gardeners have been using shells since before special containers and peat tablets were available.

It was done like this: the top of a whole egg was removed, the contents were poured out ( a raw egg can be drunk or used to make scrambled eggs, omelettes, baked goods). Drainage holes were made with a gypsy needle, awl or thin nail. This creates a container in which you can place 1-3 vegetable or flower seeds. The soil will be supplied with nutrients, and when it is time to plant the seedlings, it is enough to slightly squeeze the shell so that it cracks. Be careful not to injure the roots of tender seedlings.

If you sow seeds for seedlings in plastic cups, you can add a small amount of shells ground into flour (3-5 grams for each cup) to the substrate used.

Small pieces of eggshells will serve as excellent drainage in seedling containers. Simply spread the shells in a 1 cm layer along the bottom of the pot or container in which you plan to sow.

How to use the product for indoor plants?

The flowers that you grow in pots at home need mineral fertilizers. As you know, they oxidize the soil, which has already given almost all the useful elements to the plant in the pot. Therefore, it is advisable to use ground shells together with mineral fertilizers. Add it at the rate of 1/3 teaspoon per pot.

When replanting indoor plants, place crushed and calcined shells on the bottom of pots and containers in a layer of 2–3 cm. This will ensure good drainage and saturation of the substrate with useful substances.

Prepare liquid fertilizer from eggshells for your indoor flowers. Take a jar of any container, fill it to the top with shells and pour boiling water over it. Leave for a week, covered. A sign of readiness will be cloudiness of the liquid and its unpleasant odor. Before using the infusion to fertilize indoor flowers, dilute it with water in a ratio of 1:3.

If the unpleasant smell bothers you, prepare this tincture in a slightly different way. Grind the shells into powder, pour 0.5 kg of the resulting substance into a jar and fill with 3 liters of warm water. Leave for a day, then use without diluting. The powder can be added with water again to prepare the infusion again.

Use eggshells as pots for indoor flowers

After all, you can use eggshells as decorative element. Plant small plants in the shell, for example, succulents or violets; they will look very original in such improvised “pots”.

Video about eggshells as drainage

Useful tips

The “egg” theme is especially relevant on Easter.

If you think that egg it is solely a source of protein and protein, you are wrong.

You can also use eggshells in your home.

Few people know about the benefits that can be gained from using an ordinary egg shell, which we are used to throwing in the trash.

Here are the 10 most interestingand useful ideas on where you can use egg shells:

Eggshells for plants

1. Protecting the garden from pests

May is just around the corner, and are you worried that there will be no plants left in your garden or vegetable garden? Snails or slugs can make adjustments to your harvest plans.

Scatter crushed eggshells near damaged plants and around the perimeter of your garden.

Snails and slugs will not be able to safely walk through the sharpened shell waste, and deer and other potential pests cannot stand the smell of eggs.

Thus, your garden and vegetable garden will have a greater chance of remaining untouched by uninvited guests.

Eggshells for joints

2. Quick soothing remedy for sore joints

Are you suffering from joint pain? Don't throw away egg shells. It can serve you well.

Grind the eggshells, then place the powder in a glass decanter.

Fill it with apple cider vinegar.

Close the decanter and let the resulting mixture brew in a dark room for about 2 days.

Egg shells contain nutrients that promote healthy joints.

Elements such as collagen, chondroitin, glucosamine and hyaluronic acid will have a beneficial effect on your joints.

These nutrients are released into Apple vinegar, since the eggshell membrane, when dissolved, ensures the unhindered release of elements.

Rub this mixture into sore areas. You will soon feel significant relief.

*The mixture can be stored for several months in a pantry or other dark place.

How to use eggshells

3. Soften dry, flaky cuticles

Result: soft, glowing skin after just one use!

How to use eggshells

5. Natural Cleanser

Eggshells can be an excellent cleaning agent.

If you have sensitive skin or are prone to allergic reactions, try spotting household cleaners on regular egg shells.

Grind it, then leave the resulting ground powder in a closed plastic container.

If necessary, prepare the surface to be cleaned. Dip a soapy sponge in this powder and then use it as you would a regular cleaner.

The abrasive particles safely and effectively remove stains and grease without irritating sensitive skin or causing allergic reactions.

Try using egg shells as an alternative. store products. Even the most chemical-sensitive housewife can afford this chemical-free method.

6. Keep wastewater in order

If your kitchen sink drains are sluggish, clogged pipes could be the culprit. Grease, debris and food debris accumulate in the pipes, preventing the rapid passage of water.

Simply grind up the shells of a few eggs and place them in your sink drain. Then run the water through.

Under the pressure of water, shell particles will flow down the drainage, cleaning the pipes from grease, debris and food debris.

This method can effectively clean pipes.

Eggshell based

7. Brewing delicious coffee

IN Lately Does your morning coffee taste bitter and sour?

Here's how to save the situation: add 1 teaspoon of crushed eggshells to coffee granules before brewing coffee.

The alkaline calcium carbonate present in eggshells neutralizes the acid content of coffee, making it palatable and easier on the stomach.

Additionally, if you use a coffee pot with a strainer, the crushed shells will settle to the bottom without mixing with the coffee granules.

Feeding with eggshells

8. Provide birds with nutritious food

If you decide to make a bird feeder, try the following technique:

Bake five eggshells in a 250° oven.

Carefully ensure that the shells dry out but do not turn brown (about 20 minutes).

Then cool and crumble them into small pieces.

Pour the resulting mixture into the feeder.

Calcium-rich eggshells will act as a natural supplement. Thanks to the microelements contained in the shell, females will be able to lay good, strong eggs and maintain healthy bones.

*Birds can also use eggshells to create nests.

Experts have calculated that the average family eats almost eight hundred eggs annually. However, few people know that their shells are cheap and universal fertilizer. Considering that its weight is about ten grams, it is easy to collect about 8 kg of very good feeding for the vegetable season. The use of eggshells in the garden is very simple.

The product in question contains record number calcium, as well as 27 other elements that are very beneficial for plants. These are potassium, phosphorus, iron, magnesium and others. With constant application of this composition to plants, the soil will become much richer and the yield will be higher.

The films that are inside the shell contain a lot of organic matter, especially keratin.

Calcium salts, which are present in abundance in the shells of any eggs, are a natural substance, and therefore they are much better absorbed by representatives of the flora.

What are the benefits of shells for plants?

Feeding based on shells will undoubtedly be useful for your garden, because it promotes:

• Soil deoxidation. Only with normal soil acidity can plants absorb nutrients as much as possible. Very acidic soil can even be toxic.
• Enrichment of the land.
• Improving soil looseness. Often, areas have heavy soil that does not allow air and moisture to pass through, which negatively affects the development of plants. The addition of eggshells in any form significantly improves the aeration qualities of the soil.
• Repelling pests. Many insects simply leave the area if shells in powder form are regularly added to the ground. You can simply break it and scatter it around the area.
• Protection from pathogens.
• Repelling moles and mole crickets.

What plants are suitable for this fertilizer?

Egg shells are an excellent nutritional complex for tomatoes, peppers of all kinds and eggplants. Also crops such as onions, watermelons, fruit trees, berry and conifer gardeners are very fond of such fertilizers.

We collect and store shells correctly

The main problem that gardeners face when collecting shells throughout the year is their smell. But there are two ways to properly store such fertilizers.

1. The first option is washing cold water before storing. This way you can get rid of organic residues and films.
2. The second method is calcination in the oven at high temperature.

Once the shells are washed, gardeners can dry them next to the radiator and they will not emit an odor. But the downside is that the films contain valuable substances that will simply be removed during washing.

Calcination is a more troublesome option, since you still have to collect a certain amount of shell. But this will make it easier to grind the fertilizers and crush them into powder.

Making fertilizer

You can use the tincture to fertilize your garden. It is good for feeding both seedlings and adult plants.

It’s easy to prepare the tincture:

1. A liter jar should be filled with shells, which must first be mashed. You can use a meat grinder.
2. Fill the jar to the top with warm water, close the lid tightly and leave to infuse for 5 days.
3. The contents need to be shaken every day.
4. You can determine the readiness of the tincture by the appearance of an odor and strong turbidity in the water.

The liquid from the jar is drained and refilled with water. The drained water can now be used. You can fill the shell 3-4 times.

The tincture should be infused in a warm and dark place and used immediately after preparation.

The jar must be closed, because the shells will emit a smell due to organic residues.

Eggshells are traditionally used as a fertilizer for gardening, ground into fine powder. It is permissible to make it in any way, and then simply scatter it over the beds.

How to use eggshells to benefit a plant

It is important to learn how to properly apply such nutritious fertilizers to the soil.

• The powder should be scattered over the beds in small portions. The first time the powder is sprinkled on the beds is when planting seeds or seedlings. This is the primary feeding. It is advisable to apply fertilizer directly to the planting holes, since there is often not a lot of it. Usually, it is enough to add about 300 g of powder per square of land per season to enrich it.
• The tincture is diluted with water at the rate of 1:5. It is simply used to add seedlings or plants in the garden a little at a time.

Which plants can be harmed by fertilizer?

Fertilize with eggshells, despite all its beneficial properties and high content micro- and macroelements, not all plants can be used. For some crops, such environmental fertilizing is even harmful.

The shells of any eggs oversaturate the soil with calcium, and some crops cannot tolerate this element at all.

As a result, plants may become sick or develop poorly, the quality of the harvest decreases, or the plants stop bearing fruit altogether.

• Cucumbers of all varieties, as well as strawberries and wild strawberries, do not tolerate such fertilizers. These crops react very violently to such feeding.
• He does not like calcium and beans of all types, as well as cabbage.
• Spinach also does not tolerate such additives.

When it comes to growing indoor plants, some indoor flower crops also do not like calcium. This is hydrangea, which is planted in the garden in the summer, as well as delicate violets, pelargonium and azalea.

Help in the fight against insect pests

Shells against insects can even be used in greenhouses. The powder simply scatters over the area. The shell protects tomato seedlings especially well from diseases and insects. You can scatter the crushed shells instead of scattering them, but simply put them in their entirety next to the bushes.

To summarize, it must be said that it is possible and necessary to use eggshells in the garden. This a budget option mineral fertilizing, which is too expensive in the store. In addition, such fertilizer is completely natural, which allows you to grow an environmentally friendly crop.

So, without spending a penny on the purchase of fertilizers, you can use waste from the kitchen to fertilize berry fields, gardens, vegetable gardens and indoor plants.

If you set a goal, then in a few months you can collect 1-2 kg of shells and fertilize the soil. Thus, you can increase productivity and harvest 2 times more crops per season.

Often, amateur gardeners simply distribute egg shells over the surface of the ground. This method does not apply to fertilizing the soil, since the shells simply lie on the soil in large pieces. But just for birds, who flock with great pleasure to enjoy tasty and healthy food, eggshells in this form bring much more benefits.

What are the benefits of eggshells?

Let's talk about beneficial properties eggshells for soil and plants. Let's return to the birds: after the body processes the eggshell, the main beneficial component is calcium carbonate (93% of the shell consists of this substance) - it becomes useful and well digestible for plants. Naturally, you can’t get such bird droppings in huge quantities anywhere, so it’s worth considering more affordable option. Most summer residents may have heard about eggshells for the garden, but they stubbornly continue to fertilize the soil with chalk and lime. In some ways they are right, since these components also contain calcium carbonate, which is used to deoxidize soils, but do not contain such useful microelements as sulfur, phosphorus, silicon and other substances beneficial to plants.

The composition of eggshells is dominated by potassium carbonate salts - about 93-94%, magnesium - 1.3%, phosphates - 1.7% and organic substances - 3%.

Eggshell photo:

How to collect the shell

A family of 3 people can consume up to 100 eggs per month! The shells from them naturally go into the trash bin. By simple mathematical calculations it can be determined that in 1 year you can collect about 10 kg of valuable fertilizer.

There are rules for collecting shells - after the egg is broken, the shells are placed in a spacious paper box and left to dry. You need to choose a warm place so that the protein film does not deteriorate in a few days, but dries naturally. After the eggshells are completely dry (usually this takes 3 to 5 days), they are kneaded and folded into paper bags. Raw materials are stored in a dry place. You cannot place the shell in plastic bag to prevent moisture formation and spoilage.

Eat certain rules collection of eggshells:

1. You can simply put the shell aside and wait for it to dry - this applies to raw eggs.
2. Or do it differently - rinse the shell well and then dry it. The second option is the most acceptable, since the stuck pieces of protein ( thin film) will not deteriorate.
3. Collect shells and boiled eggs, you just need to carefully remove one shell, without the inside - such care will allow you to collect real useful fertilizer.

Preparation of fertilizer

To prevent the process of grinding eggshells from causing a lot of trouble, this should be done gradually. If you have collected 1 kg of raw materials, you can start grinding.

Place a soft, clean cloth on the table (you can use thick oilcloth). Then spread out the eggshells and give them a good pat with a wooden rolling pin. Dry shells will grind faster. Now all that remains is to grind the raw materials in a coffee grinder or pass through a meat grinder. This must be done, because large pieces of shell will not benefit the soil, since they will decompose very, very slowly. Place the prepared egg flour into jars and cover tightly with lids.

You can do it differently and make a combined fertilizer - bake egg shells along with ash over a fire or in an oven. This fertilizer will be rich in phosphorus, potassium, magnesium and calcium carbonate. This cocktail, as well as the crushed eggshell itself as a fertilizer, will be more beneficial for sour people. clay soils, improving their structure.

It is natural to say that adding egg powder alone will not replace complete liming of the soil, but if you do this year after year, then you can increase the yield.

A small nuance: look at inner part shell - there remains a thin dried protein film. Protein is a good plant nutrient. If you burn the shells in an oven or on a fire, the protein will be destroyed, so it makes sense to make several types of feeding from the shells.

How to use eggshells

Let's prepare liquid fertilizer from shell powder:

1. Dry the egg shells.
2. Grind it naturally, pass it through a meat grinder or coffee grinder.
3. Place the powder in a glass bottle and fill with water. Close with a tight lid.
4. The jar can be placed in a cool, dark place.
5. After 2 weeks, the water will become cloudy and an unpleasant odor will appear. This will mean that the nutrient fertilizer is ready.
6. Before fertilizing the plants, it must be diluted. plain water in proportions of 1 to 3.

Using this fertilizer you can get good harvest cabbage, root vegetables, onions, vegetables, plums and cherries.

Application of eggshells:

1. As protection against moles. Thus, you can get rid of these pests forever if you put a few pieces of dry eggshells in the hole during planting. The rodent will not like sharp edges and will no longer dig.
2. Using shells, you can protect plants from rotting of the root part of the plants (“black leg”). For the purpose of prevention, the powder is sprinkled on the soil where the plants are planted. For medicinal purposes, if some of the plants are already affected, they are completely pulled out, and the soil is generously sprinkled with crushed shell powder.
3. How to deoxidize the soil. If you have large reserves of shells (they can be taken in huge quantities from poultry farms), then add 500 grams of crushed shells per 1m2. If you don't have a lot of fertilizer, then place a handful of egg powder in each hole before planting.
4. How to make fertilizer for all plants: take 10 eggshells (from 5 eggs), pour into 5 glasses (you will get 1 liter of liquid) hot water and leave for 5 days. When the infusion acquires an unpleasant odor, you can use it. Feed like this healthy drink any plants for the purpose of enrichment with microelements.

Eggshells for plants

You can get a good harvest of cauliflower with 1 fertilizer - crushed eggshells. You only need a handful of powder, which is added when planting in the hole.

As mentioned earlier, moles do not like large pieces of shell, so the only way to repel these rodents is to add pieces of shell to each hole.

You can also declare war on slugs using this fertilizer - scatter some of the crushed shells and a few large pieces on top of the cabbage bed.

To get rid of mole crickets and protect the plants, you can also add a little crushed eggshell powder to the holes when planting.

Peppers, eggplants, watermelons and melons are very fond of the “white blanket” of crushed shells. It is necessary to add 2 cups of powder per 1m2 of land.

You can often encounter such a problem when tomatoes begin to turn red early, and then it turns out that their bottom turns black and dries out. You can’t get rid of this right away, but if you feed the soil in advance before planting, you can get a good harvest. This often occurs if the soil suffers from a lack of calcium.

If your tomatoes are starting to turn black, try adding a little crushed egg shell fertilizer to the soil. You should not expect an immediate effect, but after a while the plant will begin to recover.

Egg shells should also be added to compost heap, and also in large quantities into the soil for seedlings and for growing indoor plants to loosen the soil.

In what cases is the shell not useful?

You need to know that eggshells in large quantities will be harmful to seedlings of peppers, tomatoes and early seedlings. You cannot add eggshells to plants that you love. acidic soils– violets and gloxinias.

Large pieces of shell can provide good drainage for growing strong seedlings– you need to put a little eggshell on the bottom of each glass, and then add soil on top. All plants, without exception, will love this drainage.

Indoor flowers can be watered with an infusion of eggshells. To prepare it, you need to take part of the shell - scald it with boiling water, add plain water and leave for 4 days. After which you can use the fertilizer to water the plants.

How to determine soil acidity

To apply fertilizer and get a good harvest, you need to know the acidity of the soil. It is not always possible to test soil from a garden in a special laboratory. Amateur gardeners have their own secrets - you can find out the acidity of the soil yourself. You need to take a little soil, grind it, pour it into a bottle (for feeding babies) to the 2nd mark, then fill it with water to the 5th mark, close it with a nipple and shake well for 3 minutes. If there is a lot of acid in the soil, the nipple will straighten out. When there is little acid, the nipple will straighten out slowly or even remain retracted.