Do Palm Trees Like Coffee Grounds? This Is Your Answer

You can put coffee grounds on the palm tree. This method is often recommended because using coffee as a fertilizer is very good for palm trees.

Used coffee grounds contain high nitrogen levels and certain acids that palm trees love. These nutrients help promote growth and keep palm trees healthy, especially as it has the effect of repelling insects that attack the tree.

Many people send us questions like “do palm trees waste coffee grounds?“, mostly because they are concerned that the caffeine in coffee will harm the palm tree. However, we would like to assure you that coffee is perfect for the growth of palm trees. Moreover, it is convenient and easy to use, especially if you are a frequent coffee user.

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Ground coffee with burlap bag on the wooden table in the kitchen

Palm trees grown in alkaline soil need an acid source in the coffee grounds to neutralize the alkalinity and age the barren earth. Many studies show that insects such as snails, slugs, mites, aphids, and worms hate coffee, so coffee is also an organic fertilizer for you to protect your plants.

Many gardeners have concluded that palm trees fertilized with coffee grounds grow beautifully and produce more fresh, green leaves than other fertilizers. You do not need to worry about the effects such as burning roots or soil acidification when using coffee grounds. However, you should not apply coffee baits in excessive amounts because it will interfere with water absorption.

What I quite like about palm trees that use coffee grounds as fertilizer is that it gives off a rather pleasant coffee aroma, which is very suitable for gardening and relaxation.

How Do You Use Coffee Grounds For Palm Trees?

Coffee grounds are really good for palm trees because they contain trace amounts of nitrogen, phosphorus, magnesium, and copper in their composition. These substances are essential for the palm tree to maintain average growth. Moreover, with alkaline soils, coffee grounds also help increase acidity, neutralizing the soil because palm trees prefer acidic soil with a 5.5 to 7.5. Coffee grounds have a pH of 5.5-6.8, which is perfect for fertilizing palm trees. However, between coffee grounds and fresh coffee, fresh coffee has more acidity because it has not been brewed.

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Leaves of a palm tree and coffee grounds on wooden table

If you study more closely, you can tell that the palm tree is a grass, not a tree, but it still needs abundant and suitable nutrients like other plants. The substances that palm trees cannot understand are nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, abbreviated as “NPK” – a familiar phrase to farmers. It is a group of substances fully gathered in coffee grounds, in addition to other substances such as calcium, magnesium, copper, iron, boron, and zinc.

The way to use coffee grounds for palm trees is relatively easy. You just need to apply a little coffee grounds directly on the plant’s soil; avoid using too much coffee grounds because it will affect the ability to absorb water. In addition, you can consider brewing coffee grounds before fertilizing to reduce the amount of caffeine in coffee, avoiding harm to plants.

Many people recommend mixing the coffee grounds with the coating to increase the effect and prevent mildew.

What Is The Best Fertilizer For Palm Trees?

Palm trees are large trees that require consistent good quality fertilizers that fully meet the essential nutrients for growth. Currently, there are many different types of fertilizers on the market, and you have countless options. However, to choose the best fertilizer for palm trees, you should select NPK fertilizers with a ratio of 3: 1: 3. Palm trees prefer slow-release fertilizers that release nutrients gradually so the plant can slowly absorb nutrients. So this is also a standard for the best fertilizer for this plant. In addition, you need to pay attention to fertilizing warm soil avoid letting the soil dry out because it will be difficult to absorb nutrients. If you prefer organic fertilizers and don’t spend a lot of money, coffee grounds are a good choice.

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Farmer holding pile of arable soil

To understand why you should choose an NPK fertilizer for palm trees, you should know the effects of these substances:

– Nitrogen:

When you buy fertilizer for any plant, including Palm Trees, the first food ingredient you’ll see is Nitrogen.

Nitrogen makes up about 3% to 4% of the structure of plants, making it the first place in minerals. Nitrogen helps promote the growth and development of palm trees, creating conditions for palm trees to form amino acids. These amino acids are indispensable for plant metabolism and growth.

– Potassium

Potassium has many effects. Potassium’s most crucial role is to contribute to palm trees’ sugar and nutrient metabolism.

Potassium is an essential micronutrient for palm trees, and it helps promote the absorption of water, carbohydrates, and nutrients between all the cells inside the plant. In addition, potassium also encourages enzyme activation in plants, helps form starch, protein, increases photosynthesis.

– Phosphate

Phosphate is a critical component of several functions in palm trees, such as growth and reproduction. In addition, phosphate is also involved in the formation of ATP. It promotes energy transfer, photosynthesis, and the production of new plant sprouts.

Which Plants Do Not Like Coffee Grounds?

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Closeup detail of coffee ground in wooden bowl

Since the pH of coffee grounds is relatively high, adding coffee grounds to the soil will increase the soil’s acidity and change the pH in the earth. Therefore, coffee grounds are not suitable as a fertilizer for acidic soil or alkaline-loving plants. You need to consider your plant type and weight. If your plant is alkaline, you should not increase the acidity of the earth by adding coffee grounds to the world. In addition, when choosing coffee to fertilize plants, you need to pay attention to the pH of the soil. Although some plants prefer medium or high pH soil, if your existing soil already has enough pH, you should not add more coffee, doing so will change the soil environment.

Here are some plants that don’t like coffee grounds you need to be aware of:

– Lavender

– Orchid

– Pothos

– Rosemary

– Cactus

Palm trees love coffee, in particular, coffee with nitrogen, potassium and phosphorus content is most suitable for palm trees. You can use coffee grounds to fertilize palm trees to help them grow better and more beautiful. How to fertilize coffee grounds for palm trees is quite easy. However, not all plants like coffee grounds, you should consider carefully before using!