If you haven’t been living under a rock, you’re probably aware of how versatile baking soda is. From deep cleaning and removing teeth stains to making cakes fluffier, it’s incredibly effective and can be used in many areas of life.
Believe it or not, baking soda even has its uses in the garden! And, today, we’re going to discuss how you can use this magical fine powder to promote healthier plants and potentially boost your yields.
Let’s get into it!
Baking Soda In The Garden: 10 Smart Ways To Use It
10: Foliage Cleaning Solution
If you see a lot of hardened-up dust and dirt on your plant’s leaves, a baking soda cleaning solution might help with that.
How to use: Simply add a teaspoon of baking soda to a gallon of water and clean your leaves thoroughly with this solution to restore their vibrant look and shine.
9: Limit Fungal Growth
Strange discoloration and fungal growth on your plants can be combated effectively using a baking soda and soap solution.
How to use: Take a gallon of water, add 3-4 drops of liquid soap and a teaspoon of baking soda, and spray affected plants with this solution to give them a quick relief.
8: Natural Weed Killer
Baking soda is quite powerful as a weed killer. You don’t have to do much for this one. Just take your baking soda packet outdoors!
How to use: Sprinkle some directly onto the weeds in your garden to kill them without harming surrounding plants.
7: Balance pH Levels
If you’re trying to plant something that thrives in neutral to slightly alkaline soil, use baking soda to neutralize the soil’s acidity and make pH levels favorable for optimal growth.
How to use: Sprinkle some directly onto the soil in your garden.
6: Mask Decomposition Smell
If you’ve ever tried to make your own homemade compost, you’ll know how terrible the decomposition of organic matter smells. If the smell is getting worse, baking soda can neutralize the odor!
How to use: Sprinkle some baking soda in your compost bin to neutralize the odor.
5: Strong Pest Repellent
Baking soda can help deter pests, preventing them from feeding on the leaves and causing stress or damage to the plant.
How to use: Lightly dust baking soda on your plant’s foliage.
4: Solid Tool Cleaner
I hope you all clean your tools after using them in the garden because dirty tools can cause a lot of problems you might not be aware of. Sometimes a simple wet cloth isn’t getting rid of the dirt and grime on your tools.
How to use: Make a baking soda paste to scrub them clean. Add a teaspoon of baking soda into a bowl, a teaspoon of water and mix until it makes a thick paste. If necessary, add more water.
3: Prevent Rotting
Fruiting trees and plants can very often face the issue of browning and rot. And… guess what? Baking soda can also help with that! This works especially well for grapes and strawberries.
How to use: Add a teaspoon of baking soda to a gallon of water and spray this solution directly onto the fruit.
2: Encourage Better Blooming In Roses
If you want your rose blooms to be denser and more abundant, baking soda can help. This will encourage relatively more growth and vibrant flowers than you would get normally. However, keep in mind that this trick only works for certain flowering plants.
How to use: Simply add a teaspoon of baking soda to a gallon of water and pour it onto the soil to drench it.
1: Quicker Germination
I would say that seed germination is probably the most frustrating part of growing plants since it takes such a long time. However, you can cut this waiting time short with baking soda.
This trick works because baking soda essentially helps break down the seed coats, allowing for germination to take place a lot quicker than it would without this extra step.
How to use: Soak your seeds in some water with baking soda in it.
Conclusion
As frustrating as gardening issues are, they’re easily solvable with the right tool and approach. In this case, the tool happens to be baking soda.
If you’re going to take away anything from today’s article, it should be this: the most basic of items you have lying around your house could be surprisingly useful in the garden. DO NOT underestimate their potential!