Coffee grounds. How much is too much?

[RichnSteph]

I've recently gotten the green light from two Starbucks here on base to collect their coffee grounds each day and take them home for our garden. Our soil is 99.9999999% sand and nothing will grow in it without help. We also have oak trees all over the place and have been raking them up into a 12' diameter and 4' deep compost ring and dumping chicken manure in there to start composting. Now I've got probably 200lbs of coffee grounds already sitting outside in bags and get another 30lbs or so a day from the coffee places and I've got to get something done with it. Can I just simply dump it all into the leaves/chicken waste and start composting it? Just add what I get daily to the pile, turn, water and wait?

I'd prefer to just dump it into the garden beds and use it that way as it's easier and it'll cut down on the amount of soil we'll have to buy this weekend for planting.

Oh and we did get our aquaponics system torn down and converted into 4 12'x4' raised beds and 1 4'x4' raised bed for herbs. Hoping to get the fence up this weekend along with the gate and then start putting plants in the ground soon.


RichnSteph

 

[PD-Riverman]

I've recently gotten the green light from two Starbucks here on base to collect their coffee grounds each day and take them home for our garden. Our soil is 99.9999999% sand and nothing will grow in it without help. We also have oak trees all over the place and have been raking them up into a 12' diameter and 4' deep compost ring and dumping chicken manure in there to start composting. Now I've got probably 200lbs of coffee grounds already sitting outside in bags and get another 30lbs or so a day from the coffee places and I've got to get something done with it. Can I just simply dump it all into the leaves/chicken waste and start composting it? Just add what I get daily to the pile, turn, water and wait?

I'd prefer to just dump it into the garden beds and use it that way as it's easier and it'll cut down on the amount of soil we'll have to buy this weekend for planting.

Oh and we did get our aquaponics system torn down and converted into 4 12'x4' raised beds and 1 4'x4' raised bed for herbs. Hoping to get the fence up this weekend along with the gate and then start putting plants in the ground soon.


RichnSteph

I have not used or studied coffee grounds---I am thinking they would need to be composted. I will add this----Sand, unless it is at the beach soaked with salt water will grow things. My X GF had the sandiest garden--but it grew vegetables great. Some times big head things would fall over and the tomatoes had to be caged or they would fall over. A big plant could be pulled up with ease-----very easy------it was a beautiful garden. The trick was to add some compost and work it in with fertilizer and water DEEEEEEP. A awesome garden.

 

[lazy gardener]

I have no idea, but following with interest. I would like to start collecting from Starbucks when the weather makes it possible to do so.

 

[PD-Riverman]

Just Google it, I do not have time to google it myself but looked for a second and seen this.

''Mix grounds into soil as an amendment. Make sure to keep them damp. Add some nitrogen fertilizer if you do this, as coffee grounds encourage the growth of microbes in the soil, which use up nitrogen. While microbes are breaking down the grounds, the nitrogen will provide a source of nutrients for your plants""

 

[catherine26]

I agree with riverman. Also, you can google it.

 

[RichnSteph]

Thanks folks! I got on Google to do some looking and found that I can mix coffee grounds and oak leaves in as close to 2:1 as I can get. What I mean is I need to mix in 2lbs of coffee grounds to 1lb of chopped up leaves. I don't have a leaf chopper thingy so I spread a layer of coffee grounds down first. Then scattered chicken manure on top of that. Finally topped it with a layer of leaves and repeated the process until I was out of material. I wet it down rather well after getting it all put together and will watch it for heat. Since I waited so long to start this I'll just continue to compost all this stuff up this year and use it for my winter garden. We'll be buying compost for our spring garden unfortunately.


RichnSteph

 

[lazy gardener]

Thanks for the info. I collected 130 bags of leaves last fall. I'm planning on doing a sheet compost area adjacent to the HK mound. If I can get coffee grounds, I should have a good thing going.

 

[classicsredone]

I realize that this thread is old, but if you still need a leaf shredder, Harbor Freight has inexpensive little chipper machines that we use for the branches trimmed off of our crepe myrtles every year. (I don't chop everything off...I just clear out a nice little seating area underneath the crepe myrtles and a volunteer grapevine that grows in the trees.)