Think about how much trash you throw out during your weekly routine. If you live in a household with multiple people, it’s probably a considerable amount. Now think about the fact that the average person will throw out 600 times their own adult weight in garbage. Much of what we throw out will ultimately end up in landfills, where it contributes to the growing pollution problem across the world due to its inability to degrade. One of the best ways to combat climate change is to reuse products rather than simply throwing them out. However, this can be easier said than done. Nobody wants garbage to accumulate in their home, and making sure that your recyclable trash is picked up by recycling plants isn’t always simple. Luckily, there are ways that you can recycle at home, literally transforming your garbage into practical, usable products.
In fact, there are ways that you can use your waste products in a manner that doesn’t only promote recycling but helps create spaces that contribute to the environmentalist movement in general. The best way to do this is to use your waste products to garden. Not only will this result in you having a more aesthetically pleasing outdoor space — it will also contribute to the betterment of the environment. Nonetheless, this can be a little intimidating at first. Where do you begin?
How Can Garbage Better My Garden?
Garbage and gardening do not seem to go hand in hand at first. However, much of what you throw out can directly benefit your landscape. For one thing, much of the leftover food or food scraps that we throw away is easily biodegradable and offers benefits to the soil. For another, there are many plastic or metal products that could potentially be fashioned into tools that would benefit the landscape around you — you might think of these tricks as “hacks”. For that matter, just by withholding from tossing these items away, you’re already bettering your garden indirectly. Of course, some products are more easily applicable to your garden than others.
What Types Of Products Can I Use For Gardening?
Although you can recycle a wide range of products with gardening in mind, some are definitely more automatically suitable than others. Think about how many coffee grounds you throw aside — many of us drink coffee every day, which means that we’re inevitably getting rid of a good mount. However, coffee grounds are actually highly beneficial to the soil. The high acidity levels in coffee grounds means that they can be added to soil or water, and lower the surrounding pH levels. If you plan on growing tomatoes or blueberries, definitely add coffee grounds to the surrounding soil — these plants will love the acidity. At the same time, coffee grounds can help ward off small pests that would disturb your garden, like slugs or snails. In a similar manner, you should probably look into adding banana peels to your soil if you have any leftovers. These add potassium to the soil, as well as nitrogen; in a lot of ways, banana peels are among the best possible types of fertilizer you can use and will stimulate the growth of many types of plants. On that same level, leftover eggshells are perfect additives for soil. If you’re worried about your soil becoming too acidic due to the addition of coffee grounds, you can mix those grounds with crushed eggshells, as they will moderate the pH levels. At the same time, they’ll deter deer. These animals love stealing from gardens but hate the scent of eggs. Of course, food items aren’t the only products that can be added to your soil. You can take leftover paper, newspaper clippings, and cardboard, and add them to your compost pile. These products are full of carbon, and can, therefore, boost your soil. You won’t want all of the above-mentioned products to look like trash littering your garden. Simply grind them all up together and add them in much as you would fertilizer.
How Can I Use Garbage To Beautify My Garden?
It’s one thing to utilize composting in order to enrich your soil. But there are more visual ways to recycle garbage to beautify your garden as well. You’ll want to think about the big picture, of course — and keep an eye on the trends that could inspire you and your landscaping plans. Surveys and studies are a great place to start. A 2016 Landscaping and Housing Trends Study by Houzz, for example, revealed that about half of homeowners who upgrade their outdoor spaces spend around six hours there per week. Lots of these people make upgrades that include adding decks; 2018 alone saw 47,000 singe-family homes being built with decks, while other homeowners chose to upgrade their properties through beautiful gardens. You could add a bit of extra detail to your garden or your deck by taking, for example, a damaged flower pot and converting it into a mini garden, perhaps with a whimsical angle like a fairy garden. Try picking up leftover bits and bobs from a recent deck party, like wine corks, and label them so that they can act as markers for your growing plants! On that same level, wine bottles can be opened up and used as planters, as can milk jugs. Old rain gutters and soda bottles can be converted into vertical gardens as well; the sky is the limit!
Ultimately, what is beneficial and appealing is ultimately up to you and your opinion. But know that you can use your trash to benefit the environment and your garden.