Are Coffee Grounds Good For Plant Growth?

About This Episode

Grumpy addresses a myth about coffee grounds. Plus, Grumpy’s gripe on deer whiners.

Question Of The Week

"Some well-meaning environmentalist in a national publication said, 'We should fling our coffee grounds into our flower beds and recycle them.' Is this true or will it hurt something I value? I throw junk mail in the trash and I don't feel guilty." - Anthony

Grumpy's Response: Now, as for the coffee grounds, they are very good for the soil as a decomposed and they supply organic matter, which is important to the growth of plants. Now, some people think coffee grounds also keep the soil up at night, but I can tell you, that isn't true. They're good for improving the soil-but I wouldn't count on them changing the color of the flowers very soon.

Gripe of The Week

Deer Whiners

Every time I write about a plant, any plant on my Grumpy Garden Facebook page, which of course, all of you read religiously. It doesn't matter what the plant is, be a lilac, hydrangea, lily, a peony, kohlrabi, barrel cactus, could be snail vine, Spanish moss. So where do all of you whiners live anyway? In the hunting grounds of King Henry the VIII? I mean listen, if deer are eating all of your garden, do something about it! You could plant herbs and other things with oily, aromatic foliage because deer don't like those. You could use a deer pellet like Deer Out or Liquid Fence, and spray them on your plants. But please, would you stop badgering me about deer every time I talk about any plant in the world. If you wanna know if deer will eat a particular plant, Google deer and the name of the plant you're interested in, and it will tell you.

About Ask Grumpy

Ask Grumpy is a podcast featuring Steve Bender, also known as Southern Living’s Grumpy Gardener. For more than 30 years, Grumpy has been sharing advice on what to grow, when to plant, and how to manage just about anything in your garden. Tune in for short episodes every Wednesday and Saturday as Grumpy answers reader questions, solves seasonal conundrums, and provides need-to-know advice for gardeners with his very Grumpy sense of humor. Be sure to follow Ask Grumpy on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen so you don't miss an episode.

Editor’s Note: Please be mindful that this transcript does not go through our standard editorial process and may contain inaccuracies and grammatical errors.