Eggshells a gardeners treasure
Don’t trash the gold use it for your garden, what comes first the chicken or the egg? I think we all know the answer to that question but do you know that eggshells are a gardener’s treasure?
Eating that morning breakfast of scrambled eggs with whole wheat toast and fruits along with a glass of orange juice is a great way to start your morning
But what is also great is saving those eggshells for your garden because there are so many benefits of using eggshells in the garden. A few years ago my instructor taught me a very valuable lesson about the use of eggshells that really blew my mind.
What he said was that adding eggshells to your garden would keep garden pests such as snails and slugs away because the jagged edges of the eggshell would cut into their bodies of course which would be too painful for them causing them to stay away from your garden area.
Also as the eggshell breaks down, it adds calcium to the soil that is beneficial for your garden plants, it’s a win-win situation that is so cool.
Natural solution
What I love about eggshells is that eggshells are natural which means your garden harvest will be free of contamination and the use of chemicals which is not good for your health.
Eggshell power
Eggshells are composed of more than 93% minerals. Calcium carbonate is the main mineral that is important for plant growth.
But what other ways can eggshell benefit our gardens?
Eggshells in the Garden
Here are some amazing facts about eggshells in the garden.
1. As stated earlier eggshells can be used as fertilizer to add calcium to the soil.
2. Eggshells act as a pest deterrent keeping snails and slugs out of the garden. Just crush shells and sprinkle them in a circular pattern around the base of the plants.
3. Adding eggshells to your compost pile is an added benefit.
4. Eggshell can help to balance soil ph as it breaks down.
5. Eggshells are so beneficial in giving nature a helping hand. Female birds that are about to lay eggs can use the extra calcium. Just crush up the shells and place them in a bowl near the bird feeder.
6. Adding eggshells to planting holes will keep your plants from developing blossom end rot because of the lack of calcium in the soil.
7. It is believed that the smell of eggshells will keep cats out of areas where they are not wanted.
Other use of eggshells
1. Eggshells can be used as a starter planter for seeds.
2. Bring a gallon of water to a boil and place about 12 eggshells in the water for about an hour or an hour and a half. Once water is cool remove eggshells and pour the water around the plant base. This makes a good liquid fertilizer.
3. Or you can add this liquid solution to a spray bottle and use it as a foliar spray(spraying plant leaves) on your plant.
4. Eggshells can be used to keep deer out of your garden. Just crush eggshells and sprinkle them around the base of garden plants that deer love. Deers hate the smell and this will keep them away.
5. Eggshells are great for rose bushes. Crush or grind them as finely as possible and apply them to the top 1-2 layers of soil and water thoroughly. This will really give your rose bush the help that it needs for a greater bloom.
6. Simply crushing and using eggshells as a garden mulch by sprinkling around plants is a great way to add fertilizers to garden soil.
Fertilizing indoor plants with eggshells
Eggshells are also great to use on indoor plants. Thoroughly clean eggshells with warm water and allow them to dry. Grind or crush eggshells until it becomes powder.
Next, sprinkle the eggshell powder around the base of the plants and water. Repeat this process once every six months.
Eggshell organic spray
Eggshells in the garden are good to use as an organic insecticide against Japanese and flea beetles. Dry eggshells crush and grind them to powder then sprinkle directly onto the beetles.
The final word
Eggshells are pretty amazing who says that we have to throw away the shells everything can be used from the chicken to the egg and you guessed it right the chicken comes before the egg.
So the next time you are tempted to throw away the eggshell just remember that eggshells are a gardener’s treasure that can help you yield a good harvest.
So let’s get cracking as we take advantage of this natural organic that has proven to work wonders in the garden.
Newsletter
Signup Today for Our Newsletter to Receive Up to Date Information on Herbs and Other Gardening News in the Industry.
About the author
Norman loves being in the garden, both at home and for his job....
he is 'Natures Little helper' being outdoors, growing his vegetables and flowers from an early age.
Now having spent over 22 years in the profession he want to give some of his knowledge to others...
his vast array of hints and tips you will find scattered over this site will help you no end growing plants in your garden.
Great article on using eggshells in the garden. I go through 1-2 dozen eggs per week and never realized the shells have such practical uses. I recently bought a house with some roses so I can’t wait to try this on them. And I think the neighborhood stray cats dance in my yard just to tease my dog, so I have some extra motivation to keep them away. Thanks for the info and for writing this article!
Hello jack beside scarmble eggs egg shells do serve its purposse and is really beneficial. So happy that I could help and please let me know how it goes. Have a good day.
Wow! I will be saving all my egg shells now. I had heard that egg shells were good for the garden but I never knew how many benefits they had. My wife has a flower garden and I have veggies. It would be a bit much to circle every plant in my garden as it is quite large. will mixing them with the soil help with snails and slugs still or do they have to be on the surface of the soil?
Hello Jason so good to meet you and I am so happy that I could help. Eggshells do really have its benefis and can do good for your garden, it is a gardeners tressaure. What I want to suggest here is to maybe spread the days out when you will put down the eggshells because this way it will not be to overloading even though I know that’s a ot of eggshells
The eggshells must come in the contact with the snails and slugs body for it to take effect thats why it is better to apply to the soils surface. Hope this helps and please let me know how it goes. Have a good day.
My Dad has a garden and it is a pain to keep the snails at bay. We just use all natural pesticides around the perimeter, but they still manage to get in. I never stopped to consider eggshells. It sounds like there is no downside for a garden when you use eggshells.
I have a question though. Is there any difference between brown and white eggshells? As I am sure you know, not all eggshells are created equal.
Thank you in advance and I hope you have a great day!
Hello Alex so nice to meet you. As far as I know I have come across a few brown eggshells before and to me they can also have the seem affect. It is just a matter of breaking the eggshells in a way where they have jagged edges. Hope this helps and please let me know how it goes. Have a good day.