From coffee cups to jewelry to socks and more, new uses for old grounds.

[Javaphile]

Some great ideas people have come up with for things to do with used coffee grounds: BBC - Capital - The people getting rich off the discards of our addiction


Java "Coffee coffee cup anyone?" phile

[flynnaus]

Great ideas but I think the best way to deal with used coffee grounds is to return them to the earth.

[Javaphile]

Which was one of the ideas discussed in the article.

Sprucing up the garden

When UK-based coffee company Greencup was looking at recycling ideas, it delved into the oft-quoted gardening tip that spent coffee grounds can perk up soil.

“British people are the most famous gardening hobbyists in the world so a garden product was a fantastic way of engaging people with the idea of recycling coffee waste,” says Greencup’s innovations director Adam Fairweather.

After several years of research, working with Imperial College London, and botanical gardens, the firm came up with a 100% organic fertiliser and slug repellent. It’s made from coffee waste collected from Greencup’s coffee customers — 200 to 300 tonnes annually — mixed with other natural ingredients like bracken and wood ash, and has high grade certification from the British Biochar Foundation.

Java "Ashes to ashes, dust to dust, everything goes there eventually." phile

[Yelta]

Great ideas but I think the best way to deal with used coffee grounds is to return them to the earth.

My rose bushes thrive on the stuff.

[flynnaus]

Which was one of the ideas discussed in the article.
Java "Ashes to ashes, dust to dust, everything goes there eventually." phile

Yeah saw that but just emphasizing that the best idea is recycling coffee in the garden. Greencup wanted to charge US9-13 for their product which is OK if you don't have your own coffee waste. Like Yelta, my spent pucks go onto the garden unprocessed.

“British people are the most famous gardening hobbyists in the world ..."

Well I didn't know that. I also didn't know that the coffee I bought on Monday was the best coffee in Australia but the barista told (no surprise that it wasn't). He wasn't impressed when I told him they all say that. [/slightlyofftopic]

[GrahamK]

Also good for lining the bottom of the kitchen garbage bag to soak up any leaky dodgy fluids

GrahamK

[LordL]

I always thought that coffee grounds were good for the soil.
And then I read this:
http://www.sgaonline.org.au/using-co...in-the-garden/

[Javaphile]

As a general rule of thumb anything 'raw' is better for the garden after being composted.


Java "Compost works wonders" phile

[flynnaus]

I always thought that coffee grounds were good for the soil.
And then I read this:
Coffee grounds in the garden | Sustainable Gardening Australia

Coffee is slightly acidic so plants that like alkaline soil conditions may not thrive as well if the pH is too low (as it lowers the plant's ability to absorb certain nutrients). I also add the spent pucks into my compost bin. As I've said before on CS, I used to spread my used Aeropress grounds onto various office plants and they seemed to produce new growth not long after. One plant I had never seen flower before started producing flowers as well as new growth.