Kitchen Cupboard Garden Remedies: Natural Weed, Fertilizer & Pest Solutions

Herbicides harm mammals, beneficial insects, and groundwater. Your pantry holds safer, cheaper alternatives for weeds, fertility, and soil health.

Natural Herbicides

• Gin-soap-vinegar: 1 oz each gin, dish soap, vinegar in 32 oz sprayer + water. Spray weeds midday sun. Soap holds vinegar on leaf.
• Baking soda: Direct on weeds — blackens, shrivels.
• Boiling water: For sidewalk cracks.
• Straight vinegar: Effective on many weeds.

Kitchen Fertilizers

• Epsom salt: 1 tbsp/gal water. Magnesium + sulfate for roses, peppers, tomatoes, potatoes, houseplants.
• Eggshells: 93% calcium carbonate (lime). Dry, crush, scatter. Essential for cell growth; replenishes soil calcium.
• Coffee grounds: ~2% nitrogen, trace minerals, acidity. Perfect for blueberries, azaleas, roses, camellias, evergreens, avocados, fruit trees.

Test unfamiliar mixes in hidden spots. Proper plant care reduces pest pressure naturally.

Article by Doreen Pollack, Garden Goddess, Down 2 Earth Gardens.