Banana peels are the best possible way that you can feed the plants in your garden at a small price in comparison to commercial fertilizers. Along with composting all your household waste materials and yard materials you are not just giving your plants nutrient-rich soil but, you are also be helping the environment by keeping it clean. Bananas are a common fruit consumed by most households and the piece always ended up in the trash, now you can put them to better use. In this article we will discuss all on composting banana peels and the best way to get it done.
Banana peels are filled with nutrients similar to the sweet flesh itself. Unlike humans, plans are not fussy so since humans do not consume banana peel, our plans will help us with that. There are numerous benefits that the banana peel offers. The only disadvantage is the peel is very slow in breaking down and decomposing. Therefore, we always recommend utilizing the compost instead of the entire peel directly in your plants. How can we compost banana peels in the best way? It is actually very simple, let’s learn more.
Advantages of composting banana peel
Many gardeners brag about their homemade compost by utilizing the fields and the various benefits they have offered to the garden. There are few gardeners that also prefer vermicast over banana peel composting. Every compost has its unique benefits however banana peels have a lot more to offer.
Banana peels contain plenty of protein around 3.5% of their overall weight. Plant protein contains 16% nitrogen. So, the banana peels which we have been discarding all this while contains 0.6% nitrogen. The peels also contained 4.6% potassium. However, when the peel is fully composted it offers around 11.5% potassium. The peels also have other nutrients in smaller percentages that include, 0.2% magnesium, 0.8% calcium, 0.3 % phosphorus. If you add around 31% sugar to the banana peels while composting them it will keep all the worms very happy as they continue to ferment the peels.
All these nutrients are very beneficial as fertilizers to your herbaceous perennials, veggies, and roses.
Process of making the compost
Banana peels are often recommended to be composted and then mixed with the soil garden for better results. Let’s see the best way to compose them.
- Begin by selecting a suitable location in your backyard, a place that is away from your doors and windows
- Gather organic materials that include twigs, wood shavings, dead grass, decaying stems, leaves, etc.
- Be sure to break down these organic materials into smaller pieces.
- Gather all the peels that you wish to compose and cut them into small pieces, if you have overripe bananas that you would not be consuming then you could cut them and add them to the pile as well
- So far, the garden yard has a lot of browns, make sure to add sufficient green materials too. Alternate each layer while arranging them in the composter.
- Sprinkle a little water the pile so as to keep it damp. Make sure the pile is not dry or soaking wet
- And always remember to turn your pile once in a few days
- In a span of two weeks, you will have your compost ready.
Follow these few steps and you will be able to successfully compose your banana peels. Happy composting!