PreparednessMama

Food Storage, Gardening, and Self-Reliance for Busy Moms

  • Home
  • Food Storage
    • Canning Techniques
    • Other Preservation Methods
    • Long Term Food Storage
    • How Do I Store That?
    • Grains, Beans, & Seeds
    • Wholesale Bulk Buying
    • Kitchen Tips
    • Food Storage Recipes
    • Thrive Life
  • Gardening
    • What’s Your Garden Style?
    • Composting & Soil Building
    • Gardening for Food Production
    • Tips, Tricks, Sprays & Brews
    • Grow & Use Herbs
    • Organic Harvest 15
  • Preparedness
    • 72 Hour Survival Kits
    • Make a Plan
    • Water Storage
    • DIY Preps – You Can Make It Yourself
    • Finances
    • Preparedness Reference Library
  • Resources
    • Fresh Fruit And Vegetable Guide
    • eBooks & Printables
  • About
    • Disclosure & Privacy Policy
    • Contact Us
Home » Blog » DIY Dry Banana Peels as Fertilizer

DIY Dry Banana Peels as Fertilizer

By PreparednessMama on May 1, 2020 * 7 Comments

Did You Know You Can Turn Dry Banana Peels Into Organic Fertilizer for Your Garden?

We eat a lot of bananas at our house so I like the idea that all the peels that we would normally compost can be used to benefit the garden. Homemade potassium fertilizer using banana peels is very easy to make.

How to dry banana peels and give a potassium boost to your garden | PreparednessMamaPotassium is an essential plant nutrient and is important for strong rooting, flowering, and fruit development in your vegetable garden plants. It is considered second only to nitrogen, when it comes to nutrients needed by plants, and is commonly considered as the “quality nutrient.” (source)

Plants are heavy users of potassium and the lack of it can result in stunted plant growth and delay in plant development. If the leaves of your plant turn a purplish hue, the plant needs potassium. 

Too much potassium can cause magnesium deficiency which is why many DIY fertilizers use banana peels and Epsom salts in combination. You can get a recipe at the end of this post.

How to Dry Banana Peels

Begin the project by saving banana peels until you have a few dozen. We keep ours in a plastic zip bag in the freezer, adding one or two each day until we have enough. It is best to use organic bananas of you don’t want to bring toxic chemicals into your garden.

Take the time to cut off the stem and end piece before you place them in the bag. It makes processing day much easier. Your processing day will be easier if you can minimize handling the cold and decomposing banana peels. (experience talking here…)

Check Price Here!

When you have enough banana peels for a batch, perhaps 15 – 20 of them, thaw the entire bag on the kitchen counter and cut them into smallish strips. Working with pieces that are between two to three inches will speed the dehydrating time considerably.

Related post: Comfrey Fertilizer Tea

Place the strips onto dehydrator trays so they are not touching and dry them at the highest temperature on your machine.  When they are crisp, they are finished. I used 145° F on my machine and the processing time was about 6 hours.

If you do not have a dehydrator, use your oven on the lowest setting and leave the door ajar.

Process the Dried Peels Into Powder

How to dry banana peels and give a potassium boost to your garden | PreparednessMamaOnce the peels are completely dry and cool you can place them into a food processor or blender.

They should be ground until they are smallish bits. If your processor won’t get them all into a fine powder, it will still work.

Bonus…they smell like banana bread when you grind them!

3 Ways to Use Dry Banana Peels as Fertilizer

Each dried banana peel will make about 1 tablespoon of fertilizer.

  • Make a fertilizing spray using 1 tablespoon dried banana peels, 1 tablespoon egg shells, and 1 tablespoon Epsom salt (Check out our related post on the amazing uses of Epsom salt around the house: 30 Uses for Epsom Salts.) Mix all of this together in your food processor and place it in a 32-ounce spray bottle. Fill with water and shake until the salts are dissolved.This can be sprayed directly on house plants that are out of direct sunlight or used for watering the soil in the garden.
  • Add the dried powder directly to the soil as a side dressing. Be careful not to add it directly to the roots.
  • Add a teaspoon of dry peels to the bottom of your planting hole. Be sure to cover it with a bit of soil before adding the plant.
  • You can also use banana peel powder when making your own potting mix.
Check Price Here!

If you don’t want to be bothered with drying the skins at all, try this technique for making banana peel water from Stone Family Farmstead.

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. Even though Amazon.com has recently lowered the commission rates for its independent affiliate partners (like ourselves) to ridiculously low levels, still each purchase you make through our links will earn us a microscopic commission at no extra expense to you which, we hope, can help keep us afloat. Thank you for supporting PreparednessMama in this way!

How to dry banana peels and give a potassium boost to your garden | PreparednessMama

PreparednessMama
Preparedness Mama and its collaborators have created a one-stop shop of critical resources for families looking to prepare for disaster. We know firsthand that getting ready for the worst with a big family poses some particular challenges.
 
We’ve learned from the past so that you don’t have to make the same mistakes again. Fear of the unknown is one of the scariest things in life, but we hope that Preparedness Mama’s treasure trove of practical advice will make that unknown less daunting and ultimately help take the scared out of being prepared for every single one of our readers.

Comments

  1. Becca - The Well Prepared Mama says

    January 13, 2017 at 8:41 am

    I am always looking for new ways to feed the soil and take care of my garden! Thank you! I learn something new every day 🙂

    Reply
  2. Fran says

    March 11, 2017 at 8:48 am

    I love your new ideas

    Reply
  3. Charlotte says

    April 9, 2017 at 2:27 pm

    How often can dried peels be used in the garden

    Reply
    • Shelle says

      May 12, 2017 at 11:47 am

      You can put them out once a month if needed.

      Reply
  4. EDDIE says

    December 26, 2017 at 9:09 pm

    nice infor, but the most importanta was not mention, how much banana peel for say how much garden area…

    Reply
  5. Julz says

    September 6, 2018 at 4:55 pm

    Hi thanks for the banana peel tip, how about coffee grounds?? Thanks

    Reply
  6. Lynn Glickman says

    February 18, 2020 at 5:59 am

    Also use a handful of green sand and a handful of oyster shell mixed in top soil of container when planting tomato plants.

    Reply

Trackbacks

  1. 11 Homemade Fertilizer Recipes For Gardeners - Ideal Me says:
    June 17, 2017 at 4:28 am

    […] Via Preparedness Mama […]

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Recent Posts

  • Disaster Preparedness For Your Finances: The Ultimate Guide
  • 6 Benefits Of Growing A Sustainable Indoor Vegetable Garden
  • How to Communicate With Family in an Emergency
  • Creative Ways for Growing Potatoes in Containers
  • Leaving Kids Alone At Home: Preparedness Guide
Some posts on this blog contain affiliate links. At no additional charge to you, I receive a small commission whenever a product is purchased through these links. Occasionally I receive products in exchange for a review or giveaway post. PreparednessMama.com as an Amazon Associate may earn from qualifying purchases.
I am not a doctor and the statements on this blog have not been evaluated by the FDA. Any products mentioned are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
  • About
  • Disclosure & Privacy Policy
  • Contact Us
  • Home
  • Food Storage
  • Gardening
  • Preparedness
  • Resources
  • About

Copyright © 2021 · Style theme by Restored 316

We Use Affiliate Links - View the Disclosure Page for details.

Copyright © 2021 - Preparedness Mama LLC - Gardening, Food Storage, & Self-Reliance Tips for Busy People