Hydrangeas, with the right care and attention, can grow rapidly. Although it’s not possible to make them instantly fill an area, providing them with ideal growing conditions can certainly speed up the process.
One such method is fertilising these plants, which can boost their growth rate. While there are fertilisers specifically designed for hydrangeas, there are also free alternatives available.
A woman recently shared her success using coffee grounds on her hydrangeas via the Gardening UK Facebook page.
Sandra Mears posted a photo of her vibrant blue hydrangeas in full bloom, writing: “Planted this hydrangea a couple of weeks ago when it was only a wee twig. Look at her blooming profusely now! I’ve been adding coffee grounds every other day and I think it’s really brought out the blooms and colour.”
Coffee grounds can create soil that produces slightly more unusually coloured blooms. When added to the soil, they create a more acidic pH, encouraging flowers to produce blue blooms instead of pink or white.
However, those who use coffee to alter their soil’s acidity must do so regularly.
All hydrangea blooms will respond to increased soil acidity, but gardeners need to ensure they use it consistently and maintain fertile, moist soil.
Garden enthusiasts were left utterly impressed by the transformation of a plant, with group members gushing over its “stunning” appearance.
Debbie Smith enthused: “They look absolutely stunning! I have been putting coffee grinds on mine, they’re normally pinky/purple but after getting the bean-to-cup machine and the amount of coffee I drink, they’re giant monster blue/purple ones! Roses love the coffee too.”
Hellen Wills chimed in: “I put my used coffee grounds in the soil around my hydrangeas daily, never in the bin. It also helps to keep pesky slugs away so they don’t destroy my plants.”
Carly Widerstreit couldn’t hide her admiration: “Absolutely love this, it’s beautiful, thanks for sharing, need to get coffee grounds now.”
One green-fingered tipster shared a savvy hint that coffee grounds can be snagged for “free” from local cafes. Sarah Hamilton revealed: “You can usually pick up bags of waste ground coffee from cafes. My local Morrison’s leaves them out and you can take a bag for free.”
For those looking to give their hydrangeas a caffeine boost, simply start by adding coffee grounds to the soil in autumn. Sprinkle them liberally around the base and mix them into the earth.
To maintain the benefits, treat the grounds like any other fertiliser, applying them two or three times annually should suffice.
