Gardeners are being urged to pour milk in their gardens this spring to help boost plant growth and get rid of common pests too. It may sound odd, but milk – whether skimmed or whole milk – is packed with calcium and other nutrients which feeds plants.
As an added bonus, milk has well established anti-fungal properties which can kill mildew on leaves and will also deter aphids and greenfly from damaging plants too. The only thing to watch out for is introducing too much bacteria when the milk goes off, which is why it’s important to water it down to a 50/50 mixture with water, say garden experts. In particular, tomatoes, strawberries, peppers and squash plants benefit from milk but if can be used to boost anything growing in your garden as long as you take care.
According to The Spruce.com: “The same properties that make milk good for a human, such as the calcium and B vitamins, are what benefits plants. The calcium helps the plants grow, as well as prevent blossom end rot, which can be caused by a calcium deficiency. This condition is common in tomato, peppers, and squash plants.
“Milk’s antifungal properties are well researched within the scientific community, with successful outcomes in treating powdery mildew, a fungal condition impacts many economically important crops such as grapes.
“Any type of milk, including fresh, expired, evaporated, and powdered, can be used in a garden as long as it’s diluted properly. Stick with reduced-fat (2 percent) or low-fat (1 percent) milk, rather than skimmed or whole options.
“Mix the milk with water in a 50-50 ratio and pour it into a spray bottle. Watering down the milk is essential to ensure it actually benefits your garden, rather than destroying the plants. The ratio doesn’t have to be exact – in fact, you can even just mix up the very last dregs of the gallon as you finish off the jug, using just a quarter-cup or so of milk.”
GardeningKnowHow.com also advises that you can use gone off milk too, which helps reduce waste by putting it to another use.
They said: “So what type of milk can be used as milk fertiliser in the garden? I like to use milk that is past its date (great way to recycle), but you can use fresh milk, evaporated milk, or even powdered milk as well. It is important that you dilute the milk with water. Mix a solution of 50 percent milk and 50 percent water.
“When using milk fertilizer as a spray, add the solution to a spray bottle and apply to plant leaves. The leaves will absorb the milk solution.
“However, keep in mind that some plants, like tomatoes, are prone to developing fungal diseases if the fertiliser remains on the leaves too long.”