I love my garden, but I also don't want to spend a lot of money on it. Fortunately, there are plenty of hacks that I've stumbled across online to help cut costs, like boiling eggs to help your plants thrive to a space (and money) saving spring planting idea.
Sometimes, hacks appear that I didn't even know I needed, but they make a lot of sense. For example, my recently-inherited rose bush is doing a great job at producing lovely blooms, but when my YouTube algorithm told me that I could be doing an even better job at helping it just by grabbing a few old tea bags, well, I was intrigued.
And I drink a lot of tea. Arguably, too much, but who's counting? Fortunately, it looks like my tea drinking habit will work great for this viral hack and my roses will be thanking me with vibrant blooms all summer long. Here's how it works and why I'll be putting it to the test.
How does it work?
Of all places, I was pretty surprised when YouTube Shorts was the answer to my rose-growing wishes. After inheriting the rose bush I have in my garden when we moved into our new home last fall, I've been eager to make sure I'm doing it (and the garden) justice. And as our first summer with roses looms, I've been on the lookout for affordable gardening tips to help the cause.
And then @EdenMakers video came across my feed. In it, she explains to her over 100k followers that roses love tea. She says: "I have a job for my tea bag," as she proceeds to toss it into the soil under her rose bush and bury it into the soil.
She says: "It'll add some natural acidity to the soil, which roses love." And it's really as simple as that. The tea releases tannins into the soil that lowers the pH level, which as explained, they love.
In the caption, she adds that it's very important to remove any staples or string from the bag (if they have them) as these won't decompose. You should also check whether your tea bags contain any plastic as this can also cause an issue in the soil, opting for those made from paper, plant fibers, or cotton instead.
What happened when I tried it
With an old tea bag in hand, I headed for my rose bush to bury it into the soil. Fortunately, since I've been composting my tea bags for years, I know that I don't need to do any extra admin to make sure the tea bag is ready to be planted. No strings or staples here!
But, it's also a little too early to tell whether my roses are benefiting from the tea bags. It's not an immediate effect, but something I know I'll have to keep doing, sharing the acidity with the roses from the black tea leaves on a regular basis.
Alternatively, you can also wait for your tea bags to dry, split them open, and sprinkle the tea leaves around the top of the soil. Or, if you steep your tea, you can just wait for them to dry and add them directly without having to deal with the bag.
I'll be sure to keep an eye on my rose bush though and see if I notice any change. And in the meantime, I'll hunt for other plants in my garden that like the acidic soil to use the hack there, too.
