If you’re looking for a natural fertiliser that’s easy to make at home so you don’t have to spend a bomb, you may want to rethink what you’re throwing away. One keen gardener shared how they can make their own effective plant fertiliser using a particular food scrap.

The Container Gardener on TikTok praised banana peels as an eco-friendly and cost effective way to help your plants grow stronger this spring. Instead of throwing your banana peels away after you’ve munched on the fruit, you can grind it into a fine powder that can be used on a variety of plants. It’s also a slow release fertiliser, which means that its nutrients are released gradually over time.

How to make banana peel fertiliser

Firstly, the gardener explained that you need to dry out the banana skin. Lay the skins on a tray and dry them out in the oven or an air fryer.

This should be done on a low temperature with the oven door slightly ajar. The Container Gardener dried them for six and a half minutes at 180℃.

The skins should be brown and crispy when they’re done. Next, place the dried skins into a container.

Use a food processor or a pestle and mortar to grind the skins into a fine powder. The banana powder can then be used as a fertiliser.

Sprinkle the homemade fertiliser onto your soil or plant pots. If you’re not using the fertiliser straight away, store in an air tight container or jar.

This will help prevent any fungus or mould growth, explained Thrive.

Bananas contain a number of nutrients that will help your plants flourish, including potassium for bright and big blooms; phosphorus for healthy roots and shoots; and magnesium for photosynthesis.

Calcium in banana peels is also an important nutrient for plant growth.

Drew Swainston, a gardening expert for Homes & Gardens, said: “That makes them a good fertilizer for specific circumstances. Potassium encourages both fruiting and flowers, so that makes banana peels a great fertilizer for fruit and vegetables like tomatoes or peppers, or any flowering ornamental plants.

“Bananas also contain calcium, which is a vital nutrient in combating blossom end rot in tomatoes.”

Banana peels can also be added to water. Add chopped peels to a jar of water and leave in a moderately sunny spot for around 24 hours.

The water will start to turn brown, which indicates that the nutrients have leaked out from the peels. The banana water can then be used to water plants.