Why You Need A Mesh Bag Of Eggshells In Your Garden
If you walked past a garden and saw a mesh bag filled with eggshells dangling from a fence post or tree branch, you'd probably do a double-take. It looks a bit unusual, and frankly, it looks like someone forgot to take out the trash. However, this odd bit of garden decor is actually one of the most practical tricks you can use this season. It’s a simple method that solves multiple problems at once without costing you a penny, here are just some of the benefits.
Helping Local Birds Nest
Gardeners often focus on putting out seeds and suet, but birds have other nutritional needs. Female birds require a significant amount of calcium to produce strong eggshells during the nesting season. If you hang a mesh bag of shells, you're providing a crucial resource. The mesh allows smaller birds to cling to the bag and peck at the calcium-rich shells. Yes, birds can and will eat eggshells, with mother birds sometimes eating the shells their babies hatch from to restore calcium. It’s a kind way to support the wildlife that helps control insect populations in your backyard.
Instant Fertilizer Tea
One way to utilize a bag of eggshells all at once is as a giant tea bag for your plants. When your garden needs a calcium boost, you don't need to buy expensive chemical fertilizers. You can simply take the bag, dunk it into a five-gallon bucket of water, and let it steep for a day or two. The water will absorb nutrients from the shells and you can then use that calcium-rich water to hydrate your plants.
Pest Control On Demand
Slugs and snails are the enemies of hostas and leafy greens. They have soft bodies that can't safely cross sharp surfaces. If you have your mesh bag hanging near susceptible plants, you have a deterrent ready at a moment's notice. Just grab a few dry shells, crush them in your hand, and sprinkle a sharp barrier around the base of the plant that needs protecting.
Abrasive Tool Scrubber
Dirt has a habit of caking onto trowels and shovels until it feels like concrete. Thankfully, you don't need harsh chemicals to get your tools clean. Take your mesh bag of coarse eggshells and use it as a scouring pad. The combination of the textured plastic mesh and the sharp shell fragments cuts through dried mud with a surprising amount of efficacy. It's abrasive enough to clean the metal but won't damage your gear either.
Preventing Blossom End Rot
Tomatoes and peppers are notorious for suffering from blossom end rot, which is caused by a calcium deficiency in the soil. That calcium deficiency can be fought by sprinkling crushed eggshells in your soil, so by keeping a bag of shells drying right next to your vegetable patch, you're already setting yourself up for success. When it’s time to plant, you can just grab a handful of dried shells from the bag, crush them, and mix them into the planting hole immediately. Or, crush and sprinkle them right from the bag!
Lightweight Drainage For Pots
Gardeners traditionally use rocks or broken pottery at the bottom of planters for drainage, but that adds unnecessary weight to an already heavy object, especially if your planter is at all big. Instead, use part of your collection of eggshells at the bottom of your pot before adding soil. It creates the necessary air pocket for water drainage but stays incredibly light. When the season ends, the whole thing can go straight into the compost pile.
It's funny how something that looks like refuse can actually be a gardener’s best friend. Hanging a bag of eggshells isn't going to win you any landscaping beauty contests, but it’ll make your life easier and your soil richer. Give it a try this season, you might be surprised by how useful it is to have that calcium supply right where you need it most, already dried out and ready to go.