<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><rss xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/" xmlns:content="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/" xmlns:atom="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom" version="2.0"><channel><title><![CDATA[Coffee drinking plants?]]></title><description><![CDATA[<p dir="auto">Do plants like the taste of coffee? It's has some good nutrition which they may appreciate. I'm sitting here with a snake plant, drinking my own cup of coffee and I can't help but think it is saying to me "I would like some coffee too, good sir". Will it appreciate the coffee or will I be hurting the poor fellow?</p>
<p dir="auto">Any coffee drinking plants in the audience, care to elaborate?</p>
]]></description><link>https://bioenergetic.forum/topic/9364/coffee-drinking-plants</link><generator>RSS for Node</generator><lastBuildDate>Mon, 25 May 2026 04:39:47 GMT</lastBuildDate><atom:link href="https://bioenergetic.forum/topic/9364.rss" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml"/><pubDate>Tue, 19 May 2026 16:59:05 GMT</pubDate><ttl>60</ttl><item><title><![CDATA[Reply to Coffee drinking plants? on Wed, 20 May 2026 15:06:08 GMT]]></title><description><![CDATA[<blockquote>
<p dir="auto"><a class="plugin-mentions-user plugin-mentions-a" href="/user/milk-destroyer" aria-label="Profile: Milk-Destroyer">@<bdi>Milk-Destroyer</bdi></a> <a href="/post/64625">said</a>:</p>
<p dir="auto">Any coffee drinking plants in the audience, care to elaborate?</p>
</blockquote>
<p dir="auto">Plants appreciate coffee grounds as fertilizer. But what about coffee poured on the soil?<br />
<strong>Short answer</strong>: No. Undiluted caffeine = herbicide.<br />
It's a trap many people fall into, thinking they're doing the right thing.<br />
While coffee grounds (already brewed and decomposed) are often appreciated in moderation, pouring the rest of your cup of liquid coffee directly onto the soil is generally a bad idea, especially for potted plants. The liquid coffee we drink doesn't have the same properties as the solid residue (the grounds). It presents three major risks to plants:</p>
<ol>
<li><strong>Caffeine is an herbicide</strong><br />
In nature, the coffee plant produces caffeine* for a very specific reason: to inhibit the growth of other plants around it, thus preventing competition for water and nutrients. It is a natural herbicide. Liquid coffee still contains a high concentration of caffeine, unlike coffee grounds, which have been leached by hot water. Pouring it on the soil can inhibit root development in your plants.<br />
NB: It's the role* of polyphenols to bring defense. Chlorogenic acids  are the primary polyphenols in the coffee plant to be considered.</li>
<li><strong>Excessive acidity</strong><br />
Black coffee is very acidic (its pH is often between 4.5 and 5.0). If you pour it undiluted onto a plant that prefers neutral or alkaline soils (such as thyme, lavender, or geraniums), you will acidify the substrate too drastically, which blocks nutrient absorption…</li>
<li><strong>The Additive Trap</strong> (Sugar and Milk)<br />
If your leftover coffee contains sugar or milk, it's a recipe for disaster for a houseplant. The sugar will feed harmful bacteria and attract fungus gnats, while the milk fats will rot, create mold, and clog the soil pores, suffocating the roots.</li>
</ol>
<p dir="auto"><strong>How to recycle your leftover coffee cleanly?</strong></p>
<ol>
<li>Diluted coffee grounds in compost = hormesis effect.</li>
<li>100 ml of black coffee in one liter of water (10%), but only for plants that prefer acidic soil: hydrangeas, camellias, rhododendrons, or houseplants like ficus, and no more than once a month. Still too concentrated.</li>
</ol>
]]></description><link>https://bioenergetic.forum/post/64627</link><guid isPermaLink="true">https://bioenergetic.forum/post/64627</guid><dc:creator><![CDATA[LucH]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Wed, 20 May 2026 15:06:08 GMT</pubDate></item></channel></rss>