Alright, you know how gardeners can be. You throw out a question like, “What do you swear by in your garden?” and they are off to the races. This happened in a Facebook group: Creative Gardening. Someone asked about secret ingredients, and the thread turned into a mildly chaotic, but strangely wholesome, series of hacks, tips, half-recipe recommendations, and established-but-quirky rhythms. Some of it sounds like old wives’ tales, and some of it is weirdly scientific. All of it? Wholeheartedly sincere. Here is a summary of what people are using in their gardens—right now—with varying descriptions.
Epsom Salt
Okay, this has been a thing for a long time. Epsom salt—the same salt you soak your sore feet in—contains magnesium and sulfate. And apparently, plants love it. People put it into the soil or spray it on their leaves (they call this “foliar feeding,” if you want to sound fancy). It is claimed to help create chlorophyll and make it easier or quicker or… more effective (???) for plants to absorb nutrients. In any case, people in the group definitely recommend it for tomatoes, peppers, and roses. Something to do with making more blooms and fruit. Honestly, if your plant is looking a bit “meh,” you might as well give it a whirl.
Banana Peel Water
So this one is just really specific—banana peel water, also called “banana tea” if you’re feeling cute. You toss some peels in a jar, let them organically break down for a few days, and yeah, it starts to look a little foul, but allegedly that’s when the magic happens. Gardeners in the thread about fixes for tomatoes were practically evangelizing over this stuff. Apparently, the potassium and phosphorus leak into the water, and then you pour it on the soil and just… hope for the best? The science seems reasonable. Potassium = stronger stems and more flowers. Maybe better tomatoes? Definitely smellier compost juice.
Rabbit Poop
I mean, look, nobody is seeking out rabbit poop unless they have rabbits, right? But if you do—allegedly it’s gold. These little dry pellets have nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium… basically just about everything your plants are probably asking for, and they’re safe to use because they won’t harm your plant if there isn’t a marriage with a high-energy manure. Most people say you should compost, or at least age it a bit, but there is a sub-faction of people that just throw it into the soil. Pretty punk rock. Works great for veggies, flowers, shrubs—basically everything. Except perhaps your houseguests’ noses.
Egg Shells
Ah yes, the timeless “don’t throw that away” tip. People crush up eggshells—some people bake them first, but others do not seem to care—and sprinkle them into the soil. Mostly for calcium, which helps manage blossom end rot, for example, in tomatoes and peppers. It’s not like boiling a kettle; calcium takes some time to break down. Beyond the nutrients, eggshells reportedly deter slugs and snails. An aesthetic, crunchy death fence. If you compost, add them. If not, just crush and sprinkle them down. It’s free, and oddly satisfying.
Potato Skins
This one caught me off guard. I don’t really know why I never considered this. Potato peelings—just the scraps—seem to be something you can bury directly in the garden bed. And as they break down, they feed the soil. Potassium once more, as well as… whatever general organic matter? Gardeners in the group have explained it helps root development and the strength of the plant overall. Not glamorous, but think of it as a drip of nutrients over time. It’s important to bury it deep enough so that you’re not attracting pests. Because no one wants raccoons digging up the buffet you leave at your feet.
Dried Leaves from Trees
Not really a secret, but widely underutilized. Fall leaves work as free mulch. If you have the time, shred them into pieces—they will break down faster, and they also work great around beds. Group members love this for moisture retention and suppressing weeds. It also helps stabilize the temperature of the soil which, during weird shoulder seasons, can actually really matter. Slowly over time, they break down into compost and feed the soil. It’s a blanket that becomes soup. Not a great metaphor, but you get it.
Aspirin
Yes, the actual aspirin you have in your medicine cabinet. This one took me by surprise, but apparently it is a thing. Crushed and watered-down aspirin is sprayed on plants or into the soil. Something about the salicylic acid setting off a plant’s natural immune response, like a little fake alarm bell, and the plant prepares for all stressors, pathogens, pests, whatever. Gardeners are using it on seedlings, stressed plants, transplants—any plants that appear fragile. Some people swear it makes roots stronger. Others just seem to like trying things. No one really knows how it works, but here we are.
Fish Tank Water
If you have a freshwater aquarium—and this is important: freshwater only, no salt, no funky meds or chemicals—you might have fertilizer in a bottle. The fish poop and leftovers break down into nutrient combos like nitrogen and phosphorus. Instead of dumping your tank water down the drain when you clean it, some gardeners pour it on their plants. It is similar to compost tea, but fishy. Bonus: apparently beneficial bacteria in the water can help soil health as well. A little weird, but in a closed loop, kind of brilliant as well.
So yeah—those were just a few of the more common ones. There were a ton more in the group thread (if you’re interested, you can scroll through here), some of which got… let’s say experimental. But the common thread was pretty clear—people really love sharing their hacks. Rabbit pellets or aspirin or playing music for their zucchinis, there is a genuine sense that plants respond to attention. Even if that “attention” is just strange leftovers from the kitchen or sitting banana waste in mason jars.
And really? Maybe that is the whole point. Not that any one of these is a miracle cure, but the process of doing it—and paying attention—experimenting, thoughtfully noting what does work, that is what keeps things growing. Or at the very least, keeps you engaged enough to care when things do grow.
