UK Gardeners Advised Not To Throw Out Nail Clippings For This Gross Reason

Nail clippingsTurns out loads of waste products, from mulch-worthy old coffee grounds to your own pee, can be surprisingly useful in the garden. And in case you’re wondering whether that’s the only slightly grim bodily by-product that can be repurposed for your backyard, I regret to inform you that the answer is “no”. Yup – your nail clippings, too, can provide crucial elements that can make your flowers flourish.How can nail clippings help my garden?Registered dietitian Abby K. Cannon previously told HuffPost, “You can actually compost your own hair and nail clippings”.The organic material adds helpful trace minerals and other elements to the pile.For instance, the protein keratin is present in both hair and nails, and breaks down over time to form key nitrogen supplies. Plants need nitrogen to form the building blocks of their DNA (this is also found in animal nail clippings and both human and animal hair). Chopping both nails and hair into smaller pieces can speed up the decomposition process, helping them to deliver their benefits faster. Ideally, though, the nail clippings should not be from painted nails. This can introduce unwanted and non-biological chemicals to your compost and, subsequently, your soil. Nail clippings also generate carbon, House Digest writes, making them a great fly repellent for the top layer of your soil.Make sure you’re getting the nitrogen-carbon balance right Getting the ratio of nitrogen to carbon-rich ingredients in your soil is key to keeping your compost pile decomposing at a great rate.So, if you have lots of nitrogen-rich ingredients (like coffee grounds and urine) and few to no “brown” (usually carbon-rich) ingredients, consider adding a little of the slower-moving stuff to your heap. “Brown” compost includes dry leaves, straw, grass clippings, cardboard, paper, and even dryer lint.September is a great month to start collecting fallen leaves, whether for leaf mulch or compost (whatever you do, though, don’t just rake them and throw them out).Related...UK Gardeners Urged To Do 5 Tasks In SeptemberUK Gardeners Urged To Check For Yellow Patches On GrassUK Gardeners Warned To Look For 'Webs' On Their Hedge Before It's Too Late

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