Is Potato Water Good For Plants? 🥔

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There are several ways to add good nutrition to the soil, and there are many liquids that can be used to help plants grow well, and many of these additives come from our own kitchens. When potatoes are boiled, they leave behind a lot of nutrients and starch in the water. Many gardeners find themselves wondering if this potato water is good for plants. Let’s find out!

Potato water is good for plants. Potato water contains high levels of potassium, good levels of magnesium and phosphorus, and small amounts of folate, pantothenic acid, and riboflavin, as well as vitamins B1, B3, and B6. Potato water also contains good proteins that promote plant health.

When you boil potatoes, you may notice that the water left over is no longer clear, but it is very cloudy. This cloudiness left behind is potato starch, which contains a good amount of plant-safe proteins and is often used as a plant fertilizer. Let’s explore the use of potato water on plants and learn how to use this nutrient-rich water in your garden.

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Is Potato Water Good For Plants?

If you have a garden full of growing plants, indoor plants, or even if you have your own flourishing vegetable or herb garden, finding ways to use leftover food and food waste to benefit your plants is an excellent way to cost-effectively feed your plants and to keep them healthy without having to buy as much expensive plant food and fertilizer.

Using potato water is an excellent way to do this and can significantly contribute to the health of all of your plants, regardless of what they are.

Potato water is good for plants. The water that is left over from boiling potatoes is full of nutrients, minerals, and proteins that are drawn out of the potato during the boiling process.

Potatoes contain a large amount of potassium and significant amounts of phosphorus and magnesium as well. These root vegetables also contain vitamins B1, B3, and B6, good proteins, folate, pantothenic acid, and riboflavin.

When potatoes are boiled, these nutrients and minerals are released from the plant cells into the water. When this nutrient and mineral-rich water is used for watering plants, the water provides an excellent and clean delivery system for these important plant boosters into the soil and makes it very easy for the plants to absorb it all.

The contents of this potato water are excellent for plant growth and encourage the release of nutrients in the soil, which also significantly benefits plants.

Using the water that is leftover from boiling potatoes is an excellent way to boost plant growth, increase the overall health of the growing soil and the plants that are growing in the soil, and reduce the costs of properly sustaining a garden, vegetable garden, herb garden, or indoor plants.

In short, potato water is excellent for plants, regardless of what they are, and everyone who grows plants of any kind should use their leftover potato water for their plants.

Let’s explore the use of potato water for plants and identify the most useful aspects of this method for increasing plant health.

Is Potato Water Good For All Plants?

We have learned that potato water is good for gardens, indoor plants, flowers, and vegetables, but is it true that potato water is good for all plants? Are there any plants where potato water should not be used?

The truth is that there are very few plants that will not benefit from potato water, but the soil composition and the nutrients that are already in the soil will determine how the plants benefit from this type of natural fertilizer overall.

Potato water is mostly water and potato starch, which contains high levels of potassium. The potassium mineral is considered a macronutrient for most plants, which means that plants will use a significant amount of potassium throughout their life cycle, making it among the most important nutrients for plant growth and development.

The other nutrients in potato water are also helpful for plants, but if you use potato water on plants that are sensitive to certain acids, such as folate or pantothenic acid, potato water can be less effective.

It is also important to remember that too much of a good thing is bad for plants. This means that if the soil that your plants are growing in is already very high in potassium, it is possible that using potato water can introduce too much potassium to the soil, which will harm the plants in the long term.

Potato water is good for the vast majority of plants, including flowers, herbs, vegetables, trees, and most others, but it must always be used in a controlled way and in balanced conjunction with other sources of plant food and fertilizers.

If potato water is used in the wrong way, used without any other supplements, or used too much, it can do more harm than good.

What Are The Benefits Of Using Potato Water For Plants?

We have learned that potato water is good for most plants and that it can be used to boost plant health and plant growth, but what are all of the benefits that come with using potato water for plants?

There are several important benefits that potato water has when using it to water plants. This is a basic natural fertilizer that anyone can make at home and uses nothing but waste, which is an excellent way to reduce the waste that you produce in the kitchen. Let’s explore the benefits of using this water for your plants.

The benefits of using potato water for plants include:

Potato water promotes plant health

Potato water promotes plant growth
Potato water introduces nutrients into the soil
Potato water promotes the release of nutrients into the soil from other plant matter

Potato water provides water for plants
Potato water will never damage or scorch plants or soil
Potato water makes good use of kitchen waste

Potato water is excellent for composting
Potato water reduces the need for expensive fertilizers
Potato water is very cost-effective

Potato water is easy to make
Potato water is easy to use
Potato water can benefit all types of soil

Potato water is among the cheapest, easiest, and most natural fertilizers that you can use for plants. There are several companies that make excellent natural fertilizers from potato starch and potato pulp, and it has become a largely successful commercial product.

Many farmers and gardeners worldwide are using potato water and potato starch fertilizer on their plants and crops, and it has been proven to be effective in almost all circumstances, especially in low-potassium soils.

Does Potato Water Help To Improve Soil Health?

Potato water is full of nutrients and minerals that are required for healthy plant growth, and we have established that this type of natural fertilizer is good for almost all plants, but is potato water good for soil health? Can using potato water on soil improve its composition?

The good news for all gardeners is that potato water can help to correct unhealthy soil in some cases, and to use this type of fertilizer is good for your soil. Potato water can improve soil health, especially if the soil is lacking in important nutrients and minerals.

The starch in the potato water has good proteins, potassium, and magnesium. Introducing these elements into the soil will increase the potassium and magnesium content of the soil, which is vital for plant growth and overall health, and the introduction of good proteins into the soil will encourage other plant matter and nutrients in the soil to be released into a form that can be effectively used by plants.

This means that using potato water in conjunction with other soil-health boosters is an excellent way to increase the health of any soil, especially soil that is low in potassium and magnesium.

If you are starting a new vegetable gardener, flower bed, or growing patch in soil that is not as healthy for supporting plant life as it should be, using batches of concentrated potato water in conjunction with other natural fertilizers and plant boosters will help to significantly increase the health and growing ability of the soil.

Can You Use Any Potatoes For Potato Water?

While any potato water is great for plants, some varieties are better than others. The more starchier the potato, the better the potato water will be to use on your plants.

The best potatoes to use for potato water should break down when cooking to produce the starch needed. These are the types of potatoes that we would use for mashing and baking. The best starchy potatoes for potato water include the following:

Daisy Gold
Kennebec
Red Gold

Red Pontiac
Purple Majesty
Yukon Gold

How To Make Potato Water For Plants

Potato water is an excellent fertilizer and soil booster, and making it at home is exceedingly simple, but there are some important things to remember when making potato water specifically for plants or when cooking potatoes with the intention to use the leftover water for plants.

Key potato water tips to remember:

Never use salt when boiling the potatoes

Leave the skin on the potatoes or boil the skins afterward
Use clean water
Boil the potatoes for at least 45 minutes to release all nutrients

Always allows the water to cool completely before using it

With these tips in mind, making potato water is simple and straightforward to do.

To make a batch of potato water, simply boil some potatoes in plenty of water. Thoroughly wash the potatoes, cut them in half, leave the skins on, and place the potatoes in a large pot with water to fill the pot.

Boil the potatoes on medium heat for the best results. Wait for the water to reach a rolling boil, and leave the potatoes to cook for at least 45 minutes for the best results.

If you do peel the potatoes before cooking them, be sure to put the peels into the water after removing the cooked potatoes and boil the skins in the same water to release the nutrients from the skin as well as the potato flesh.

It is important to use plenty of water to provide enough water to draw out the nutrients from the potatoes. If there is not enough water around the potatoes, much of the useful nutrients that plants need will remain in the potatoes.

Once the potatoes are cooked, remove them from the water carefully. Allow the water to cool, and it should look cloudy and opaque. If you use a lot of potatoes or allow the water to continue billing for a while after removing the potatoes, the starch in the water may make the liquid quite thick.

If the water is thick, there is a high concentration of potato starch in the water, which is good for plants.

How To Use Potato Water For Plants

Now that we have learned how to make potato water, it is time to learn how to use this natural fertilizer for plants. There are several ways to use potato water for plants, and each method is highly effective for specific reasons.

Once potato water is made, most gardeners dilute the potato water with fresh water in a 1:2 ratio of potato water and fresh water. This solution makes it easier to spread the potato water out over larger areas and is still strong enough to have good benefits for plants and soils.

Diluting potato water is one option, but concentrating potato water is another way to use it. To concentrate potato water, simply boil the water until it becomes very thick and almost gloopy. This concentrate is excellent for adding to small areas of soil and can be dug into the soil.

Digging concentrated potato water into the soil will boost soil health significantly, especially if the soil is already very damp or moist.

With that being said, many gardeners use potato water without diluting it or concentrating it. Simply pouring potato water over your plants is also an effective way to use it, as it will soak into the soil quickly. Be sure to pour the water directly at the base of your plants when using this method.

Final Thoughts

Potato water is an excellent way to reduce kitchen waste and a great way to fertilize your plants with completely natural and effective fertilizers. Potato water’s nutrients, minerals, and proteins promote healthy plants, good plant growth, and good soil health. You could also try using other types of water for your plants, like:

using distilled water

using water from your dehumidifier

The next time you boil potatoes for a meal, set the leftover potato water aside for watering your plants. Continue to do this every time you cook potatoes, and you will notice a drastic change in the health of your plants over time.

Sources

https://thegardeningcook.com/potato-starch/

https://adven.com/references/potato-starch-is-evaporated-as-a-plant-fertilizer/

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