Tea leaves?

[horticultural_hobbit]

Apparently if you put your used loose tea leaves in the soil around the base of plant, this acts like fertiliser...?

[Davyburns]

I always put mine into the compost bin

[chris]

I compost them too.. You can do similar with used coffee grounds as well, but I've since read conflicting advice about them - I bung them in the compost too. My daleks are pretty much a self serve buffet of breakfast, lunch and dinner with free tea and coffee for all composting bugs/bacteria!

[Florence Fennel]

I use tea bags and have found that they don't compost well unless you empty the tea and throw the bag. The bags seem to be indestructable!

[Two_Sheds]

Loose leaves on the soil will go mouldy: but they're a great additive for the compost heap

[Aberdeenplotter]

watering pot plants with the cold dregs from the teapot was normal when I was a kid.

[Kiwi_Soph]

I use tea bags and have found that they don't compost well unless you empty the tea and throw the bag. The bags seem to be indestructable!

I am sure that I read that the only widely available teabags without at least some plastic in them are Jackson's of Picadilly. Could be why the others are so hard to compost!

Might have a wee google to back up these outlandish claims...

yup, here is the article I read - http://www.guardian.co.uk/environmen...biodegradeable

[chris]

Teapigs teabags are also fully biodegrable. They don't use staples on the little handle things either, must be some sort of glue to keep the tab on the string.

I tend to empty the bags once I've built up a huge collection.. I then put the tea bags in the council compost (the tea brand that I use says on the large bas that you can compost them I believe (I bought a 5Kg bag as i like my tea! (Yorkshire tea))).. I just did a quick seach, and found this from mrbadexample posted earlier in the year:

http://www.growfruitandveg.co.uk/gra...tml#post837999

Edit: oh it mentions teapigs on your link above the only issue with them, is that they are quite expensive... but the tea is really good.

[pipscariad]

Eek, plastic in tea bags! Another example of how plastics take over the world... We tend to drink loose leaf tea most of the time, as although it's a bit faffy the flavour is so much better. I have to say that I've never found a tea bag 'shell' in my compost though.

I'd always put tea leaves in the compost rather then around the plants direct too.

[chris]

Well, pips - the "tea" in tea bags is actually tea dust, rather than finely chopped/ground leaves as in loose tea.

"proper" tea, is amazing. I had some from some mountain in tawain - it's green tea, but you just put 3 or 4 crumpled up little balls (leaves) in a mug, pour hot water over - and it opens out into a full leaf. The flavour is crazy, it makes you wonder why you do put milk in tea.. I think the tea was called Mount Ali tea, it really is amazing stuff.

That said, I've just read about that matcha tea on the tea pigs website.. going to try that. I do like a good cup of tea, mind so I don't think i'll give up good old yorkshire tea (dust) .

Back on subject mind, just came across this link: Composting teabags | How can I recycle this?

Interesting read.

[Flummery]

I bung the whole teabag in. It breaks down eventually. A friend of a friend used her home made garden compost for the first time this spring. She was delighted to see butterflies in the garden next morning. When she went outside (and put on her specs!) she realised it was the undegraded, dried out tea bags flittering daintily round her garden!

[Kiwi_Soph]

Teapigs teabags are also fully biodegrable. They don't use staples on the little handle things either, must be some sort of glue to keep the tab on the string.

I tend to empty the bags once I've built up a huge collection.. I then put the tea bags in the council compost (the tea brand that I use says on the large bas that you can compost them I believe (I bought a 5Kg bag as i like my tea! (Yorkshire tea))).. I just did a quick seach, and found this from mrbadexample posted earlier in the year:

http://www.growfruitandveg.co.uk/gra...tml#post837999

Edit: oh it mentions teapigs on your link above the only issue with them, is that they are quite expensive... but the tea is really good.

I dream about a world where I can afford a regular teapigs fix *does a little swoon*

TBH they are a bit pricey though, I tend to drink looseleaf if I want that wonderful taste and teabags when I am feeling lazy or at work etc..

Even with the poly-plasticy stuff I'd probably still just compost them, ripping them open first if anyone is worried. Anything good that can go to compost rather than the tip is a win!

Also, Flummery, that made me giggle. Aww.

[Bren In Pots]

We always use loose leaf tea, its all down to my Gran telling me as a kid that tea bags were made from the sweeping up's, and my Gran wouldn't fib now would she

[jacob]

I bung them on the compost heap -- I do get them in the compost, but compared to the amount of tea we drink not that many, so I'm reckoning they mostly breakdown.

I can't say that I'm hugely pleased to find that teabags contain plastic though.

[chris]

We always use loose leaf tea, its all down to my Gran telling me as a kid that tea bags were made from the sweeping up's, and my Gran wouldn't fib now would she

Normal teabags are the sweepings! It's that tea dust stuff I was on about... shocking really, as I bet it's the majority of their sales!