Newspapers that arrive daily and are often thrown away after reading should not be discarded if you have a gardening hobby. If you are creating a small garden on a balcony or roof, an old newspaper can be used to simplify various tasks in your home garden.
Newspaper can be used for many purposes in plant care, ranging from preventing soil from drying out to making small pots for sowing seeds. This will not only help with caring for your plants but also offer a simple way to reuse unnecessary paper at home. Furthermore, this does not require purchasing expensive additional materials.
Using Old Newspapers for Plants
There are several ways to use old newspapers in gardening. Firstly, the newspaper helps prevent the soil from drying out quickly. If the soil in pots or in a home garden dries out quickly under the influence of heat or strong sun, you can lay 2-3 layers of newspaper around the plant. It is important to ensure that the paper does not stick to the plant stem; you can also add some soil or dry leaves over this layered base.
This layer of newspaper helps slow down the evaporation of moisture from the soil. Additionally, it can somewhat reduce the problem of unwanted grass (weeds) appearing on the soil surface.
Secondly, paper pots for growing seeds can be made from newspapers. If you enjoy preparing vegetable or flower seeds at home, you do not need to constantly buy small plastic cups or polyethylene bags. The newspaper can be repeatedly rolled to form a small cup, into which soil is then poured and seeds are sown. When the plant grows a little, the paper pot can be left in place and planted directly into the ground. However, excessive moistening of the paper pot should be avoided, as it can quickly become soggy.
Thirdly, newspaper helps prevent water and soil from spilling out from under pots. After watering in pots, the bottom part often becomes wet, and soil can spill out. In such cases, you can place several sheets of newspaper under the pot. This will help to prevent excess water and soil from getting directly onto the floor to some extent. Nevertheless, the newspaper should not be left constantly wet; if the paper gets very wet, it should be replaced to avoid problems with dirt or mold.
Before throwing away old newspaper, consider reusing it if you have plants. This will help reduce waste and allow you to perform some minor gardening tasks without extra cost. It is recommended to use regular newspaper for plants and to avoid direct contact with the soil of very shiny, lacquered, or colored printed materials. It is also not recommended to use too much newspaper in a pot or to leave it wet for too long.