Using Cornmeal In Your Garden For Weed Control and To Attract Worms:
Another Budget Saving Nana Gardening tip:
I was admiring my neighbor’s fantastic blackberry bushes. Here is how they planted them. First they loosened the soil and planted the bushes. Then they put a thin layer of corn meal on the ground all around the plant and between each plant. Next, they added a 12 inch layer of mulch. Those plants are doing fantastic.
Why Does Cornmeal Help Your Garden?
Why? The corn meal feeds the worms that keep the soil in great shape and it suppresses weed seeds and helps prevent them from germinating. You just have to be sure and not add the corn meal until after your seedlings have emerged from the ground.
How I Saved Money On Corn Meal:
At a surplus store, I found several bags of corn meal that had split. I would not want to serve that to my family, but it is perfect for my garden! I’m going to use it as cheap fertilizer, worm attracter and weed control!!
You can actually buy corn gluten (much more expensive) from various organic suppliers on the web. Corn meal was a much cheaper idea. Just be sure that you buy plain corn meal and not self rising. You don’t want all those chemicals in your soil……just the ground corn!
Hi Rene,
What a great idea. Thank you!
I’ll be doing that from now on.
Good! I am glad that it was helpful. (-:
Gardening is my new passion and I have a raised square foot garden. Would this work in that? How thin is thin when you spread in down and how often to do this?
I only do it when I plant the plant. I just use a thin layer, just thick enough where you can’t really see through to the dirt. Hope that helps! Rene
Thank you for this tip. However, I was wondering–most corn in the US today is GMO corn. Is cornmeal made from this GMO corn safe to use for food products? Mairzie
It really shouldn’t affect what you are growing. You are using it in the soil around your plant, but your plant would still not be GMO, nor would the produce that you would be eating. It is definitely better than using fertilizers, since you are attracting worms to aerate and fertilize your soil.
Thank you for the quick response! Also, may you be blessed with a quick, safe, healthy delivery and a healthy, beautiful, bouncing baby boy!
You are so welcome. (-: Thanks so much! We can’t wait to meet him! Rene