We are often told to add used coffee grounds to garden soil to perk up plants. But the science doesn’t support this, says James Wong.
Coffee grounds, even after brewing, are still a rich source of caffeine. This compound seems to be produced by coffee bushes - at least in part - as a herbicide to suppress the growth of smaller competing plants. The phenomenon is called allelopathy and is a strategy loads of plants have evolved to help reduce the competition for light, space, water and nutrients around them.
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