Watering your plants with cooking water

1. Which water for which benefit?

Not all water is created equal. Depending on what you've cooked, you won't be providing the same nutrients to your soil:

🥦 Vegetable Water (The Vitamin Cocktail)

This is the best. When boiled, the vegetables release vitamins and minerals (iron, magnesium) into the water.
Tip: Choose organic vegetables to avoid concentrating pesticides in your watering can.

🥚 Egg Water (Calcium)

Never throw away the water from your hard-boiled eggs! The shell releases calcium when boiled. This is a vital element for strengthening plant cell walls and preventing certain deficiencies.

🍝 Starch Water (The Booster)

The water in pasta, rice, or potatoes is cloudy. This is starch . This starch is excellent for stimulating bacterial life in the soil (the good bacteria that nourish the plant).
Caution: The water in starchy foods ferments quickly. Use it within 24 hours.

2. The 3 Absolute Safety Rules

Before pouring your saucepan into your houseplant, read this carefully:

🚫 Rule #1: No SALT!

This is a classic mistake. Salt (sodium) is toxic to most plants. It burns the roots and sterilizes the soil.
If you have salted your cooking water, do not use it as fertilizer (see point 4).

❄️ Rule #2: Let it cool

Boiling water instantly kills roots. Always let your water return to room temperature before watering.

🎯 Rule #3: Aim for the ground, not the leaves

Cooking water (especially pasta water) leaves unsightly white marks when it dries and can clog the pores of the leaves. Watering should be done precisely at the base of the plant.

3. How to proceed in practice?

Here's the ideal routine for adopting this eco-friendly practice:

1. Cook without salt (you can add salt to your plate, it's healthier!).
2. Collect the water in a salad bowl or directly in your watering can (if it is metal).
3. Let it cool for a few hours.
4. Water your plants at the base.

4. What if I've added salt to my water? (The Weed Killer Tip)

All is not lost! Boiling salt water is a total and powerful weed killer .

Never pour it on your plants. Instead, pour it (still boiling hot) on the weeds growing between the paving stones of your patio or in your gravel driveway. The thermal shock combined with the salt will kill even the most stubborn weeds, without the use of chemicals like glyphosate.

Cook, Water, Thrive

Sustainable gardening starts in the kitchen. By adopting this simple habit, you save water and feed your plants for free.

To accompany this new virtuous routine, choose durable tools that will make you want to garden.