Is Vinegar Good For Plants?

Thinking of using vinegar in your garden? If yes, you will be glad to know that there are many uses for vinegar in your little grassland. From repelling insects to promoting germination, it can help a plant in various ways. Read on for our 7 amazing vinegar hacks for plants!

Plants and Vinegar: 7 Amazing Ways To Use Vinegar on Your Houseplants

Can you spray vinegar directly on your houseplants? There can be conflicting answers to this question. Many studies have proven that spraying this household ingredient straight on the plant can be fatal for it. Vinegar dries out the leaves and gives the plant a hard time recovering. If it gets in the soil, it can even kill the plant. 

However, if used cautiously, it can give dozens of benefits to the plant. Read on to discover how!

Use Vinegar to Repel Insects, Especially Ants

Are you troubled by insects and ants in your garden? Don’t worry, as vinegar will help you to keep them away.

The Repellent Recipe

You just need a full-strength white vinegar to keep the ants away. Start by applying it to insect-rich areas like anthills, garden bed bases, greenhouses, etc. Spray, sprinkle, or pour it throughout the soil. Just make sure not to spray it close to the roots as it will damage the plants. 

It will temporarily change the pH of the soil. So, it will keep the insects away, but it is harmful to the plants. Hence, avoid applying it near the plants you want to keep. Use this hack once or twice a day, and your garden will become pest-free.

The Insecticide Recipe

If you desire to be a bit ruthless, spray vinegar directly on the insects at maximum power. Alternatively, you can use this insect devouring formula:

• 3 cups of water
• 1 cup vinegar
• 1 tsp dish soap

Again, spray it directly on the ants or insects to kill them. Don’t let bees and other beneficial insects get into the wrath of this spray. Be very cautious while using it on plants. First, spray on one or two leaves to see if any side effects occur. If everything remains normal, you can go for the broad application.

Slugs and Snails

Slugs and snails are the garden eaters. They can damage your plants to great extents, primarily in the wet season. Hence, use this recipe to save your garden from these slimy invaders.

Slug and Snail Repellant Recipe

• 1 cup vinegar
• 1 cup of water

Mix them well in a spray bottle, and sprinkle straight on these invaders to kill them. Take cautionary measures before you broadly use this recipe.

Household Pests and Problem Animals

Have you ever tried sniffing the smell of an open vinegar bottle? If not, we extremely recommend you not to do it. Why? Because it has a very irritating odor. And animals find it the same way as we do. 

The vinegar in your home can help keep the pets, neighborhood cats, dogs, and other unwanted animals away from your garden. One advantage it provides is that you do not actually hurt the animals to keep them away. Even if they try to eat or drink it, it won’t harm them as it is just a food item.

You just need to spray or pour the full-strength vinegar across the places where you do not want any animal to invade. To keep your plants safe from the spray, soak a sponge in white vinegar and set it out in a cup or bowl.

Fight Fruit Flies

Fruit flies are not just an inside problem but also a garden problem. One of the species of these flies can rip apart the skins of fresh fruit and berries. They do so in an attempt to lay their larvae within the fruit. 

Hence, there is a need to create a formula that keeps these flies away from your beautiful garden. This fly trap set will prevent the problem of outside fruit flies. In fact, with time, it will even start affecting the inside fruit flies.

Fruit Fly Trap Recipe

• 1 cup of warm water
• ½ cup vinegar (Apple Cider Vinegar would work wonders, but white vinegar can do the job too)
• ¼ cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon molasses

Make sure that you dissolve the sugar and molasses well in the mixture. Then, pour the solution into shallow containers and place them across the garden, especially around the orchards. 

A Jump on Germination

The primary goal for any gardener would be to bring beautiful plants and delicious fruits and vegetables into life. Vinegar can assist in this process too.

This home ingredient softens the hard seed coats that may affect its quality. As a result, seeds will achieve better germination from the start of their life. Thus, to see greater results in your garden, all you have to do is use this formula.

Seed Germination Recipe

• 1 cup water
• ½ cup vinegar

Start by mixing water and vinegar. Then, cover the seeds with twice as much of the mixture as the number of embryos. Adding more won’t harm the baby plant as some may absorb more liquid than usual.

Place the seeds in the mixture for at least eight to twelve hours to see the results. After this, thoroughly drain, rinse, and finally plant it. Remember not to soak the seeds for more than a day, or you will suffocate them to death. This presoak formula can be used for all the house plants you want to grow, especially for those seeds with difficult germination.

Increasing Soil Acidity 

Spraying vinegar on the soil decreases its pH levels, making the soil acidic. Blueberries, hydrangeas, hibiscus, and other similar plants tend to love the acidic soil. If you plan to grow these plants in your house garden, it would be beneficiary to use a little vinegar. 

Soil Acidity Additive Recipe

• 1 cup of white vinegar
• 1 gallon of water

Mix these two components concurrently and use a gallon to water the plants. Alternatively, spread these household ingredients across the plant’s bottom to feed the roots. However, we recommend using it with water to keep the plant hydrated and give a more widespread distribution to the solution. 

Remember that this recipe shouldn’t be considered a long-term solution to increasing the soil’s acidity. More frequent use of this hack will help maintain the soil acidity for a long time.

Counteract Hard Minerals

If there is just the right amount of mineral and lime in the soils, it is beneficial for the house plants. But anything in excess is not always a good thing. 

You can use vinegar to get the mineral content of your garden right. To use this hack, simply apply it to the soil. Let it settle within the earth for at least a week. This will correct the situation if the soil contains high mineral content of hard water or if it is over-limed.

Lime increases the alkalinity of the soil. Since most plants prefer a neutral pH level, vinegar can also be used to get the pH levels down to 7. In fact, it is a good cleaning agent, meaning that it easily breaks the hard minerals and salt deposits in the soil.

Final Verdict

Vinegar has many benefits when it comes to plants and gardening. However, you need to take reasonable precautions while using it. For instance, always conduct spot sprays on one or two leaves of the plant to see if there are any side effects. If there are not, then only go for broad application. If you use it carefully, vinegar might be the best thing your garden needs!