How to Reuse Banana Peels

Most people discard the peels once they eat bananas. Yet, there are various imaginative hacks you can use in your home and garden using these otherwise disposable things, and fertilizing plants is one of them.

So check out our 5-Minute Crafts guide to find out how you can reuse banana peels.

1. Add banana peels to compost.

If you recycle plants and food leftovers to create compost to fertilize plants, you can add banana peels to it. You can toss them whole into the compost, but they’ll decompose faster if you cut them into smaller pieces. By doing so, you’ll boost the nutrition value of the compost, which favors the growth of the plants. Thus, do the following:

1. Cut banana peels into tiny pieces.
2. Drop them in a compost bin or box. Allow as much time as needed for everything to decompose well.
3. When everything decomposes well and the compost smells like earth, add it to the soil around the plant you wish to fertilize.

2. Trap flies and other insects.

If you are looking for a natural way to get rid of pesky insects, this is what you need to do:

1. Secure a jar or a container with a plastic lid.
2. Create a hole or multiple holes in the lid that are large enough for troublesome insects to get through.
3. Cut banana peels into small pieces and put them into the container. Also, pour enough apple cider vinegar into the container to sink the banana peels.
4. Put the lid on the container.

The smell of banana peels and vinegar will attract insects, and most of them will likely drown in the liquid attempting to get to the peels.

3. Deter aphids from your plants.

Banana peels act as an aphid deterrent because of the smell. So if you struggle to keep these insects away from your plants, try this:

1. Cut banana peels into small, slim pieces.
2. Place these pieces around the base of the affected plant.

After a few days, the aphids should be gone because the smell of banana peels acts as a deterrent. Note, though, that this approach might fail sometimes, so think of a backup plan, just in case.

4. Use them as a polish for houseplants.

You can make your houseplants shiny by polishing their leaves with banana peels. To make it so, this is what you should do:

1. Cut banana peels into long pieces, from the pedicel to the bottom, for example.
2. Use the soft side of the cut peels to polish the leaves.

Polishing houseplants this way may leave tiny dustballs behind. If so, have a napkin or something similar on hand to pick them up.