Which Plants Like Milk? 5 Surprising Choices

Milk has a high content of calcium, protein, vitamins, and sugar, which nourish your plants to grow well. You can use fresh, expired, evaporated, and even powdered milk. This is a remedy for several garden issues, including calcium deficiencies, rot, viruses, and mildew.

However, it is advisable to dilute the milk in water to prevent damage to the plant. Also, not all plants need milk to thrive. This blog discusses five plants that prefer milk.

Why Use Milk for Plants?

Here are some benefits of using milk for plants -

• If the milk is sweetened, avoid using it, as it can attract pests and cause root rot.

• As already said, milk has a high content of calcium and essential vitamins, and it can prevent root rot, which is caused by calcium deficiency in the plant.

• The protein in the milk breaks down into a small amount of nitrogen, which is great for growing leaves and flowers.

• It is a low-dose fertilizer, which ensures your plant gets the proper amount of nutrients it requires.

• Milk has antifungal properties, which act as a natural pesticide and keep the pests away.

5 Plants That Like Milk

Here are 5 plants that like milk as fertilizer -

Angel Wing Begonias

Angel Wing begonias are cane begonias, a type of plant that has been popular as houseplants for centuries. They get their name from attractive leaves that grow on the straight stem, along with gorgeous spouts of showy flowers.

Angel Wing begonias can benefit from milk, but they need to be diluted first. Here’s how you can prepare the milk mixture -

• Dilute 1-2 tablespoons of milk in a quart-size pitcher filled with water.

• Stir up well and pour the milk water into the soil once or twice a month.

Ensure you pot it in light, well-draining soil and place it in a bright, indirect light.

Jade Plant

Jade plants are thick and have jade-green colored, rounded, or oval leaves. They are easy-to-care succulents, requiring little to no water or nutrients to thrive, and can live for years. They usually grow on thick and woody stems, which makes the plant look like a mini tree.

Jade plants also love milk as fertilizer. It is advisable to spray the milk mixture on the jade only during the growing seasons. Also, consider placing it in bright sunlight before applying the milk mixture. This enhances the antifungal properties of the milk.

English Ivy

English Ivy, also known as Hedera helix, is popular for being a strong outdoor plant. But most people love it as an indoor plant because of its bright-colored, lobed leaves that hang gracefully from a basket, like a floral waterfall.

They need a stronger concentration of milk, so -

• Mix a 1:1 milk-water mixture

• Pour it at the base of the English ivy

They need to feed the mixture once a month and only during the growing season.

African Violet

African violet has bright, bold flowers that sparkle like jewels with soft, rounded leaves as a background. These plants can be placed together in a pot for an ornamental effect. They grow well in humid conditions, which makes them vulnerable to fungal diseases like powdery mildew. Add milk mixture to prevent the fungus, here’s how you can do it -

• Add 4 parts of the milk to 6 parts of the water.

• Spray the solution on the leaves every 10 days.

This will keep your plant healthy and happy. In addition, keep it well-fed with African violet food and use soil made from perlite, peat moss, and vermiculite.

Kalanchoe

Kalanchoe blossfeldiana is also known as “succulent with benefits.” It has scalloped leaves, which are exquisitely tinted, and blooms in clusters of starry flowers.

You can use a milk and water mixture spray. However, it is advisable to use only non-fat or reconstituted milk. Alternatively, you can strain the milk to get rid of the fats and mix it in the water to make it easy to spray.

How to Water a Plant With Milk?

When considering milk to water the plant, it is recommended to opt for reduced-fat or low-fat milk. Once you have all the required materials, you can make the mixture by mixing a 50:50 ratio of milk and water. Pour it into the spray bottle and shake well. There is no general rule that the milk and water must be in the same quantity, as you can use half a cup of milk mixed well with water.

There are two ways you can use the liquid -

• Spray the mixture on the plant and ensure the watery milk has been absorbed properly. If you still see the liquid sitting, wipe it down with a soft, wet cloth.

• You can also pour the liquid into the soil, which allows the roots to absorb the milky water properly.

If you have a larger garden, using 1 quart of milk can cover at least a 20-by-20-foot space. While 5 gallons of milk can cover 1 acre of land. Avoid using chemical pesticides after using milk, as it can kill the bacteria in the milk that help the plant to grow.