Can Baking Soda Be Dangerous for Plants?

As green thumbers and black thumbers alike know, plants can be moody. Some need to be in the shade. Others thrive in the sun. Some are better befriending plants outside. Others can grow far better by keeping their space during the winter months. Even in a fruit and vegetable garden, every plant has its own personality. Making sure plants have a certain level of moisture will also affect the results of a garden. However, sodium bicarbonate (i.e., salt) can put plants at risk of drying out quickly. While it’s bad enough to not water a plant as much as needed, using baking soda can kill some plants as soon as the two come in contact with each other. This is why using baking soda on all plants equally can be dangerous.

When Does Baking Soda Come In Handy for Plants?

Baking soda does have some beneficial uses for a garden or house plant though.

Weed killer: The problem with buying weed killer for a lawn is it can kill grass as quickly as it kills weeds. Now your pretty flower bed and mulch is surrounded by green-turned-brown grass. Eventually, brown grass will turn green again, but it may be a whole new season until it does. Mixing 1-1/2 cups of baking soda, a squirt of liquid soap and a gallon of water can eliminate small weeds. But in order to make sure baking soda doesn’t ruin all of your plants, cover fruits, flowers, vegetables and good grass beforehand, so the baking soda can only do damage where it’s supposed to. Sprinkle this baking soda mixture around during a consistently hot week (85 degrees or higher). If it happens to rain mid-sprinkle and before the baking soda can do its job, that mixture will spread to healthy plants and kill them.