Re-using citrus fruit

In the UK we throw away millions of tonnes of fruit and veg each year.  Despite our best efforts to promote home composting, most of this still goes to landfill. But it need not be this way.  Left over limes, lemons and oranges can have a new purpose and you’ll never end up with food wasted. Our volunteers from Shropshire Master Composters have come up with some ideas to keep citrus fruit out of the bin.
 
1. Cleaning: Juice leftover lemons to help clean all manner of household items. The recipe we have found useful is “2 tablespoon of lemon juice, 4 tablespoons of vinegar and 2 cups of water” then you can do more re-use by getting an old plastic spray bottle.


2. Laundry: Also you can use the same "recipe" as above on your clothing to get rid of stubborn stains. As always, test a small less visible area first so you don’t accidentally ruin your favorite article of clothing!

3.  Insect repellant: Apparently (I find this hard to believe) but if you have a problem this summer keeping ants out of your house simply place orange peels in the affected area. The acid smell will repel the ants and they’ll no longer be a problem.
 
4. Lighten your hair: if you want to go lighter this summer without going to the salon or using harsh hair dye kits, try natural lemon juice on your hair then just head out into the sunshine.

5. Shoe polish: clean an old pair of shoes with either a little lemon juice on a soft rag or you can rub a half a lemon on the shoe. Again, test on a spot that is not very visible first.

6. Medicine: save the rind from a grapefruit and follow this recipe to make a great tea that will help stop your sniffling this winter. Add lemon and honey for flavor if desired.

7. Keep olives fresh: adding a drop of lemon juice to a container of olives not only adds flavour but will keep them fresher longer.

8. Slug traps: You can use grapefruit halves to catch slugs - they love to spend the daytime in the warm dome of an empty grapefruit. Place them cut side down about the garden and then swoop in early evening and collect them up.

9. Compost! Despite some urban myths, you can add citrus peel to your compost heap at home and it composts really well.  Its best not to add too much to wormeries as the acidity may harm the worms, but for a standard home composting system, all citrus fruit is OK to go in.