Are used coffee grounds/tea ok to use as fertilizer for potted pansies and window boxes?

When I tried sprinkling tea a few years ago into a house plant I ended up having to dispose of the whole thing because of fruit flies. Now I got large pots with pansies and it says fertilize every two weeks. Should I buy some fertilizer or try the coffee/tea route? Any suggestions for natural spider mite remedies? They do seem to come back every year on anything I grow :(

Are used coffee grounds/tea ok to use as fertilizer for potted pansies and window boxes?
We have pansies growing in our herb railing on our deck..in all actuality..do not use miracle grow..pansies do not like alot of nitrogen... As well coffee grounds are great but a huge source of nitrogen, which pansies do not like alot of....Also coffee grounds after awhile if too much added gets too acidic for pansies... I love coffee grounds in my pklants and garden..but they are not meant for all plants especially ones that do not like alot of nitrogen..Pansies are a "leggy" flower to start with..the nitrogen will make them grow taller and fall over on you...This is copied and pasted from the link below...Under planting procedures Fertilization requirements of pansies differ from other types of seasonal color. Avoid using fertilizers containing high amounts of slow-release ammoniacal nitrogen. These are fine for summer annuals but not for fall pansies. High rates of ammoniacal nitrogen will cause pansy stems to stretch and become succulent during the warm fall weather. This weakens the plants and makes them more susceptible to winter injury. Ammoniacal nitrogen also is slow to be absorbed by the plants during the winter months when soil temperatures drop below 45 degrees F. Pansies can starve during the winter months even though the soil contains high amounts of ammoniacal nitrogen.
Reply:Compost your grounds outdoors for 3-4 months. Mix it with some soil and dry leaves. Grounds and tea by themselves are high in nitrogen and it would burn your plants if used alone. I suggest that you purchase a liquid fertilizer meant for flowering plants; it will have a high middle number indicating high phospherus which will yield brighter flowers on healthy strong stalks. The coffee/tea would give you vigorous leaves, but no flowers. Use insecticidal soap on the spider mites. Since you can't control the whole neighborhood, just spray down your plants one a month or so for the mites. You might introduce some lady bugs. These are purchased by the pound. Of course, they mature and fly away, but if there is a feast, many will stick around.
Reply:Well, everyone is using the coffee grounds and say they like it. But I also heard that they are acidic and if you put them in a compost you need to add lime. So I think you are going to change the pH of the soil if you use coffee grounds. You should compost them and then use the compost. I think you would be better off if you got your hands on water soluble miracle grow. It has everything your plant needs in it.
Reply:A couple of the answers you got here are partially right but not totally. They can lower the PH of the soil but usually not enough to matter and while they are high in N they can also tie up a lot of the N your plants use in there decomposing process and it can be enough to short your plants. Best idea is to compost them and then you get the N from them as well as a lot of other products.
Reply:I have used cold left over coffee on house plants for years. About once a week I take whatever is left in the pot (usually about 2 cups) and add 8-10 cups (my pot is 12 cups). Then add some to each of my plants. It seems to keep them healthy. I have never had fruit flies from them, but maybe I've been lucky!
Reply:Regular Miracle Gro is the best plant food/fertilizer to use. I work at a green house and this is strictly all we use. Follow directions on the bag. Most plants dont need as much as you think.
Reply:yes coffee grounds are wonderful fertilizer.
Reply:Used tea bags work better, or even tuna
Reply:yes i do it all the time