Wood Ash In Garden
Jul 8 2019 by tracey besemer this post may contain affiliate links.
Wood ash in garden. 45 practical uses for wood ash around the home and garden published. Nor is it recommended for areas where you intend. However unlike limestone which can take 6 months or more to change soil ph wood ash is water soluble and changes the soil ph rapidly. Unfortunately wood ash can also be a source of heavy metals such as cadmium chromium or lead which you dont necessarily want in your garden.
Only use wood ash on acid soils and low potassium soils. Wood ash is similar to lime which is ground limestone or calcium carbonate which also increases soil ph. Wood ash has salt in it. Keep in mind it should be added in small doses or it could throw the whole balance off.
It also has a liming effect so wood ash can remedy excessively acidic soils. Using in the garden. When your primary heating source is wood you find yourself cleaning out the wood stove quite a bit during those colder months of the year. How to use wood ash.
Theres no point in spreading it around acid loving plants such as blueberries. Wood ash is not recommended for use with garden soils that have a ph greater than 65 or when the soil test potassium level is very high. If you make compost wood ash is a great ingredient to add to it. Wood ash is an excellent source of lime and potassium for your garden.
Being alkaline wood ash obviously isnt an ideal addition if your soil already has a ph of 75 or greater. Sprinkle wood ash in the garden and watch the snails and slugs disappear. And since wood ash raises the soil ph the presence of heavy metals should not be a problem. Are snails and slugs a problem in your garden.
However most studies have not shown that if the soil ph is above 60 the heavy metals are not taken in by the plants in measurable amounts. Ash from wood fires such as bonfires or wood burning stoves can be a useful additive to the compost heap or can be applied directly to fallow ground and dug in. If you have a. It can be a natural source of potassium and trace elements.
Apply roughly twice as much ash by weight as the recommendation for limestone. Wood ash provides potassium which is essential for fruit crops where not to use wood ash in the garden. Some plants thrive in neutral to. Not only that using ashes in the garden also provides many of the trace elements that plants need to thrive.