Author Topic: wood ash (Read 3780 times)

northfifeduckling · « **on:** May 10, 2012, 12:09:16 pm »

just had the new stove on first time - I want to put the ashes in the garden. Is there anyting I have to consider? Which plants like it best, which don't?

Fleecewife · « **Reply #1 on:** May 10, 2012, 12:45:51 pm »

I always add wood ash to my onion bed, along with manure and seaweed meal. I also put it around the rootrun of stone fruit trees eg plums, damsons and gages. Pasture likes it too. I add some to the compost I use for growing my tomato plants - I forgot this year so that is perhaps why my tomato plants are looking a bit of a dodgy colour right now.

Wood ash is also great as a dust bath for hens, as long as you can keep it dry, and seems to help them get rid of any parasites.

Sylvia · « **Reply #2 on:** May 11, 2012, 07:42:34 am »

Fruit bushes benefit from wood ash.

Fleecewife · « **Reply #3 on:** May 11, 2012, 11:28:00 am »

They showed on The Beechgrove Garden that wood ash is great on asparagus beds - I don't have asparagus though as I have too many weeds

northfifeduckling · « **Reply #4 on:** May 11, 2012, 01:09:56 pm »

same here... :'(I missed the spring tidy so now there's only dock and nettles growing where Asparagus was last year...

Plantoid · « **Reply #5 on:** May 15, 2012, 11:07:13 pm »

Use only natural untreated wood for your burning , no painted , creosoted ,tanalized or salt preserved stuff & don't use oils or firelihghter stick to get the wood burning use paper crackers & thin kindle sticks instead or a gas poker./ gas blowlamp .

The ash is high in potash , so if you sus which plants like a healthy dose go for it . A sprinkle of wood ash when sowing carrot sed in a fine furrow is said to deter carrot fly . It cetainly helps to have a teaspoon of the ash and mix in the carrot seeds , then sprinkle sow along the line because it helps you sow them thinly.

I was once told that laurel and yew are not the best of ashes to use but I've not read it in any decent reference books.