Mulching hedging and apple trees

[Can the Man]

My chimney cleaner said I should use the Ash from my stove on my box heading asa mulch to keep down the weeds he also said it would be good for the Apple and cherry trees. The ash is primarily from burnt turf, timer and some smokeless fuel nuggets.

Any comments or suggestions greatly appreciated as I lit my first fire of the season last night.

[bikermike]

I think generally wood-ash is good, but coal ash has sulphur and other poisonous impurities in it.

Not sure about Turf.

[burnie]

Wood ash is Potash and is great for berries like rasps, not too sure about peat either, but coal is a no no, I inherited a small heap of coal ash at the bottom of the garden when I bought this house, that patch is still poor even after I cleared it and that is over 16 years ago.

[Losos]

Yes, wood ash is good but it takes a very long time to have any effect. I think I read somewhere maybe two years before it does anything, I have used it and I am sure it did 'nowt in the first year !!

[Can the Man]

Thanks everyone, I’m going to give it a try anyway

[toomanytommytoes]

From the RHS (https://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profile?pid=621)...

"Ash from coal or anthracite is best disposed of through the council rubbish collection since it has little or no nutritional benefit and is potentially harmful to soil, plants and consumers of edible produce"

Wood ash would be OK as long as the wood is untreated, but you don't want to overdo it as you may end up raising the pH of your soil too much. RHS recommend 50-70g per square metre.

[Can the Man]

From the RHS (https://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profile?pid=621)...

"Ash from coal or anthracite is best disposed of through the council rubbish collection since it has little or no nutritional benefit and is potentially harmful to soil, plants and consumers of edible produce"

Wood ash would be OK as long as the wood is untreated, but you don't want to overdo it as you may end up raising the pH of your soil too much. RHS recommend 50-70g per square metre.

Thanks a mill

[muck lover]

I think wood ash is more a potassium rich fertilizer rather than a mulch. So handfuls rather than a thick layer. If you put a lot of it down to physically suppress weeds by light exclusion I reckon that would be way too much.

[devonuk]

I read somewhere (sorry not to be more helpful) that potash is concentrated in the living (or recently living) parts of the tree - bark, cambium etc - so there is much more in garden bonfire ash from twigs, prunings etc than in domestic fire ash where you are mostly burning dead heartwood.