Using Bonfire ash.

[annie trip]

Anyone got any tips on this idea, i am sure i read somewhere wood ash is good for certain veggies and as there is a Hugh pile of them still smouldering from the bonfire i was wondering if i could collect and use??

Think it may have been in an old Monty book.???

[Nicos]

here is a reply Geordie gave last year....



Wood Ash
I posted an article all about the benefits of composting and I do stand by that but there comes a time when nothing short of a good bonfire will do!
As allotments and gardens are cleared many people have an annual bonfire, (where permitted!) so these are my tips for the many uses of the wood ash you are left with.

* mix it with peas to repel the mice
* plant potatoes in wood ash if scab is a problem
* Set your root crops in a furrow, cover with ash and water the furrow. Cover with a plank of wood and check daily for slugs & snails. This speeds germination and provides a fertiliser.
* Scatter ash from fine nylon mesh over brassicas to repel cabbage whites and kill the caterpillars.
* Ash strewn amongst carrots and onions can deter the respective flys
* Spread amongst Gooseberry bushes and on leaves it will deter sawfly, shake the caterpillars onto the ash and they will not climb back.
* Infuse in water for a foliar spray
* Add to a compost (aaha heres the link!!) heap that has become to acidic (fruit flies can indicate acidity).
* Mix in generous amounts with pine needles to make the best possible mulch for strawberries. I'm not sure why but think its because the needles raise the acidity which strawbs love, the ash acts as a counter but provides potash, and the slugs and snails hate both.


The site you have your bonfire on will be a premium space for sighting any fruit bush next spring....they love the potash and phosphorus left in the soil. All the perennial weeds will have been destroyed as well.
__________________
Geordie



There is more info if you look through 'search'
hope that's helpful!

[pigletwillie]

Wood ash is great spread around garlic and can be used around fruit bushes (except blueberries) to increase fruit production.

[annie trip]

And when should i pur it on? just when i have it..

[Geordie]

As a fertiliser when you have it, as pest control....just make sure it is dry, store it in a lidded bucket and use next year.