On Mon, 05 May 2003 06:01:36 -0500, Rusty Mase wrote:

On Mon, 05 May 2003 02:39:24 GMT, animaux wrote:
Pool grade D.E. is NOT the same as horticultural/food grade D.E.

I will have to read up on that. I cannot imagine why you would
calcine it unless you were just burning an impurity off from it.
Also, it cannot be more crystaline than regular D.E. as calcining it
would not crystalize it. It is just a mineral - kind of a strange one
perhaps as it is created by living organisms.

The only insecticidal nature to it is abrasiveness and it only works
on insects with hard exoskeletons. Fine sand does not do this as the
particles are round whereas D.E. particles are jagged.

A rose by any other name is still a rose in my book. For the Dirt
Doctor to call it "natural food supplement for pets and livestock" is
really sort of weird. The stuff is inert!

Rusty

It's got minerals and the physical properties of the product helps with internal
parasites. I have no idea how it doesn't hurt earthworms in the soil, but it
doesn't. Maybe because its only effective when dry? Not sure. There are many
large volumes written about diatoms.

I don't know why anyone would calcine it, either.