"Antony Legat" antony@nospamthanks wrote in message
...
Colin wrote:
Hello all,

After recent and past bonfires, I have collected the ash & charcoal for
use
on the garden.

However, as there is no label on the side, I am unsure of how best to
apply
it - is it best done in spring, or should it be put on all the way
through
season?

Does anyone have any ideas?

I am talking about relatively small quantities, I have a carrier bag
full, &
I guess application rate would be a scattering of a few handfuls per m^2

Hi Colin, I have used leftover ash to good effect earlier in the year -
I simply sprinkled it around my runner beans and let it be watered in.

I would think it best to apply it in the growing season as ash is
quickly leached away (charcoal probably less so). You could try covering
the topsoil with mulch after applying/watering though - a la
permaculture - (which I have just become interested in!).

I have sprinkled it around potatos and tomatos in spring and dampened it
with the hose. Rain washed it in over a period of days. I also left some
outside in a bucket that became slurry which I layered thinly round the
plants like mortar and covered with straw. Use it in spring as a source of
potash. Damp it down after application as it may dry out the soil. How much
to use? Good question, wood ash (not coal ash nor treated timber ash) is
apparently around 10% potassium by volume so you may take note of that when
substituting it for other fertilisers. If used as a lime substitute I have
read, from memory, that it is about 1/2 as effective as lime in sweetening
soils. For a good balanced organic fertiliser ash can be mixed with blood
and bone in whatever ratios you want to vary the NPK. For example, if you
want 6-6-10 fertiliser for whatever reason equal parts B&B and ash will
deliver that. B&B being 6-6-0. A 9-9-10 mix would be 1 1/2 the amount of B&B
as ash.

rob