Hi George

Yes.... of course you can apply wood ash, but as wood ash is very alkaline
it can cause problems if used over a long period of time with regard to soil
pH. (In my reply to Potaroo I merely pointed out the difference between
Potash and ashes from the fire, as some people assume the two to be one and
the same).

In the past few decades there has arisen the added danger of using ashes
from chemically treated wood, and personally I would be most careful not to
use this around any food crop.

I hasten to add though that I have personally added wood ash to my compost
(from totally natural untreated wood sources).

Follow this link to an article from Gardening Australia's Malcolm Campbell
http://www.abc.net.au/gardening/stories/s933740.htm

As Potaroo wrote in the original message, the tomato plants appear to be
thriving, apart from not setting any fruit, so my first impulse would be to
apply some Potash, and not upset the apple-cart (or tomato-cart in this
case). )

~Roberta~


"George.com" wrote in message
...

"Roberta Bagshaw" wrote in message
...
Sometimes giving the plants a sprinkle of Potash around the base will
make
the plants produce fruit. (I'm not talking about ashes from the
fire.......
but the mineral Potash, which you can buy quite cheaply at any gardening
store.)

why not wood ash roberta? (accepting it can be dry, a good watering will
solve that, and can sweeten soil which may need monitoring).

rob