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Old 14-01-2012, 01:19 AM
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Hi All,

Garlic when planted out in spring always gives lower yields because it has not received cold weather conditioning during growth.

Only garlic which has received this cold conditioning in the soil during growth will produce a worthwhile crop, or so I always believed!!!

However if you subject the cloves to -5 or -6 deg temperature in a refrigerator for 4 to 5 weeks, once there is evidence of the cloves coming to life again, it does invigorate these cloves into producing a greater harvest yield.

Now as I understand it from my guru there must be signs of renewed life in the cloves,as in the greening of the tops of the cloves, and or, root buds forming at the base. If these signs are not in evidence then it is a pointless exercise!!!

It, I am told, is best to lightly cover these cloves with soil or compost to approximate the conditions in which the garlic cloves would be cultivated. He did not use plastic containers, he used cardboard boxes for this purpose.

You all probably may know some of this, however this is for those who don't know.

This method is for spring planted garlic whereby the cold conditioning required by garlic, is given prior to planting out the spring planted cloves. It is a very clever yet simplistic way of fooling the clove into believing that it is in cold soil once the signs of growth are evident.

It was told to me by a very old member of our allotment society, he had problems with flooded soil during the winter. This resulted in his autumn planted garlic rotting in the soil, this man is a wonderful source of information on every aspect of cultivating the soil. He did conquer the flooding by slate trenching in 3 areas of his plot but this is what he did until such times as the problem was resolved.

However he did stress that the signs of growth must be evident for this cold conditioning to work!

From my own perspective I would also lightly spray both cloves, and or, soil / compost with a dilution of EM's to ensure no disease can affect said cloves during this period. However my guru was unaware of EM's and had no problems.

I myself have not required to use this method, but thought it should be made known to others who cannot, for what ever reason plant Autumn garlic. Nor am I advocating this as a method of cultivating spring planted garlic. I am only offering this as information for those who may wish to experiment on a small scale initially. If you find that it has worth then my post will have been worthwhile.

Apart from seeking the truth about TP, it is the knowledge of the old timers which I seek because they have so much to offer us in wisdom. I am just awaiting the chance to ask my guru about his seed saving methods.

Now I know that he does seed save, because There are always 1 or 2 Brussels sprouts plants on his plot which are allowed to go to seed and its the same with leeks, turnip and onions. However you need to catch him in a good mood and on a good day.

I always complement him on advice given and that it worked for me, and chat with him for a while.When I leave his comment is always " nae bother young yin" (which means you're welcome young man) I'm 67 for God sake!, however he's past 90, and still rides a bike to and from his allotment every day.

It was he who also showed me how to get rid of small patches of white rot from the soil. It is imperative that you check the roots of all garlic as it lifted, any which during the season have withered and died should have an area of a square foot pegged out for identification. Then using a fork loosen the soil within the area. Now build a fire on the area and keep it going for 2 to 3 hours.

I asked him if using a flame gun would have the same effect. His answer was "I'm trying to teach you something which works!!", a man of few words but best listened to!!!

As he was leaving my plot he said, "and remember to put the tines of the fork in to the flames for a wee while as they will be infected as well".

My next task will be to get him involved in TP cultivation, this is not going to be easy,he has very fixed views on the cultivation of the soil. However if I can get him to look at my plot next season,as to the have, and have not crops it might just sway him.

I'm relying on the undoubted intelligence of the man to see the worth of this experiment. However he may well just say that he will grow crops the way he always has!

If it costs money, he wont be interested, but I feel that I must try. If I can get him interested I will ask my son to source two metal drums for him to make his own charcoal. His knowledge would be invaluable to this quest. Now me helping him might just, instead of the other way around, maybe what is necessary to sway him!!

I leave you with this quote:- There are five elements: earth, air, fire, water and garlic. (Louis Diat)

The mind is like a parachute, its totally useless unless its open
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Old 31-01-2012, 01:09 AM
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Hi All,

I have taken a 5 gallon plastic barrel with stop cock (old beer brewing barrel) down to my plot. Now in early March, dependant on weather I will start a batch of EM's in my shed. Having one 45 gallon water butt for the purpose ensures plenty of rain water for my needs.

I should also say that the cap has been drilled whereby a beer brewing airlock can be fitted to exclude air from the process.

During this time I will prepare my half plot for the season, when I have removed as much perennial weed root as possible it will be time to water the soil with concentrated EM's. It is my belief that EM's will establish the necessary conditions for a TP type soil to become a reality within our earth.

As I have said before EM's have been shown to have these effects in Japan in cleansing both soil, fresh, and salt water. I will have more to say on the subject of water cleansing in the near future as I have been involved in an project which is now coming to an end.

Now although I have done this before I feel that it is like an annual spring clean of the soil and certainly will do no harm to the soil. As long as EM's are the dominant species within the soil, the consequence should be less disease inducing micro-organisms to harm our crops!!

I feel that I require to say again that the purpose of EM's is to establish, and or, re-establish the balance of Mother nature within the soil. Life as I understand it is about balance, this is something that we modern humans seem to have forgotten!!!

EM's are the soil cleansers outnumbering the bad bacteria, fungi and the like, they also have the ability to cleanse the soil of residual weed killers, inorganic fertilisers and pest control substances. I may be wrong but this is what I believe they are capable of. Its like starting with a clean slate every season.

This is especially so if you have left seaweed on top of your soil over winter. These EM's will breakdown any residual salt water residue within the soil into the trace elements which bring health to our crops.

I read an article recently which disputed the assertion that EM's are a fertiliser for the soil. Being intrigued I read on and having mulled it over in my mind, am in agreement with what was said. EM's are not a fertiliser though they may give this impression by increasing the growth of crops.This however I now believe is due to their enhancing the uptake of nutrition.This is accomplished through reducing nutrients within the soil to a state where they are more easily assimilated by the roots of crops.

This I might add is true for all crops, not just VAM type crops, therefore Brassica, Beet, Turnip and the like should all benefit from this breakdown of nutrients. Isn't Mother nature wonderful when you work with her instead of against her!!!!!

The true worth of EM's is in their ability to bring life back into the soil, they, I believe perform functions of which we as yet know nothing of. As always they do it anyway regardless of our lack of knowledge simply because that is their task when allowed to do so!!!!!

Having drenched my soil with neat EM's and left it for about 2 or 3 weeks I will start to plant. I will also use EM's in diluted form to protect my crops. This dilution I will use as a foliar spray for disease prevention.

Now away back at the beginning of this experiment I had said that only a very few of the TP sites were near the coast. Therefore TP did not have any salt in its make up, or was really a part of the essence of the soil.

This was and still is true regarding the position of these sites, however since then I have modified my thinking on salt water, kelp and other products which originate in salt water.

Basically this is because rain water is evaporated sea water which rises high into the atmosphere to become clouds. These clouds then vent this water as rain which is replete with all of the nutrients of sea water. So in effect there is nowhere on the planet that escapes the nutritional effects of salt water!!!

I have always said that this is an ongoing learning experience and so it has proved to be. There will be many more times when I will require to re-evaluate how and what I think. However I believe that I can see light at the end of the tunnel!

Becoming aware of how Mother nature actually works has opened my eyes to the fact that, although science has delved deeply into all aspects of life on this planet it never really talks about balance!!! It is almost like a taboo subject which has no place in the scheme of things scientific.

Now since Mother nature seems dedicated to balance and mutual symbiosis it is difficult to see how science can unlock her secrets without embracing her ideology.


These are only my thoughts others will disagree.

The mind is like a parachute its totally useless unless its open
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Old 15-02-2012, 12:27 AM
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Hi All,

I have found a couple of interesting sites which you may wish to peruse. Most of the information is already known, however there are gems of information within them.

http://www.annadana.com/actu/fichiers/Caquetabasin.pdf

Up and Down in Moxos: New data about Amazonian Dark Earth (ADE).

Uriel

The mind is like a parachute its totally useless unless it is open
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Old 04-03-2012, 01:16 AM
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Hi All,

I am putting this up early as those of you down south are at least a month ahead of those of us in the northern territories with regard to planting times. It is not that I want you to follow my example, I expect you to do your own thing. That's what this experiment is all about!!!

I have been thinking about the strategy which I will adopt for this season's cultivation of crops. It is a constant thought in my mind, as in how to eclipse last seasons yields. Obviously I will require to add more inoculated charcoal to the soil. This will be difficult as my finances can only stretch so far, however I will endeavour to do what I can in this respect. The charcoal I will be using is unfortunately not my own as my burner was stolen from my plot, it is probably because it is zinc that it was taken. However life goes on and needs must that I procure some commercial charcoal to continue my work on this project.

However what I can do will be determined by my physical condition, therefore if I fail to post results on specific crops it will be because I did not get round to doing so!

I will also be experimenting with my home made nitrogen supplement. This will be a trial and error process as in how much to use and on what crops to experiment with.

The first thing to be done will be to prepare the soil for sowing and planting, as in weed root removal from the soil.The next will be the watering of the soil with neat EM's then leave it for a fortnight or so for the acidity to die down as I have acidic soil averaging pH 6.6

However those of you with alkaline soil in the range of pH 7.5 to 8.0 or above I think should not require to wait for more than a week before planting out.

When planting my potato tubers I will first apply a goodly amount of chicken manure and EM saturated cow manure all mixed in with inoculated charcoal to the bottom of the trench. Then an inch or two layer of soil followed by the potatoes Then sprinkle VAM's around each seed potato, now in with the backfill I will also spread spent coffee grounds as this the area in which my crop will form.

The coffee grounds will I believe deter slugs from going anywhere near my hopefully abundant crop.

Now I know that I said that cow and horse manure was off limits due to the Aminopyralid decimation of crops on allotments across the UK. However since my cow manure has been inoculated with neat EM's since late November I'm going to take the chance that the EM's have dealt with the problem. I really need to find out if they can cure this problem. In the Dow Co. blurb it states that the new formula breaks down much faster. within the soil. Now if this the case EM's should continue that breakdown process and hopefully neutralise any residual toxins within said manure.

On trawling the internet I also found evidence that spent coffee grounds may also deter wireworm. Now as we all know they are the orange coloured armour plated villains who drill through our root crops. Not only that, there seems no way of stopping them without resorting to chemicals. I am therefore not going to spread coffee grounds on one of my control crop rows. It may cost me, but I feel that this is worthy of a test trial for one of my potato rows.

As to my other crops I feel that for VAM type crops they should be treated as potato with inoculated charcoal,compost, VAM's and coffee grounds. Non-VAM crops such as turnip and beetroot should have coffee grounds dug lightly into the soil before seeding, then spread around the sowing area to ward off any attack. Now this is just a gut feeling , but could used coffee grounds ward off carrot fly, it is an intriguing thought. coffee has a strong smell and may well disorientate said carrot fly, I feel that there are many uses for spent coffee grounds.

This approach has not been verified with regard to either slugs or wireworm and or coffee grounds therefore is to be taken as information only!! However I did have success with simmering spent coffee grounds, allowing the liquid to cool and watering said liquid onto my soil last season. This appeared to work as I saw little evidence of slug damage to my crops.

For Brassica I always use rhubarb stem, cut it one inch long, then split it halfway through and opened out to expose the flesh. This I place at the bottom of the planting hole of each plant to deter clubroot. It has always worked for me and have never suffered clubroot. As I understand it is the oxalic acid content of rhubarb which prevents this disease condition.

Now I know that this is not part of the Terra Preta experiment, but I just thought that I should mention it.

However this season I will leave 1 or 2 Brussels sprouts plants unprotected by rhubarb to gauge the effect of EM's within the soil. Now EM's should provide protection to the Brassica roots given that the soil has been watered with neat EM's at the pre-planting stage. However I need to do this to find out if EM's are effective in preventing this disease.

Now as to the use of EM's we now know that they are not a fertiliser, however they present immense value to the soil. They breakdown our organic compost and manure whereby the nutrition within them is reduced to a molecular state within the soil. The consequence of which is the greater uptake of said nutrition by the roots of our crops.Not only that but they prevent soil borne diseases from affecting, and or, infecting our crops. They also instil balance within the soil, ensuring that regenerative microorganisms are the dominant species within the soil.

Always spray your crops with a dilution of EM's as it provides extra protection to soil borne diseases!

As much as I believe that charcoal and VAM's are what make TP the greatest soil in the world, I also believe that without EM's and yeasts this soil would never have been created. This soil is a rare and wonderful gift of Mother nature. It is tied into symbiotic relationships by the three life forms all of which have differing yet essential tasks. There is balance within its structure when mixed with charcoal and to my knowledge has been in existence for at least 5,000 years.

Most of the scientific community see it as being approximately 2,500 to 1,500 years ago, I read Quite a while ago about a site which was dated to 6,000 years ago.

Why would these ancient Amazonian's have dug charcoal into the soil if not for a purpose 5 or 6,000 years ago. It beggars belief that these ancient natives would have done this without a purpose!! Life at that time was a day to day survival event so there must have been purpose to this task, otherwise why bother!!

This experiment is by no means scientific, I view it as being an attempt to return to the balance of nature within the soil. If and when we return to the cultivation of heirloom crops, and seed save from these crops, just like the Europeans do, only then will we be in control of our soil. Not only that, but I believe that we can get far more out of these heirloom crops in terms of crop yield.

There were some great cropping varieties whose demise was due to lack of disease resistance with the advent of chemical cultivation of the soil. It is my belief that chemical cultivation of the soil caused this to occur!!! These heirloom varieties were dependant on a balanced soil which was full of life. Once this life was gone they were no longer protected by the microorganisms which prevented disease from affecting them!!

These heirloom crops have never been subjected to cultivation using charcoal, VAM's, EM's, yeasts, this will be new ground which we will be breaking!!!!

As "stewpot" said in a reply to a posting, "we are only custodians of the soil during our lifetimes", Therefore what we do will help those who follow our path.This was I believe the ethos of these ancient Amazonian tribes people. Like these ancient people we need to think of the bigger picture, as in how to feed those who follow us!!!

I have been conducting an experiment for the last few months using EM's, it is all but complete and when
finished I will post the results.

I sincerely hope that those who follow this quest will see the worth of returning to balance and life within our soils. EM's, VAM's, charcoal and yeasts working in symbiosis within the soil may be our saving grace in preserving our ability to cultivate the soil and feed ourselves.This form of cultivation will also protect all of the other life forms within our plots which are necessary to our survival as a species!!!!!

This is only what I will hopefully be doing, and is information only. However I hope that you will all be experimenting with your own thoughts on TP and EM's.

Uriel

The mind is like a parachute its totally useless unless it is open
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Old 08-03-2012, 12:36 AM
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Hi All,

As you all, or most of you, know through this blog EM's( effective microorganisms) are the creation of a Japanese Dr by the name of Teruo Higa. Now when I say creation I don't mean that they were his creation, they have existed for hundreds of millions of years.

However what he did was to bring the most advantageous and regenerative of these bacteria and fungi together into a union called EM's. They effectively deal with our ever increasing waste produce and pollution. These microorganisms when used efficiently will breakdown the vast majority of the waste and pollution created by humanity and return balance to our world.

Not only that, but they breakdown the nutrients contained in our organic compost and manure making it more readily assimilated by the roots of our crops.

However I read a script a while ago which went deeper into how these microorganisms actually work. There are it is known three classes of microorganisms:-

Degenerative :-

These are disease and putrefaction causing microorganisms, they are associated with fusarium and other disease causing bacteria and fungi which infect, and or, affect our crops. These diseases will persist within the soil for as long as degenerative microorganisms are the dominant class!! These are the bad guys, and it is the roots of plants which they will mostly infect.

Regenerative :-

These are beneficial microorganisms(EM's), not only to the soil but to all other life forms on the planet. They create the conditions necessary for balance to be maintained, and or, attained by said life forms. These are the good guys, their purpose is to instil balance in whatever circumstance they are used.

Opportunist :-

These microorganisms are by far the largest class, and as such have the ability wreak havoc within our soil if it is degenerative. They will always follow the lead of the of the dominant class of the other two microorganism classes within the soil. These guys are the don't know's, they could be likened to humans who just want an easy life regardless of who is in charge.

If your soil is degenerative it needs to be watered with neat EM's to turn the balance towards the regenerative class. Once the regenerative class become the dominant class the opportunist class will follow their lead and do as the regenerative class do. This will have a good effect on and in your soil, I believe that once, established or re-established, will seek to protect whatever is cultivated within said soil.

I know that I keep harping on about simplicity, but this is as simple as it gets. You don't need to know the chemical changes that take place within the soil structure, or the chemical signals sent out by the opposing microorganism classes to achieve dominance within the soil. You just need the instructions as in how to ensure that the regenerative class of microorganisms are the dominant class within the soil!!!

So there we have it, this is so unbelievably like human existence. The weak follow the strong, the despots take control and cause havoc, life forms die through not living in the correct conditions. I must admit that I was astounded by the similarity to the human condition.

It would appear that balance requires to be fought for within the soil, as in life!!! If you feel that balance is not, or has not, been present in the soil, then you must seek to do that which is necessary to attain it!!!

If ever there was an advert for the use of EM's within our soil, this I believe is it!! However, as always, it is entirely up to you whether or not to employ EM's.

In my previous, but now defunct, blog I told of how many Australian farmers had stopped using chemical fertilisers and turned to EM's. This had resulted in greater crop yields when combined with a return to a more organic nurturing of the soil. It was also found to be a more cost effective method of farming with far less incidence of crop disease. This new found disease resistance is due, I believe, to a return of balance within the soil. This balance was due to the saturation of soil with EM's, where there is balance there is also protection from disease!!!

Disease is at the end of the day a symptom of disharmony and imbalance within what ever life form is in this state. This is not a theory it is a fact of life as we know it on this planet!!!

This is only a summation of what I perceive to be true within the context of how microorganisms exist and work within our world. As to the human aspect, I leave it for you to decide for yourselves!!!

These are just my thoughts others will disagree

Uriel

The mind is like a parachute, its totally useless unless its open


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Old 09-03-2012, 01:06 AM
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Hi All,

I have over the last many months been adding neat EM's to a pond. This pond resides within a local park. It was to be honest disgusting with dead fish floating on the surface, a film of green algae was also covering its surface.

It is approximately 4 feet deep at its deepest point, it I believe was created in the 1920's as was the rest of the park. It used to be a peaceful place to enjoy an afternoon walk, but is now a haven for drug dealers and gangs. However for the purposes of this project I have been doing my work before lunchtime when these wretches of society are still sleeping.

I just love the fact that I was able to restore this pond to its true state, I remember as a lad netting tadpoles from its depths. I now see frogs, toads and more importantly newts within its waters. This is what EM's are capable of doing if we take the time to make a difference to our environment!!

Isn't it good to work with Mother nature, rather than against her!!

If this had been left to the parks department it would probably have cost thousands of pounds, if they had bothered at all!!! Whereas it has cost me approximately £10 or £11 using neat EM's and a plastic mug to cast the EM's into the water.

I estimate that the pond is approximately 50 yards in length and 15 yards in width, I must have used about 60 to 70 litres of neat EM's. The cost was in buying Molasses to feed the EM's, however once EM's have been activated all you need to do is feed them!

I still have the first batch That I activated, I never use it all and always leave a couple or 3 inches of the brew in the fermenting container. The container is then topped up 3/4 full with rain water to this is added liquefied molasses and stirred. (a soup spoonful of molasses to every litre of liquid). To finish I top up the container to just below the cap with rain water and the brew is all set to ferment again. I then screw the cap down and fit the airlock.

EM's are Mother nature's gift to us via DrTeruo Higa, however if we don't use them then we have only ourselves to blame for the pollution of our planet!!

To be honest I did not know what to expect when I started this task, but I had to find out if EM's were as effective as their name suggests. The results were quite amazing, the green algae film began to disappear after the third treatment(I was doing this once a fortnight at the start) I also noted that the dead fish began to sink to the bottom of the pond.

This must have been the effect of the EM's breaking down the dead flesh of said fish. At the eight week stage there was no sign of the dead fish and the algae film was almost gone.

The water was however still murky, but by week twelve I noticed new growth on some of the seemingly dead aquatic plants close to the pond edge. This was when I truly realised that EM's do exactly what they are said to do in cleansing water and renewing life in polluted waters!!!

I continued to use the EM's until the water was clear and then stopped. By this time quite a few aquatic plants had returned to life although by no means all. This was far more than I expected given the state in which I originally found the pond.

I will now make monthly sojourns to said pond to check on its condition. But unfortunately the local riffraff still throw their empty beer cans and cigarette ends into the water.

I am totally disgusted by the way modern humans behave towards Mother nature. I myself smoke and drink(home brew) but would never think to do such things. Maybe it was the way in which I was brought up. I, nor any other child in our community was allowed to play football or any other game on a Sunday, it was a day for the Kirk and Sunday school!!

In those days we got the strap for misbehaving in class and I prayed that my parents never found of that this had occurred as the consequences would have been far worse!!!

How things have changed, our children are all now barrack room lawyers who vent their anger on those who would stop them enjoying themselves at the expense of others!!!

Such is modern life!!!

Uriel

The mind is like a parachute, its totally useless unless its open
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Old 22-03-2012, 12:05 AM
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Hi All,

My Bella Italino garlic are so much different to any garlic that I have grown before. The leaves are splayed out , they are only 3 to 4 inches tall whereas my Vayo garlic are standing 7 to 8 inches tall. It will be interesting to see how they evolve as the season progresses.

It is a hardneck variety which would normally have a stem not long after showing through the soil, however as yet there is no sign of a stem. The leaves are approximately 6 inches long and 5 in number, however they certainly look healthy enough.

I must admit that I am intrigued with the way in which this garlic grows.


The mind is like a parachute its totally useless unless open
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Old 30-03-2012, 01:43 AM
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[/quote]

Hi All,

I have found the latest information on the German Terra preta facility. It apparently is still not yet fully up and running, however the Germans have been very busy.They have been holding conferences regarding the use and usage of their TP product to be known as "Palaterra".

It has already been patented, I don't think that its the real TP, the real TP would not require chemical fertilisers!!! However they are advocating an 80% reduction in the use of such fertilisers!!!!

Any use of chemical cultivation will kill beneficial microorganisms within the soil. However there is the possibility that they have cultivated microorganisms which are impervious to the effects of said fertilisers. This would change the way in which these microorganisms work within the soil.

I have scanned the list of countries who attended these summits, and as far as I can ascertain the UK did not attend, or maybe was not invited to said conferences The vast majority of the EU were in attendance as was America and China. I have read through the various sections, and, as always, the Germans have done their homework.

These conferences were held in January 2010 and 2012 apparently all German farmers have already been schooled on the product and how to use it.

In my previously deleted TP blog I had made mention of the fact that Germany was buying up vast tracts of prime agricultural soil in Africa and that the produce cultivated on such land was all being shipped back to Germany!!!

The reason for the purchase of said land is that it has never been subjected to any of the chemicals used in modern farming and therefore would be excellent soil for their Palaterra product!!!

I leave you to draw your own conclusions!!!

I read some time ago that their soil specialists had encountered a tribe in the Amazon delta who were still making TP as was made thousands of years ago. I wonder what benefit these native people are getting from this plundering of their knowledge!!! Not a lot I would suspect, the Germans have been in the Amazon delta since the late 50's or early 60's of the last century. They are the acknowledged experts in the flora and fauna of the Amazon delta.


PS:- I wonder what the global fertiliser manufacturing companies are thinking about this???

PPS:- Just type in "Plalaterra" on your search engine to find out more, there is a great amount of information on the internet, however its mostly all in German!!!! It is apparently on sale but not however in the UK it would seem !!!!!

http://www.palaterra.eu/media/2/D100...Revolution.pdf

Terra Preta Closes the Loop in Germany | International Biochar Initiative
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Old 12-04-2012, 03:07 AM
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[/quote]



Hi All,

I will be spreading used coffee grounds around my Brassica, beets, and carrot this season to deter slugs. In the case of carrot I am wondering in the aroma of coffee will disorientate the carrot fly by blocking the scent of thinned out carrots.

I've never tried this before but think it worthy of a trial, I have tried garlic solution and just about everything else to no avail. I have a source of used coffee grounds from a local coffee shop, all I do is supply the plastic bags.

I use these spent coffee grounds in my compost bins they seem to interact well with EM's within the bins as the compost breaks down very quickly.

Just thought I would pass this on for anyone else who wishes to try this out, however I would suggest mist spraying these grounds in hot weather to ensure that the aroma is in the air around the carrots.

The mind is like a parachute its totally useless unless open.
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Old 12-04-2012, 10:39 AM
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Hi All,

I will be spreading used coffee grounds around my Brassica, beets, and carrot this season to deter slugs. In the case of carrot I am wondering in the aroma of coffee will disorientate the carrot fly by blocking the scent of thinned out carrots.

I've never tried this before but think it worthy of a trial, I have tried garlic solution and just about everything else to no avail. I have a source of used coffee grounds from a local coffee shop, all I do is supply the plastic bags.

I use these spent coffee grounds in my compost bins they seem to interact well with EM's within the bins as the compost breaks down very quickly.

Just thought I would pass this on for anyone else who wishes to try this out, however I would suggest mist spraying these grounds in hot weather to ensure that the aroma is in the air around the carrots.

The mind is like a parachute its totally useless unless open.[/quote]

Along with coffee grounds you can add egg shells which will also deter slugs. Place used coffee grounds (the stronger the better) and broken egg shells in a circular perimeter around the plants you are trying to protect. Use sand. distribute playground sand around young plants early in the Spring. Be generous with the sand. Slugs hate sand because it rips their bellies open and they die.
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Old 13-04-2012, 07:27 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by View Post
Is the charcoal ash from my grill beneficial in my compost pile or
should I leave it out? The charcoal I use says it's made from 100%
oak wood.

TIA,
Mike
I have used Kingsford charcoal for a patio hibachi, going through maybe 10 - 15 x 18 lb bags a summer. I just rinse this out, and the water flows off the concrete patio and onto the grass, and it has made no difference what so ever after 10 years of doing so.
This fall, I bought a couple 18 lb bags of Kingsford "mesquite" charcoal to roast chili. The ash from that stuff turned the grass yellow. It has since recovered, but still.
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Old 14-04-2012, 01:29 AM
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I have used Kingsford charcoal for a patio hibachi, going through maybe 10 - 15 x 18 lb bags a summer. I just rinse this out, and the water flows off the concrete patio and onto the grass, and it has made no difference what so ever after 10 years of doing so.
This fall, I bought a couple 18 lb bags of Kingsford "mesquite" charcoal to roast chili. The ash from that stuff turned the grass yellow. It has since recovered, but still.
Hi Allen,

I have tried eggshells before with little success, however last season I boiled up and simmered spent coffee grounds in a large pot. When cooled I watered my vegetable patch with this liquid, it was the best result that I have ever had. There seemed to be no damage to any of my crops, I'm just trying this out to see if I get similar results with spreading spent coffee grounds around my crops. It will be interesting to see if the aroma of coffee protects my carrots.

Regarding your second comment only use charcoal in its original state, also check the paper speak to see if ignition accellerants have been added. Burned charcoal will do nothing for your soil, it is the absorbency of charcoal which is key to its use for cultivation!!!


uriel13

The mind is like a parachute its totally useless unless open.
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Old 15-04-2012, 02:25 AM
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Hi All,

My Bella Italiano garlic are now forming stalks(3" in length)and the leaves are reaching skyward. Once the stems appeared they seem to grow very quickly, the leaf form is broader and shorter than my other garlic.

It is said that this garlic has a strong flavour, this is why I bought it, I like a garlic that bites back!!! Its probably a keltic thing we Scots love good strong garlic as did our ancestors.

To be honest I still miss the German red garlic it was so good, but sadly no longer available in the UK.

The mind is like a parachute its totally useless unless open


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Old 16-04-2012, 08:51 AM
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Hi Allen,

I have tried eggshells before with little success, however last season I boiled up and simmered spent coffee grounds in a large pot. When cooled I watered my vegetable patch with this liquid, it was the best result that I have ever had. There seemed to be no damage to any of my crops, I'm just trying this out to see if I get similar results with spreading spent coffee grounds around my crops. It will be interesting to see if the aroma of coffee protects my carrots.

Regarding your second comment only use charcoal in its original state, also check the paper speak to see if ignition accellerants have been added. Burned charcoal will do nothing for your soil, it is the absorbency of charcoal which is key to its use for cultivation!!!


uriel13

The mind is like a parachute its totally useless unless open.
Thank you uriel13
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Old 17-04-2012, 01:57 AM
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Thank you uriel13
Hi Allen,

To get a better understanding of what I have said to you go through my previous postings. All the information you will need is there as in how to inoculate charcoal with organic nutrients.

Raw charcoal placed in the soil will absorb all of the existing nutrient within that soil leading to reduced cropping potential.

If having read my posts you still have questions, please feel free to post them and I will answer them as best I can.


uriel13

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