Can anyone give some information on the benefits or otherwise of spreading
soot on the veg. patch.

Other questions spring to mind, do you leave it in a pile for some time and
what sort of measurement per square yard

TIA ......................Leslie

"Leslie" wrote in message
...
Can anyone give some information on the benefits or otherwise of spreading
soot on the veg. patch.

Other questions spring to mind, do you leave it in a pile for some time
and what sort of measurement per square yard

TIA ......................Leslie

I'd be a bit cautious with soot or ashes - depends what has been burned to
get it. If it is from coal it can contain lots of carcinogens and heavy
metals which are not good for the veg plot and the resulting veg dangerous
to eat.
In fact I read an article a few months ago, forgotten most of the details
but apparently someone had been putting coal soot onto a garden for many
years and this led to so much heavy metals in the soil, the garden ended up
being condemned by the local authority or another body as a toxic waste
hazard!

David.

"David (Normandy)" wrote in message
...

"Leslie" wrote in message
...
Can anyone give some information on the benefits or otherwise of
spreading soot on the veg. patch.

Other questions spring to mind, do you leave it in a pile for some time
and what sort of measurement per square yard

TIA ......................Leslie

I'd be a bit cautious with soot or ashes - depends what has been burned to
get it. If it is from coal it can contain lots of carcinogens and heavy
metals which are not good for the veg plot and the resulting veg dangerous
to eat.

In fact I read an article a few months ago, forgotten most of the details
but apparently someone had been putting coal soot onto a garden for many
years and this led to so much heavy metals in the soil, the garden ended
up being condemned by the local authority or another body as a toxic waste
hazard!

My father always put soot (from an open coal fire) on the garden after it
had been left in the open for some time so that soluble salts leached out.
It darkens the soil and so it gets warmer more quickly. My father grew
magnificent vegetables. I used soot on our garden (from an open coal fire)
until we had to use gas. The garden was better in the early days than in the
later ones.

The story you read sounds as though it were found in a sensational red top,
professional gardeners still recommend the use of leached soot and leached
ash.

Mary

The story you read sounds as though it were found in a sensational red
top,
professional gardeners still recommend the use of leached soot and leached
ash.

Mary

I can't remember where I read it now. I guess it makes sense if it is left
out in the rain to allow the noxious salts to leach out before it is used on
the garden. The problem only exists with coal ash/soot and not wood ash/soot
of course. Coal can contain all manner of toxic minerals including arsenic,
mercury, cadmium etc

David.

"David (Normandy)" wrote in message
...

The story you read sounds as though it were found in a sensational red
top,
professional gardeners still recommend the use of leached soot and
leached ash.

Mary

I can't remember where I read it now. I guess it makes sense if it is left
out in the rain to allow the noxious salts to leach out before it is used
on the garden. The problem only exists with coal ash/soot and not wood
ash/soot of course. Coal can contain all manner of toxic minerals
including arsenic, mercury, cadmium etc

David.

But only in very small quantities. Supposing they were absorbed by plants -
it would be in even smaller quantities and we wouldn't eat all the plant
anyway ...

I always leave wood ash in the open and wouldn't use it until it's been
rained on, it contains very caustic salts which can burn flesh and plants
until they're converted to the hydrated version.

Mary

"Mary Fisher" wrote in message
t...

"David (Normandy)" wrote in message
...

The story you read sounds as though it were found in a sensational red
top,
professional gardeners still recommend the use of leached soot and
leached ash.

Mary

I can't remember where I read it now. I guess it makes sense if it is
left out in the rain to allow the noxious salts to leach out before it is
used on the garden. The problem only exists with coal ash/soot and not
wood ash/soot of course. Coal can contain all manner of toxic minerals
including arsenic, mercury, cadmium etc

David.

But only in very small quantities. Supposing they were absorbed by
plants - it would be in even smaller quantities and we wouldn't eat all
the plant anyway ...

I always leave wood ash in the open and wouldn't use it until it's been
rained on, it contains very caustic salts which can burn flesh and plants
until they're converted to the hydrated version.

Mary



Do I detect a fellow chemist? Potassium oxide (K2O) produced in the burning,
getting hydrated to become potassium hydroxide (KOH) which upon exposure to
carbon dioxide in the air eventually becomes potassium carbonate (K2CO3).

David

On Jun 15, 6:03 pm, "Leslie" wrote:
Can anyone give some information on the benefits or otherwise of spreading
soot on the veg. patch.

Other questions spring to mind, do you leave it in a pile for some time and
what sort of measurement per square yard

TIA ......................Leslie

We put our wood ash from the woodburner into the compost heap. We put
the soot from the cleaning of the chimneys also into the compost heaps
but not all at once, it is kept in a metal contained until it is added
bit by bit.

Judith