[John]

11 years after I first posted on the topic of using coal ash as a garden fertiliser, a comment was posted that prompted me to revisit the topic.

Read full article here

[Growster...]

Have replied, John!

Very interesting and I really didn't know this!

My dad would always use clinker on the paths at home, but the new fuels just go down to a very fine ash, which is just binned - until now!

[John]

Glad you found it useful - I couldn't find much on the topic 11 years ago but now there's far more research available online, especially on agricultural use.

[mumofstig]

The gardens here run back to the railway line (the row was built for the first railway workers) and the soil is very dark and fertile, where over many years, ash and soot have been added to it.
The allotment soil, only a bit further along the line, but away from the Victorian houses (and their coal fires) is very different and much lighter in colour. The darker soil really does warm up much quicker in Spring, I've noticed.

[Growster...]

With the new regulations regarding smokeless fuel, I'm trying all the various new 'processed' fiels, and have just taken delivery of some Smokeless Wildfire from Corralls. We used to have the 'full fat' stuff but that's not available now.

This is really a mixture of (as they say) "Wildfire is a seamless blend of three types of fuel. Anthracite, coal, and petroleum coke. Wildfire takes on the best characteristics of each fuel, making it easy to light, low in ash, and a high heat producer."

I was wondering about the petrol coke, but there again, if it gets down to the fine ash they claim, and it used to anyway, I've got plenty of places where I can use it now! It's odd, but I always assumed that such ash was 'acidic', and therefore not a good idea, hence my interest in using it properly now! I should have tested it really.:0~

We're using just one open fire this year, and not heating up the conservatory with electricity, and the cost is a little higher, but certainly the lounge room is much more comfortable with some real heat!

Great info John, thank you!

[rowlandwells]

although we burn only logs on our wood burner we do have our central heating on 4 hours a day except if it gets really cold then central heating heating kicks so we have quite a bit of wood ash that we use primarily on our onion bed

not sure about using coal ash as an alternative to wood ash I was always told coal ash was not a good idea  for garden use I can remember they used coal ash from the trains to put alongside the railway lines when my Dad worked on the railway there was a name they used for this ash track that my Dad called it but I can't remember the name it was a really dirty job spreading that coal ash in those days

I used to burn coal on a greenhouse heater banking it up with slack overnight but with the price of coal it become uneconomic to use and the coal ash was never  used on the allotment

so I think with I'm going to stick with my wood ash 

[John]

I'm not suggesting you burn coal to get the ash - just that if you have it that it may be more use as an additive than sending it to landfill.
The Indians and US burn a lot of coal (still) so that's where the research is being / has been done. From looking at a number of papers, I've got a good idea of safe levels with a big margin. Someone burning coal as a primary heat source for a whole house would probably make more ash than would be wise to use in their plots.
Wood ash is a different ball game without any safety issues to consider.

[Growster...]

Much of our front garden is laid out to 'high-ish' shrubs and trees, as it deafens the noise from the road.

I always spread chippings, prunings etc., around the paths, and let them rot down for wildlife, and hopefully, a dose of coal ash around now will help!

We also have a decent small garden for vegetables, and a few buckets of ash, well Mantised, will be beneficial too!

I must remember where all the spring bulbs are though, as I really can't see how a dollop of ash on a tiny little shoot will help it...

[salixer]

I would never have thought! 
Parent's house (now, sadly, just mother's house) uses coal as main fuel. I reckon some of the ash might now find its way onto the willow patch at-least. 
Brill !

[John]

Do keep in mind safe quantities per square metre - moderation in all things