Allotment Gardening Advice Help Chat

Growing => Grow Your Own => Topic started by: rideandy on April 20, 2009, 17:06

Title: Charcoal ash
Post by: rideandy on April 20, 2009, 17:06

Was wondering if charcoal ash is good for compost heap or to put on my raised beds?
Cheers

Title: Re: Charcoal ash
Post by: oldbean on April 20, 2009, 17:24

Charcoal and ash are two different materials. Charcoal is the carbon from once living items with the volatiles cooked out. Ash is the residue when the charcoal has been burnt. The ash would be beneficial  to add potash. Charcoal would be beneficial as a moderator to partly buffer water and nutrients.

Potash can be used by plants for growing. Charcoal is so stable it will last tens of thousands of years.

The stability of charcoal is useful to preserve posts you put in the ground. If you burn the ends of the poles in a fire, a layer of charcoal will form on the outside, and creosote will be just below this layer. It is very difficult for organisms to attack the charred bit.

Title: Re: Charcoal ash
Post by: rideandy on April 20, 2009, 18:10

Ok thanks.
So will the charcoal ash from my bbq help with my compost?
Thanks

Title: Re: Charcoal ash
Post by: HLS on April 21, 2009, 09:44

I think there was a thread about that recently - try the search facility.  As far as I remember, the main point to work out was whether the charcoal would have been treated with anything (to make it light more easily, for instance) and definitely not to use the ash if it had.

Title: Re: Charcoal ash
Post by: gregmcalister on April 21, 2009, 11:08

Yes you can use charcoal ash (or any wood ash) on your compost.