Dentcher...

Several years ago, my father built a huge bonfire (at home, miles from anywhere), from old furniture etc, after a big clear-out of the roof.

He had several piles of topsoil and clay, mostly covered in weeds after a big site clearance, and proceeded to stack all this over the red-hot embers, in what he called his pile of 'Dentcher'(not sure of the spelling). He said that the weeds and brush would all burn out and sterilise the soil too, and, the clay would turn into something pretty useful as well. It burned for several days sometimes.

We always made this 'dentcher' from then on, when we had enough wood to get a good hot fire, and also of course, enough rubbishy topsoil to cover it with, but I can't find any reference to the process anywhere, (probably because it's spelt entirely differently), but an old boy next to me at our plot immediately recognised the name and the process, although he couldn't spell it either!

I've tried all sorts of searches on this site as well, but drwan a blank! So it's over to you everyone - surely someone knows what I'm blathering on about...? You'll make a bewildered Growster a happy man if there's a result!

(I sincerely hope that it wasn't anything to do with this coming Friday, especially after all these years...)

reading your post spraked a very faded old memory of my grandad doing the smae sort of thing, can't for the life of me tell you what he called it though, although if i remember correctly my Gran had a few choice words to say about it.
I'll speak to my mum, she might remember, if not i'll ask cousins and stuff see if anyone else can remember.

They did the same thing on the Wartime kitchen and garden, if I remember right

Who's a clever girl then!!

Thanks everyone else, it was indeed like a clamp for charcoal, although the wood burned to ash.

I think wartime tips also may have come into it as well, what with so little fertiliser around!

Thanks for the posts, but better, perhaps someone else can expand on the actual benefits of the product?