How to use ashes as fertilizer

Ash obtained from the combustion of vegetation, coal and wood waste is used by gardeners as fertilizer. Organics contains useful minerals that have a beneficial effect on the development of plants. Dry matter of gray color is not only a complex fertilizer, but also protects crops from pests. Cabbage and radish leaves are sprinkled with ashes. Wood ash is used as a fertilizer for all garden plantings, flowers and fruit trees.

Ash composition and its effect on soil quality

Determining the exact composition of wood ash as a fertilizer is a difficult task. The presence of trace elements and their percentage depends on the type of organics burned. It does not matter if it is coal, peat, shale or ordinary vegetation, the composition of the resulting dry matter is very different. Even when burning two heaps of coal of different breeds, two organic fertilizers differing in microelements will be obtained.

Even the age of the wood affects the composition of wood ash. The richest in composition is the ashes obtained by burning young tree branches. Straw from cereal crops does not lag behind in quality. To find out whether it is ash, what kind of nitrogen or phosphorus fertilizer, a table is proposed that indicates the content of the main elements in percentage terms.

Coal, shale, and peat ash as a fertilizer is not very rich in useful trace elements. Ashes are more often used for pest control. From small granules of burnt coal, drainage is made in flower beds when growing flowers. In gardening and horticulture, wood ash is considered the most useful. To understand, wood ash, what kind of fertilizer and what elements it consists of, a table is offered for review.

For most gardeners, ash is familiar as a fertilizer, but the dry matter also improves the structure of the soil, restores acidity. Ash loosens the soil. Loamy soil is easier to work, oxygen access to the roots of plants increases. Beneficial microorganisms and earthworms breed in the earth. All these points are closely related to the increase in productivity.

The video talks about wood ash:

Why Ash Is Not Considered Nitrogen Fertilizer

To figure out which fertilizer ash belongs to, it is worth considering the features of its production. Nitrogen accumulates in the tissues of fresh organic matter: leaves, wood, plant stems. During combustion, smoke is released. And with it, nitrogen escapes. In the remaining charcoal, only mineral inorganic substances are retained. As a result, wood ash is not a nitrogen-containing fertilizer. Ash is rich in calcium, phosphorus and potassium.

Where not to use ashes

In many cases, the use of ash as a fertilizer is justified, but not always the ash is beneficial:

• Do not mix ashes with fresh manure. This threatens to reduce the formation of nitrogen. As a result, compounds are formed that are poorly absorbed by the root system of plants.
• Seedlings should not be fed with ashes until two full-fledged leaves appear.
• Ash reduces acidity, but it cannot be applied in the area where cabbage is planted. Similarly, beans react badly.
• Fertilization of the site with nitrogen-containing substances and charcoal is carried out at different times of the year: in spring and autumn. Both substances cannot be added together.
• Before planting seedlings, the ashes are thoroughly mixed with the soil. A large accumulation of a substance can burn the root system of plants.
• For soil with an acidity index of more than seven units, charcoal will only do harm. With an increase in alkali, the absorption of nutrients by plant roots will worsen.
• Ashes are not added when preparing fresh compost from vegetation, as the content of nitrogenous substances decreases.

In most cases, ash as a fertilizer is useful, but you need to know when and where to apply it.

Preparation of fertilizer from wood ash

Experienced gardeners know which ash is best for fertilizer and how to prepare it. Ash is usually stocked up in autumn. At this time, a lot of tops are collected after cleaning the garden, branches of cut down shrubs and fallen trees.

Dry fertilizer

Preparing dry fertilizer is easy. It is enough to burn the wood and wait for the coals to cool completely. The resulting ash is not sieved, but large fractions are simply selected. Small embers will not cause harm. For storage, the ashes are collected in bags. It is important to take a dry place so that the fertilizer does not draw dampness.

There is no particular secret on how to use wood ash as a fertilizer. Gray dust with small pieces of coal is scattered around the garden. If top dressing is done in the spring before planting, then the ash is dug up with soil. Autumn application does not require mandatory digging. Ash will play the role of mulch, soaking into the ground along with rain and melt water.

Applying dry top dressing requires maintaining the correct proportions for each type of soil. The dose is increased for soil with a high content of clay. Approximate consumption per 1 m² area is:

• for soups – up to 200 g;
• for loams – from 400 to 800 g.

Exceeding the dose threatens to disturb the alkaline balance of the soil.

Liquid fertilizer

Liquid fertilizer is better absorbed by plant roots. The solution is applied simultaneously with watering. In addition to root dressing, grapes, tomatoes and cucumbers are sprayed with nutrient liquid.

You don’t need to be an experienced agronomist to know how to use ashes as fertilizer. It is enough to be able to properly prepare the solution. There are two popular ways:

• Cold exposure. The percentage of ingredients depends on the plants for which the fertilizer is prepared. On average, they take about 200 g of dry matter and pour 10 liters of cold unboiled water. Infuse the solution for at least a week, stirring occasionally with a stick.
• Mother infusion. The recipe is complex, but the resulting solution is maximally filled with minerals. To prepare fertilizer, 1 kg of burnt wood is poured into 10 liters of cold unboiled water. The liquid will have to boil for up to 20 minutes. It is better to do this on fire in a large cauldron or an iron bucket. After cooling, the fertilizer will be ready for use.

Of the two methods of preparing liquid top dressing, the uterine infusion is considered the most effective. The solution is filled with minerals, can be stored for a long time without loss of useful properties, and due to boiling, all harmful microorganisms are killed.

What foliage makes the best ash: myths and reality of fertilizer preparation

During the spring-autumn period, the foliage of trees accumulates a large amount of useful substances. When burned, a gray light substance is obtained, similar to dust, without the content of large fractions of coal. From the resulting ash, fertilizer is used in the garden as top dressing. The complexity of the preparation of the substance lies in the low yield. When burned, a maximum of 2% of the ash remains of the total mass of foliage.

Dry leaves are burned in a large metal container. After cooling, the dust is packaged in plastic bags. The ingress of moisture is unacceptable, otherwise the leaching process will start.

There is an opinion among gardeners that the best composition of ash is obtained from walnut leaves. Indeed, iodine, fats, and other useful compounds accumulate in the tissues. You can get a useful solution by infusing or boiling fresh foliage. When burned, all organic matter volatilizes. The same phosphorus, calcium, potassium, magnesium and other minerals remain. The composition of walnut ash is no different from the ash obtained by burning the leaves of any tree.

Is cigarette ash good for you?

A lot has been said about the dangers of cigarettes, but this does not mean that the resulting ash is poorly suited for fertilizer. Burnt tobacco is no different in composition from ash obtained from leaves or any vegetation. With combustion and the release of smoke, all harmful substances evaporate. The only problem is the collection of ashes. You can’t smoke enough cigarettes to get a sack of an ingredient.

Cigarette ash is collected in small quantities and used to feed indoor flowers. The solution is prepared from 15 g of dry matter soaked in 1 liter of water for three days. Fertilizing indoor plants is carried out 3 times a year. Usually watered during flowering with an interval of two weeks.

Fertilizer from burnt coal in the stove

Coal slag is more often used for construction work or for arranging drainage in a flower bed. The content of magnesium, calcium and other minerals is minimal. However, coal ash as a fertilizer is also used and beneficial.

Dust is sifted from slag, sprayed over the area at the rate of 100 g/m² and dig a shovel onto a bayonet. Coal ash is rich in carbonates, sulfates, and silicates. After top dressing, the soil is enriched with sulfur, which is useful for onions, legumes and all varieties of cabbage.

Plant nutrition rules

In what proportions ash is used as a fertilizer, how to apply it depends on the plantations for which top dressing is prepared:

• Grapes are fed in autumn with an infusion of 5 buckets of water and 300 g of wood ash. In the spring, dry matter is introduced into the soil, and in the summer, soil is sprinkled on top to control pests.
• Tomatoes are fed by scattering half a glass of ash on the ground near the stem of each bush. Another way – to prepare a liquid solution, 100 g of dry matter is diluted in 1 bucket of water and the bushes are added.
• Cucumbers are fed by scattering ashes over the entire area of ​​u3bu7bthe garden before watering. When making liquid top dressing 1 tbsp. l. dry matter insist 0,5 days in XNUMX liter of water. Under each bush pour XNUMX liters of solution.
• Onions are susceptible to fungal diseases. To preserve the harvest, the ashes are sprayed over the garden bed, and then watered abundantly.

Justified is not only the use of ash for fertilizing the garden, but also as a means against pests. Dry ashes are sprinkled on plants and the soil under them to combat flea, slugs, the Colorado potato beetle, and snails.

Now the question is not acute, which fertilizer will replace the ash, because the store is full of complex dressings containing all the minerals the plant needs. But most of the preparations are obtained chemically, and the ashes are obtained naturally from organic matter.