What do you do with your ashes?

[HARRY BARKER]

dump them in my horseradish patch.

 

[johnb]

Potash

Its great Potash, spread it on your garden or fields. I throw a couple shovels on each load of leaves of manure I spread. the Hoosier

 

[Circle B MN]

I have a 33 gallon metal trash can by the boiler that I dump the ash into. I let it set there for a few days then spread it on te lawn, or in a place that I think need some fill. I like the idea of putting it on the drive as mine is gravel, but I know that no matter what precaution I take, there is ALWAYS a nail, spike, screw, barb, blade, shank, etc. in the ashes that will in fact find it's way into your truck tire on the coldest morning of the year.

 

[Wishie22]

When I leave for work in the morning I cuff my pants, fill the cuffs for the daily disbursement. Little here, little there, where ever I roam. JK

Let it cool in a metal bucket with lid outside. Next time the stove needs to be cleaned empty out the cooled off ash, a couple trips to the garden (rototiller it with chicken dung for natural fertilizer). Compost piles. After that walk the stone wall on the property and spread it out on the walls. Dog needs to go out and do his business anyway.

 

[frenchy85]

We use to use just dump on them on the compost pile, until the day we caught it on fire, what freakin riot that was. Now we let them sit for a day or two.

 

[NC4TN]

akaline??? thought acidic--as thats what happens when you add water to it, the first step in making lye--which is acid--

SingleJack's wife is right. Because lye is so corrosive, you would think that it is an acid, but it is actually a VERY alkaline, hightly corrosive substance (13.0 PH). Being the southern appalachian mountaineer that I am, we use it for several things:

1) Lye soap...save your hardwood ashes. Take a plastic bucket with little holes in the bottom, fill it with ashes and pour water in the bucket. (We used to make these out of old sawmill boards; called an ash hopper) What comes out in the bottom is marginally diluted lye....mix with vegetable oils, (deep fryer grease), animal fats and make your own homemade soap.

2) We process our own beef and pork. We use some of lye from the above process (highly diluted, of course) to take the residual hair off the carcass.

3) And of course, ashes in the garden adds potash to the soil, but like Single-Jacks wife said, don't concentrate it one spot.

 

[olyman]

SingleJack's wife is right. Because lye is so corrosive, you would think that it is an acid, but it is actually a VERY alkaline, hightly corrosive substance (13.0 PH). Being the southern appalachian mountaineer that I am, we use it for several things:

1) Lye soap...save your hardwood ashes. Take a plastic bucket with little holes in the bottom, fill it with ashes and pour water in the bucket. (We used to make these out of old sawmill boards; called an ash hopper) What comes out in the bottom is marginally diluted lye....mix with vegetable oils, (deep fryer grease), animal fats and make your own homemade soap.

2) We process our own beef and pork. We use some of lye from the above process (highly diluted, of course) to take the residual hair off the carcass.

3) And of course, ashes in the garden adds potash to the soil, but like Single-Jacks wife said, don't concentrate it one spot.

old thread--but hmmmmmmm

 

[Jon E]

We use to use just dump on them on the compost pile, until the day we caught it on fire, what freakin riot that was. Now we let them sit for a day or two.

Yeah, I burned my compost bin once. Now I let 'em cool off in a metal trash can.

 

[Dale]

Let me get this straight. So some of you are saying that if your garden size is small enough, and you spread your winters burn of ashes on the garden, then you shouldn't be using lime on it also since the PH of the Ash is so high ? Correct ?

 

[Dalmatian90]

Only way to know (scientifically) what your garden needs is a laboratory soil analysis.

A simple pH test isn't enough, because different soils react differently. The lab report will tell you both the current pH AND how much lime, and which type of lime, is needed. You can google "cation capacity garden" to learn more about why different amounts are needed. As for type, if your garden is low in magnesium they'll recommend dolomitic lime (50% magnesium carbonate); otherwise regular agriculture lime which is mostly calcium carbonate and more common is fine.

Ashes provide potash. The word itself comes from how potassium carbonate was originally produced -- by leaching it from a pot full of ashes. Same process is made to use old fashion lye, just the name is different (although note "lye" today is usually sodium hydroxide!)

 

[taylor6400]

Ok, bringing this thread back up because i just saw something rediculous! Wood Ash on sale on Amazon for....wait for it....$30 for 10 lbs! WOW!

http://www.amazon.com/Oak-Ash-Environmentally-Eco-friendly-Natural/dp/B0032GGC4W

Oh...Ok, nevermind. Its Oak ash. Understandable for $30 then...people buy this?

 

[gwiley]

Ok, bringing this thread back up because i just saw something rediculous! Wood Ash on sale on Amazon for....wait for it....$30 for 10 lbs! WOW!

http://www.amazon.com/Oak-Ash-Environmentally-Eco-friendly-Natural/dp/B0032GGC4W

Oh...Ok, nevermind. Its Oak ash. Understandable for $30 then...people buy this?

You have GOT to be kidding! I looked at the posting.....it is true. I would really like to know how much they actually sell.

 

[swift4me]

snails and slugs

I don't know if someone mentioned it, but ashes make a great border around your garden if you have a slug/snail problem. They will not cross it. I guess they get cut up or something. All the Basques here in the mountains do it and we have MAJOR slug issues.

Pete

 

[MJR]

I love the review:

I was looking everywhere for ashes. Thanks Amazon for offering it! Love it., February 10, 2010
By Garden Queen (Nashville, TN) - See all my reviews

I needed ashes for my pottery project and was looking everywhere for it online. Could not find it anywhere. Did not even think about checking Amazon and what do you know... here it is. Thanks guys!

 

[taylor6400]

I don't know if someone mentioned it, but ashes make a great border around your garden if you have a slug/snail problem. They will not cross it. I guess they get cut up or something. All the Basques here in the mountains do it and we have MAJOR slug issues.

Pete

Yeah, i heard that...i think the ash dries them out if they go into it.

 

[Fronty Owner]

You have GOT to be kidding! I looked at the posting.....it is true. I would really like to know how much they actually sell.

there is one review, so atleast one person.
Then again it ranks 5396 best seller in lawn and garden...

 

[Dalmatian90]

You know, I must be getting over tired.

I just looked at this sentence:

What do you do with your ashes?

And thought, don't know. I'll be dead and it'll be up to my family to figure out what to do with my ashes.

 

[banjobart]

My wife will probably flush them down the toilet then go on a three day drunk at the nearest bar. I hope she gives my memory a toast.

 

[pucksaw]

My wife told me she would scatter them on my favorite par 3, I thought it was a good idea, however I plan to out live her.

 

[Art Vandelay]

:newbie:

This may be a dumb question, but what do you do when you clean out your boiler/fireplace from time to time during the winter? What I'm getting at is... what do you shovel it into directly out of the boiler/fireplace to haul to where you want to dump it? Do you guys let it burn out for a few days or just dump it knowing that there is nothing that will start on fire, and let the snow take care of it?

I was thinking about getting a few 5 gallon metal buckets...but I just thought I'd ask.

Thanks

:newbie:

I put all of my ash in urns. Man I loved that wood. It will be missed.