5 PRACTICAL USES FOR WOOD ASH

[CrealCritter]

5 PRACTICAL USES FOR WOOD ASH

Some of these I did not know.

#6 should be remove hair from animal hides.

#7 Then of course you have Job sitting in the ash heap to get relief from boils.

Any others?

 

[Lazy Gardener]

And, when cleaning ashes out of any wood burning appliance, be sure to place them in a METAL CONTAINER that DOES NOT HAVE ANY HOLES IN THE BOTTOM! AND, place that container on a non-combustible surface while you are cleaning the ash bin! Then, IMMEDIATELY place that container outside, well away from any buildings, and protect it from wind. Better yet, dump your ashes into a covered metal container. Many house fires are started by careless home owners: They think there are no live embers in the stove, b/c the last fire was several days ago, and the stove is cold to the touch. So, they grab a cardboard box, load it with ashes, then wander off to tend to an other matter.

When I clean out my ash bin, I rake the live coals to the side. Then, after dumping the ashes, I can rake the coals back over the grate. This creates a PERFECT opportunity to bake some potatoes before adding more wood to the stove.

8: save any "nuggets" to add to your compost. The micro-organisms in the compost will inoculate those charcoal nubs to create a cheater's version of biochar. I often steal some nuggets from the remaining live coals to set aside for this purpose.

9: Burn any bones left over from a meal. You have created "bone char" which makes a great soil amendment. The perfect end result will be a charred bone which is black all the way through, but still maintains most, if not all of it's shape. THEN, like biochar, it will benefit from exposure to soil micro-organisms to inoculate it. Soak it in a bucket of compost tea, bury it in your compost, or spread it in the Fall, so it will be ready to do it's magic in the Spring.
https://www.ecofarmingdaily.com/build-soil/soil-inputs/fertilizers/bone-char-benefits/

10: Use as a self choice feed amendment. My chickens go ape over stove ash, especially during the winter. So much so that they will have charcoal black poo! Be sure you never dump hot ash/coals where your livestock or pets can contact them!

11: Add cold ash to SOME of the poultry dust bathing areas. It acts as a natural parasite deterrent.

 

[Beekissed]

Making lye soap? I've used it for most of the purposes already mentioned but have yet to make lye soap from our ashes, though my grandmother used to do so.

The wild birds LOVE to eat the wood ashes also, as they are of some benefit for internal parasite removal and also hold valuable minerals for our own birds. My chickens love to pick through them.

I usually keep a charred log in animal pens for sampling and have seen them sample. My grandma used to do so with her pigs as well.

Control pond algae, shine tarnished silver, etc.

Here's a pretty extensive list of 60+ uses for it: https://practicalselfreliance.com/wood-ash-uses/

After reading some of this article I realized we've used ashes in the outhouse before too, just needed to read it to remember that.

 

[Lazy Gardener]

Clean the soot off the window of your wood stove.

 

[Britesea]

Wood ash can be used to nixtamalize corn too. It probably predates the use of lime

 

[milkmansdaughter]

@Beekissed that was a really interesting link, and the comments on the link we're also useful. Great subject @CrealCritter!

 

[flowerbug]

i add some to the gardens once in a while. a friend burns wood and used to throw his ashes away. i've been getting their ashes each spring and use them when i can. the little bits of charcoal let me know where i've been.

 

[YourRabbitGirl]

5 PRACTICAL USES FOR WOOD ASH

Some of these I did not know.

#6 should be remove hair from animal hides.

#7 Then of course you have Job sitting in the ash heap to get relief from boils.

Any others?

Before organic compound get applied to the soil. enhance its nutrients by sprinkling in a few ashes. Just like my dad used to do.

 

[YourRabbitGirl]

i add some to the gardens once in a while. a friend burns wood and used to throw his ashes away. i've been getting their ashes each spring and use them when i can. the little bits of charcoal let me know where i've been.

like bread crumbs.. .. Well.. I add some to my soil as well. they say it actually help your plants avoid bugs too.. apparently I dont see any bugs in and around my plants since i start adding it..

 

[Britesea]

it's especially good to keep snails and slugs away; they don't like the gritty texture on their underbellies, apparently. Where I live now, it's too dry for them, so I don't have to worry about that.

I like putting ashes on the pathways in the snow; the darker color holds a bit of heat from the sun and the snow melts just a bit faster. The grittiness helps with footing too.