Using wood ashes

[FarmerDenise]

Wood ashes have a variety of uses and I thought it was a good time to start a thread on this, since many of us use wood for heating and or cooking.

I sprinkle wood ashes in the garden.

I put them in the area my chicken bathe in and in the henhouse on the spot below the roost to keep the smell and the flies down. My grandmother told me to do this. She said it also kept the mites etc in check.

I know that wild birds will eat the ashes.

I also use them around the perimeter of my garden to keep slugs and snails out. This only works only as long as the ashes are dry. Once they get wet, the slugs and snails seem to cross the ash line.

Lye is made from wood ashes. There is a particular wood that makes better lye, but I can't remember which one it is. Folks used to make their own lye. There is a special container made of concrete that sits on a frame, so you can catch the lye in a bucket as it drips out a small pipe at the bottom. I used to baby sit for someone who had one of those. She didn't make her own lye though. Her MIL used to though.

 

[valmom]

I use it on my ice- it is nice and gritty and dark helps melt the ice, too. We only use wood recreationally since both of us are out working most of the time, run home, take care of the animals, eat and go to bed. We aren't around much for the joys of a wood stove.

 

[big brown horse]

I just gave my new pig ( no one has claimed him yet ) some burnt wood (with ashes) to chew on for worms. (I forgot who mentioned it on my "stray pig" thread, but thank you!!)

 

[sylvie]

Last year I decided that my gardens had plenty of ash from spreading it all winter. I still needed to dispose of ash. One of my gardens is fenced and weeds are continually a problem around the perimeter. Knowing how too much ash kills stuff, I really dumped it all around the fence. I ended up with the best weeds on the street, so that didn't work. Just thought this thread could use the other side of the coin.

 

[Quail_Antwerp]

oh goodness, sylvie! best weeds on the street? Were they atleast easy to pull out??

I have a bucket of ashes ready to go out to my chickens.

We've been using the ashes to fill in holes in the front yard.

 

[freemotion]

I've been using the excess to "lime" my pasture. I take note in the fall as to where I think it needs it the most, and use a tree or something as a landmark. We burn 4 or 5 cords, so we have a lot of ashes. I really notice a difference in the spring.

I limed myself last time I spread them....the wind changed directions twice while I was scattering them and I ended up covered head to toe!

 

[justusnak]

We spread the ashes in the gardens. Yes, plural...we have 2, and makeing a 3rd this spring. We go through about 12 to 15 ricks...so have plenty ashes to spare.
Some go on the back yard where the little dogs pee, and make those annoying yellow spots. Works well!

 

[sylvie]

best weeds on the street? Were they atleast easy to pull out??

The potassium in the ash promotes root growth. They were not
easy to pull.

 

[sylvie]

Some go on the back yard where the little dogs pee, and make those annoying yellow spots. Works well!

I will definitely try this. Thanks for the idea!

 

[lalaland]

I just dumped two buckets on the compost pile.

I keep some to use to "dust" cabbage and brussel sprouts when the cabbage moth caterpillars start to show up. Seems to help. DIdn't have any to use last year because a bear tore apart the bin I had ashes stored in, and they got rained on - and I had the worst cabbages ever.

Only good thing was all the treats for the chickens - I could get about 2 cups of green caterpillers for them each time I worked on the garden.