Ash from wood burners

I had a wood burner fitted about a year ago. It's a fantastic thing. It heats virtually the whole house for free, as I get as much wood as I need from work.

An added bonus is that it produces a nice little tray of ash, which currently, once completely cold of course, goes in the bin.

Where do you guys stand on adding ash to the garden, once nails/screws have been removed? I believe it will raise ph so does that mean it'll benefit my rhodedendron and my camelia, or are there better ways to raise the ph than using ash from fires.

Are there any major downsides to using ash?

 

Rhododendron and Camelia I think usually benefit from a low pH so not the best things to add ash to. I usually just add the ash from our own stove to the compost heap. Also added some around a crab apple to add nutrients to encourage fruiting when I discussed my tree not fruiting much with the manager of the local garden centre and got a good crop of fruit this year.

Happy gardening!

 

Yes, you are correct, my mistake, ash does indeed raise ph, not lower it, so it won't benefit plants that prefer slight acidity. My soil is around the neutral mark, I'm not sure if it would be wise to add ash and upset the balance. And I don't think adding it to my compost heap would benefit me much either because every spring I add my well rotted down compost to my garden.

So ash does have it's benefits then, though only if you grow fruit?

 

I dont know how much you intend putting on the garden but I find ash good at breaking up clay and making it more workable.
As to PH, I think you would need to add a lot to a small area to actually change ph.

Just dont put it round plants that it will affect.

 

There are nutrients in ash which is why I add it to my compost. I think it helps my compost have more nutrients and when it has mixed with the compost has less impact on soil acidity so I feel free to spread it around the garden or just plant something there and move my compost pile to somewhere else. Here is a link with more information. The reason I added it around the fruit tree that had not produced fruit when it already had got to a good size is that I was told potassium would help and I had read that ash is a good source of potassium. It will still benefit plants because of the extra nutrients it contains but I would not add too much to the ones that prefer acidic soil.
All the best.

 

Perhaps needing to declare an interest, having retired from the industry, I am going to suggest that so long as you only burn 'approved timber',* you can benefit from using remaining ash as it will contain minerals that enabled the donor tree to achieve its full potential. I agree that incorporating as a dust between layers of compost ingredients will assist the process and ensure that it is widely dispersed when mixed. Hence the term 'trace minerals'.Remember than soot from a clean- burn stove is also valuable; as is charcoal/bio-char
*Approved timber is hardwood such as oak, elm,ash,birch beech,hornbeam and fruit woods.,seasoned/kilndried to less than 20% moisture. Never burn painted/stained timber or that containing preservative

 

Thanks guys.

My naive understanding of ash was that it would raise the ph alarmingly. This does not seem to be the common concensus. It would seem you'd need a lot to raise it significantly. So mixing small amounts at surface level is neither here nor there?

And yes, I only burn clean, dry, untreated and unpainted wood on my woodburner, so the ash my fire produces should be quite safe.

I'm new to the forum, and also quite new to house plants and gardening. I have a lot to learn.

I believe that one of the most important parts of growing healthy plants, in and outdoors, is the medium in which they are grown, and subsequent periodic fertilisation and watering thereafter.

My soil is around neutral. I have as much old aquarium water as I like to water my plants. I also have ash on hand to further enhance my soil. I also have a huge compost heap which primarily is for breeding worms for my tropical fish, but also gives me a good amount of well rotted down nutrient rich soil every spring when I dig it out. And of course there are a million and one off the shelf ferts at the garden centre.

I'm trying to get my head around it all so my plants not only have the best medium to grow in, but my care as regards to watering and fertilising is also good. But, as a relative newb, this stuff is quite complex to me. Lol.

 

Fathers advice was only to have a bonfire occasionally but always to have a goodun !