Will it make any difference if "Wood Ash" is turn in to "Tea" and sprayed on the crops and farm land?

Question

Will this have any influnce on the pH of the soil or plants?

Answer 1

I don't think it would make much difference unless you diluted it down so much it would lose most of it's benefits. Put your wood ash in your compost and apply it with a lot of organic matter.

Answer 2

Aside from changing the soil (solution) pH when wood ash is used as a soil amendment, it is also an insecticide and an herbicide if used as you question, a "tea" spray. Wood ash is extremely caustic. If you mix it with some water and put it on your skin, it makes your skin feel slippery, almost oily. That is the hydroxides sapronizing your skin, turning your skin to soap. Acids burn, bases do their own thing, sapronizing, and they are equally as damaging. As they turn your skin to soap so they will do that with certain materials in plants, and insects. It is not a material that can be used to foliar feed, so if you want to clear an area of weedy ground, dust the plants in the area with wood ash while they are wet with morning dew, but don't go over the recommended rate for the changes needed in the soil pH or you will have to wait a long time before the pH normalizes to be able to plant.

Answer 3

wood ash turned into "tea"  could be very detrimental to the crop as it could burn it severely.  Wood ash itself will change the pH of the soil, but could have pollutants that your crop will pick up. If you are producing anything certifiable, any grain, any seed, any vegetable and the crop is tested, it could be refused or confiscated. Here is a good article from University of Georgia on the proper amount of wood ash to use, and how to get it tested, and for what.

http://pubs.caes.uga.edu/caespubs/pubcd/...

Answer 4

The only difference I can think of is that it will be more trouble.  What we do is just spread the wood ash over the land and till it in.  I should know the pH question, and could look it up, but I'm having a brain cloud.

Answer 5

you would be wasting your time -- just mix it into your compost pit!!!

Answer 6

contact your local extension office , or agway for this one

Answer 7

Doing that would kill the plants.

Answer 8

ive always had a garden and a woodstove and i always dump the ashes in the garden and turn them in....the best place it works is if you have a lot of pines wood ash is a base and helps acidic soil