Healthy soil and sustainable growing

[Debbie McDonald <lbirke1@yahoo.com>]

What/how to inoculate the charcoal Rick?  Deb

 

 I wish to add to the line concerning the use of charcoal, I live in north florida and have very sandy soil. In my back yard I have a small vegetable garden approx. 1000sqft. that I've had for the past three years. The first year the yields were nothing spectacular but good. Use of COF as Steve Solomon recommended, also chicken manure and some horse manure used in moderation. Leaf and garden clipping compost from a former garden site. The second year the production yields were way down both summer and winter gardens. The first half of the third year was not good either. I happened across several articles concerning charcoal, having nothing to lose I tried adding it. I crushed ten forty pound bags of hard wood charcoal I soaked the crushed charcoal in a liquid solution of 1 part dry chicken manure, 1 part leaf compost and 1 part comfrey tea (the part being a 2lb plastic coffee container I use for measurement) I put the dried parts in donated panty hose and soaked in 25 gal. of tap water maybe 2 weeks prior to use. This being a liquid fertilizer I commonly use. I am now into the last month of the third year and the yields thus far have exceeded my wildest expectations. I am growing the garden I had wished for. Simply put the ground/sand has come alive.

 

**** Inoculate the charcoal prior to amendment to the soil.

Rick