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  • From: list@ginda.us
  • To: North American Fruit Explorers <nafex@lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [NAFEX] downside of free potassium source
  • Date: Sat, 05 Mar 2005 14:24:58 -0500

I live on a granite outcropping, with crumbling bits of weathered granite all around, so the "free granite dust" discussion is interesting, but not something I will act on. But I want to stand up for aluminum. Several years ago, it was noticed that there was aluminum in the brain tissue of people with alzheimer's, and a lot of studies were started to see if dietary aluminum was a risk factor. As far as I can tell, they have all turned up nothing - that is, there doesn't appear to be a link between dietary aluminum and alzheimers. That's not so surprising, as aluminum is really, really common, and we probably all eat enough of it to be coating in tin-foil (okay, aluminum foil) a dozen times over in a normal lifetime. The alzheimer's link seems to be a problem with metabolism, not diet. (There are even some studies now that suggest the aluminum-seeded tangles may be something the brain does to try to protect itself from the underlying problem, although that's far from established.)

I'm sure there's some toxic level of aluminum in soil, as there is for every other element. But unless you are very high in aluminum, I bet the tombstone dust is safe to apply to your soil. (Just don't inhale any, as Donna warns.)

Ginda


On Mar 5, 2005, at 12:39 PM, Charles Paradise wrote:

Been there, done that...the granite dust from tombstone cutting works well as a soil amendment...now here's possible downside:

The material used to polish blast and shine granite tombstones is aluminum, I believe aluminum oxide. The aluminum they buy in boxes, and they buy it every year. My way of thinking, that can only mean that the aluminum is ending up mixed with the granite dust. Can anyone prove this?

Can anyone prove that the aluminum constitutes a hazard applied to crops? Aluminum is implicated as a symptom of alzheimer's building up in the brain tissues of those with the disease...is it a cause of the disease or merely a symptom? Remember aluminum is everywhere in the soil.

I belive I first read about the free granite dust from something Lee Reich wrote...

Donna, thanks huge for your calculations on the Zinc, what a huge help!!! And may I ask, why apply Boron? I know pears have a considerable Boron content in the fruit.
Charlie Paradise
zone 5 with many tombstones and granite dust...

kieran or donna wrote:

While we're talking soil supplements, I thought being NAFEXers and thus
naturally thrifty, you might like to know about a good source of granite
dust. Granite tends to be high in potassium, which has a reputation for
helping control plant diseases. In addition, people like Harvey Lisle who
are interested in paramagnetic vs diamagnetic rocks and their different
effects on the soil, will tell you that an area like Tennessee which has
only diamagnetic rock (ie limestone) can benefit greatly from adding
paramagnetic rocks like granite or other volcanic rocks. The expense in
getting such rock dusts is the transportation, since they are so heavy, but
our local mortuary does the hauling for me. All I have to do is take my
buckets and a tin can and go scoop the stuff out of their barrels.
Now, it depends on how fancy a system they have for dealing with it, one
place has a sealed room they only open once a year, but the place I go to
has the dust blown into a barrel, and when they've filled up 3 barrels, they
take it and dump it. It's very heavy, I don't put more than about a gallon
per bucket. The dust is dangerous, you don't want to breathe it. I am
relieved when it's been rained on, harder to handle but easier to transport.
If it's dry, I handle it carefully, and then pour a little water on top.
You can't drive down the highway with open topped buckets of the dry stuff
in a pickup, it'll all blow out. Ask around, the smaller the business,
probably the simpler their system and the easier to deal with the owners.
Donna
P.S. Try getting out a catalog with some natural soil products, and add
the price of granite dust to the cost of shipping, it will make the free
stuff look very attractive indeed. Of course, those of you living on
paramagnetic rock don't need it.

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