permaculture

["Lisa Rollens" <rollens@fidnet.com>]

I used wood ashes to make hominy last year with an old recipe.  It worked 
and was good!  The ashes aren't used to make lye, the corn is soaked and 
cooked in ash water, as the first step.

Lisa, in the MO Ozarks, USA


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Norris Thomlinson" <scrub@corrupt.net>
To: <permaculture@lists.ibiblio.org>
Sent: Thursday, December 14, 2006 3:19 PM
Subject: Re: [permaculture] Wood Ashes


> Hi Scott-
>
> > Anyone know of any uses for wood ashes??  Besides lye soap and used to
> > sweeten or alkalinize the soil.
>
> I've come across references to use of wood ash lye in preparing corn, to
> prevent the vitamin deficiencies caused by a diet high in corn.  It's the
> same idea as using lime with the corn--but wood ash (especially or maybe
> only? from hard woods) is another way to process it.  The wood ash lye is
> created by leaching water through the ashes.  I don't know whether or not
> the process is identical to that for preparing lye for soap.
>
> Hope that helps!
>
> Norris Thomlinson
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