I was delighted to see that SAF encourages application of rock powders on
farmland.
I can verify the effectiveness and benefits of using rock dusts on soil. This
summer during the Big Drought
I applied 30 tandem loads of chicken manure and 30 tandem loads of 4
different kinds of rock quarry dusts
(settling pond fines) to about 3 1/2 acres of prime silt loam farmland and
followed this with extensive
tillage involving 4 different tractor implements (50 inch Howard rotavator, 3
bottom plow, tillage tool
and hilling discs). The rate that the manure decomposed and evolved into a
sweet-smelling soil mix was amazing,
even with very little rain. I found out from a grading/excavating/pond
builder contractor that rock dusts can
be used to seal the bottom and sides of farm ponds against leakage. This
includes installing ponds on highly
permeable land.