by natureswayrdev | Soil Amendments
John's Corner: Animal Manure By: John Ferguson Last week we talked about human manure (sewage sludge or bio-solids). So this week we will cover the other manures. For centuries farmers used animal manures to keep their fields healthy and productive. Over the years...
by natureswayrdev | Soil Amendments
John's Corner: Bentonite By: John Ferguson Recently I was talking to a customer about how to create a natural seal for their pond and the subject of Bentonite clay came up. Since it is a natural organic material and is widely used in many applications including...
by natureswayrdev | Soil Amendments
John's Corner: Bio-Char By: John Ferguson This week we are going to talk about another type of ash product that is showing real potential in gardening called Bio-Char (sometimes referred to as black carbon). The interest in Bio-Char started with the work of Wim...
by natureswayrdev | Soil Amendments
John's Corner: Biosolids By: John Ferguson Biosolids or Sewage Sludge Over the last few weeks we have had several customers asking about Bio-Solid compost or stating that they were using sewage sludge products (Milorganite, HouActinite, etc.) in their gardens. This...
by natureswayrdev | Soil Amendments
John's Corner: Expanded Shale By: John Ferguson A question we often get asked is “What is expanded shale?” The products we call Expanded shale may be produced from several sources (clay, shale or slate), and they have several different names depending on...
by natureswayrdev | Soil Amendments
John's Corner: Epsom By: John Ferguson If one searches the Web, they will find hundreds of claims about how Epsom Salt made their plants grow better. These range from curing blossom end rot on tomatoes (false- caused by a calcium deficiency) to helping seeds germinate...
by natureswayrdev | Soil Amendments
John's Corner: Gypsum By: John Ferguson Recently we have had a few people asking about gypsum to improve their soils. Gypsum can be a useful soil amendment under certain conditions when used properly. It is not a cure-all as some will have you to believe but another...
by natureswayrdev | Soil Amendments
John's Corner: Green Sand By: John Ferguson Last week we started talking about soil amendments (Expanded Shale) and their role in the garden. Fall is one of the best times to work on improving one’s soil and preparing new beds. Hence, for the next few weeks we...
by natureswayrdev | Soil Amendments
John's Corner: Humate By: John Ferguson The past few weeks we have been discussing soil amendments of volcanic origins. This week I want to talk about humate as a soil amendments and the best humates come from areas with volcanic activity nearby when they were...
by natureswayrdev | Soil Amendments
John's Corner: Lava Sand By: John Ferguson This week I want to continue talking about soil amendments of volcanic origin and discuss Lava Sand. This is an interesting subject since some gardeners swear by it and others have had very disappointing results. As with so...
by natureswayrdev | Soil Amendments
John's Corner: Limestone By: John Ferguson Limestone & Dolomite The past few weeks we have been discussing soil amendments of volcanic origins. This week I want to talk about soil amendments from sedimentary deposits. I often get asked how much lime should I apply...
by natureswayrdev | Soil Amendments
John's Corner: Paper Sludge By: John Ferguson This week I want to mention another wood waste product that is used in horticulture and agriculture. Sludge is a generic term for several types of residues from pulp and paper making. In general the paper mill...
by natureswayrdev | Soil Amendments
John's Corner: Peat Moss By: John Ferguson Peat Moss is widely used in gardening and horticulture. However have you ever considered the question; is it the best choice and what are the consequences of using it? Historically, peat has been used as a fuel, for...
by natureswayrdev | Soil Amendments
John's Corner: Perlite By: John Ferguson Recently we have had a couple of our customers ask us to create lightweight special versions of a couple of our specialty soils. They wanted something finer than expanded shale but just as durable and free of toxic chemicals....
by natureswayrdev | Soil Amendments
John's Corner: Prumice By: John Ferguson Over the years I have noticed that many of my gardening books and magazines have recommended pumice as an ingredient in potting mixes. So what is pumice and how and why is it used? Pumice is a volcanic glass produced when lava...
by natureswayrdev | Soil Amendments
John's Corner: Re-Mineralizer By: John Ferguson Over the last couple years, we have talked about the poor quality of our food today from toxic chemicals on and in it, to the lack of nutrition. One of the most positive developments in soil science and gardening is the...
by natureswayrdev | Soil Amendments
John's Corner: Rice Hulls Ash By: John Ferguson Rice hulls have been used for thousands of years as a soil amendment in farming and gardening. Rice hulls (rice husks) are the hard protective covering of the grains of rice and are composed of lignin with a very high...
by natureswayrdev | Soil Amendments
John's Corner: Rock Dust By: John Ferguson Rock dusts are composed of various rocks that have been ground up to sand size particles or smaller. Depending on the type of rock used, they contain different minerals (plant nutrients) and properties. They are generally...
by natureswayrdev | Soil Amendments
John's Corner: Rock Wool By: John Ferguson This week I want to continue talking about soil amendments of volcanic origin and discuss Rock Wool. Like so many things in life there is a lot of variation in the products sold under the generic name Rock Wool. Rock Wool is...
by natureswayrdev | Soil Amendments
John's Corner: Saw Dust By: John Ferguson This past week I was talking with a couple different customers whom were having problems with their plants from yellowing to poor growth. In both cases they had purchased a bagged soil product from one of the box stores. After...
by natureswayrdev | Soil Amendments
John's Corner: Vermiculite By: John Ferguson I was starting to think about writing this article on vermiculite and remembered that I have not used vermiculite in many years due to issues with asbestos. Hence I thought I was going to have to write a very negative...
by natureswayrdev | Soil Amendments
John's Corner: Zeolite By: John Ferguson A few years ago when a colleague of mine known as the “Dirt Doctor” and I were writing the book Organic Management for the Professional, a discussion on the merits of Zeolites came up. I then decided to learn a lot...
