the original discussion i believe was about the use of ammonia in what is termed 'drunken compost' 12 oz beer , 12 oz cola [soda] , 8 oz ammonia in a sprayer set to empty that quart of mix into 20 gallons of water creating a 256:1 final mix. this accelerates the compost process to the point that it can be applied to the garden as a mulch in 2 weeks. increased growth and fruiting are observed. increased worm populations are also observed. the reason for organics is to keep certain toxic compounds out of the food supply. it does not guarantee quality. quality is assumed. we now collide with man's penchant for fanaticism. all chemical fertilizers and compounds not having been created via a biological process or mined out of the earth in some way [some of which are not healthful at all though certified organic. azomite {very high in aluminium} comes to mined] have been termed as toxic compounds which may not be entirely true. the irresponsible use of anything can be harmful. then we have the whole salt index discussion which is more prevalent in soil with low organic matter.which brings another discussion the real culprit is often a lack of organic matter more than anything else. more later

Available Nitrogen depends on many things starting with soil temperature (which regulates that activity of the soil bacteria and fungi that feed your plants), to soil moisture, to how much organic matter the soil has. If the other major nutrients are in fair balance then the Nitrogen probably is also, although excess levels of any nitrient can also present problems. Excess Potash can interfere with a plants ability to properly use N and vice versa. Most all commercial soil test reports usually recommend applying 2 pounds of Nitrogen per 1,000 square feet without even testing for N and if you seriously think about that that is not very much. If your soil has adequate levels of organic matter Nitrogen more than likely will not be a problem.

Some asked about the size of the pieces of wood chips. Below is a picture of my new raised bed after I filled it up with chips. The second is a close-up after it rained this afternoon, and the bed settled down some. The close-up shows that the chips are mostly slightly bigger or slightly smaller than a quarter. The are about the same thickness as a quarter as well. Some of it has bamboo stems that are about half the diameter of a pencil and 12 to 24 inches longs. There aren't too many of these, which are sort of like stiff wheat straw. In each wheelbarrow full, I would normally find a piece the size of my hand that was about 1/4 inch thick. I would not have wanted an entire load of these big bits, but a few mixed in weren't a problem for me for the price. If it's Free, I can pick out some bits I don't like. I live on a fixed income, so the price is perhaps more important to me that it might be to other. If you had a chopper that would shred the stuff into smaller bits, it would really be grand. Well now that it's settled down a bit, I'm going to put a single layer of newspaper, a few inches of finished leaf/grass compost, and transplant my strawberries from containers. Since I'm using the chips as a filler in the bed below my plants, I'm going to start fertilizing them with dilute water soluble fertilizer once per week. The nutrients that wash down through the top layer should be absorbed by the chips and help their decomposition proceed. I've got almost 2 months until first frost, then I'll cover the strawberries with some pine straw until spring, when I will resume fertilizing again. I've also used the chips to mulch around my fruit trees, blackberries, and muscadines that I'm growing in containers. It's worked great for that as well. I've got few dog paths in the backyard where my dogs aways run along the same route and keep the grass killed down. I've spread some the wood chips along their paths as well. They were a big bulky and hard to walk on at first. I watered these paths and then tamped then down by rolling a 5 gallon bucket full or dirt back and forth along the path twice. After that they were fine for walking on without tripping on bits sticking up. Other people might not have had good experience with the chips from tree services, but I'm happy with mine. My only real problem has been that their truck was so big they could not drive up my driveway because of power lines. They had to dump the pile of wood chips in my front yard next to the street, and I've had to cart it all to my backyard where I garden. At first I used a wheelbarrow, but it didn't hold very much. Now I'm using the 100 gallon rolling trash can that my trash service supplies. It's making a lot faster work of hauling it about the yard. Greg

A thread I couldn't resist. Been gone for a couple of days and came home to this polemic, so can't help myself. I'm a student at the Morton Arboretum in Lisle, Illinois pursuing a couple of certificates - one of which is the 'Naturalist' certificate. Also, DH was in the sewage treatment business all his life. (sold industrial sewage treatment plant pumps). So I know what can be accomplished with the use of like materials and I know what anaerobic vs aerobic means in terms of benefits to soil and composting. First, I have to agree with EO in several areas, especially the subject of not wanting ammonia under the plants roots. To wit: 'Farmers are mainly doing this in ground that has been plowed, not under growing plants so I stand by the statement that you dont want ammonia under the plants roots.' I talked to a couple of profs at Morton today and can offer a quote or two that may be helpful, as well as a footnote of my own. I quote an instructor who specializes in agriculture and a botany instructor who is also a professor at Northern Ill University: "What is anhydrous ammonia made of and how does it affect crops?" This was my question. Answer from Ag Prof: Anhydrous ammonia is a nitrogen fertilizer commonly used on crops such as corn. It is injected into the soil as a fertilizer. Due to the chemistry of anhydrous ammonia, the injection band initially is toxic to plant growth because of high pH. In a relatively short period of time after injection into the soil the ammonia is converted to nitrate and the pH of the injection band decreases. Nitrate is the primary form of nitrogen used by corn from the soil. At this point the corn plant can use the fertilizer and provide higher yields. Nitrogen is the nutrient which is the most limiting of corn yield on most fields. Nitrogen is needed by the plant because it is a critical component of proteins. Deficiencies affect all aspects of crop growth including chlorophyll production. Plants short on nitrogen are stunted and have a light green color. The exact amount of fertilizer needed depends on the productivity of the soil. Nitrogen fertilizer is not typically applied to soybean. Soybean is a legume plant with the capability of fixing atmospheric nitrogen to meet its nitrogen need. Consequently, farmers do not need to apply fertilizer nitrogen to grow this crop. Unless you have a clear understanding of the nutrient needs of your soil as well as your PLANT, you can be either wasting your time and/or your money and possibly harming the plant. Agribusiness requires much different methods of growing than does plant culture in gardening." And according to my botany prof: 'Hostas are capable of fixing atmospheric nitrogen, as are most plants -- especially those not grown in fields which are continually plowed.' We talked about the nutrient-depleted soil from which our mainstay crops grow. Bottom line: grow your own food in soil you make yourself! I have been using the AACT method of composting (aerated activated compost tea) using worm castings. The worm castings grow microbial organisms within a day or two of 'cooking' in a 25 gallon container with a pump for aeration. It must be applied quickly when finished or the organisms will die as soon as the air is cut off. It is sprayed on foliage and the soil is drenched almost weekly. Since I started this four years ago, I have incredibly friable, sweet and worm-filled soil and have watched my garden explode. I disturb the soil as little as possible - only top dress. And EO, as well as a few others both on this forum and the composting forum, validated this method for me. After having been further educated by reading some of the info here, I've been scooping up some of the 'natural' mulch on the floor of nearby wooded areas, (the older the better) and topdressing the soil. Also, slowly adding a few different things like alfalfa, corn meal, and/or rice flour also increases microbial organisms, although I have yet to find alfalfa meal -- Mary Ann (GW) has a source not far from us in Northern Ill which I need to get to. Plants select for their needs and the organisms select for the plants. Eventually something approximating equilibrium in the soil is attained, as long as the soil is 'fed' with mixed organic matter and the AACT is done regularly. One more note: Grass-fed cow manure is far preferable to corn-fed - I have this on high authority but cannot tell you from whom -- he must remain anonymous -- but he's a hosta vendor. Now if I could just get DH to drop the clubs and help me do all this . . . (I shouldn't complain - he does brew the tea!) Westy