If it's just ash from your fireplace (as opposed to decades of ash from an ashpit), sprinkle it on your garden whenever, there won't be enough to make a big difference.

Applying in moderation now is not a concern. But be aware that acid loving plants and a select list of others (including a number of fruits and veg) are not fond of wood ash - essentially potassium - and may react poorly.

https://www.treehugger.com/is-wood-ash-good-for-plants-5225346

We sprinkled wood ash, from the fireplace, on the vegetable garden every year and never had any problems.

My understanding is that spreading ashes now is a waste as it will leach away before growth starts. So I am saving mine in a covered barrel to spread in early spring. I apply it to the vegetable garden, lawn, and roses. My soil is very acidic.

Be careful! Wood ash is VERY alkaline. If your soil is alkaline, wood ash is not helpful. DO NOT APPLY. My soil is pH 7.9 and, for me, wood ash is toxic waste. If your soil is acidic, and you don't have plants that prefer strong acidity and want to keep it that way (e.g. blueberries) it's fine stuff.

A certain DR out there contends we need supplements because We no longer spread wood ash on our gardens. That part of his shill. He hawks his over priced supplements

So how would we ph test if we use raised beds with mostly bagged contain soil that was put in years ago. Itd going to take a long time to red my bins to galv fire ring with hardware cloth underneath .. To keep out the countless chipm, moles voles etc and will have to keep some wire over tops because those tree rodents are fond of running up hill to bury Black Walnus that next door etc. RAH .

How do you do a pH test? Easy. Do what you should have done when you made your raised bed, which is to get a soil test done. You'll learn a lot about your fertilizer requirements from such a test.

yall funny I have many MANY raised beds. most everything in mostly raised beds. Im changed from taller raised beds to ones less than a foot (12 inches or less) tall and only 3 ft in diameter.

. Im moving that"soi" around as Im moving the beds forward any where from a few inches to several feet forward. putting the "soil " into bags and buckets .

Because Im reoving the landcape fabric more and likely underneath them now. Also making the hdwe cloth underneath to fit inside bottom of circle insteafd of underneatn.

When hdwe cloth underneath STICKING OUT... its catching my foot etc and is sharp and dangerous. anyone working with hdwe cloth knows how sharp and dangerous to recut the hdwe cloth from big retangles to circles.... This will prob take me forever to get done also wedding etc.

I wish I would have did that orginally because its taking forever it seems to empty each bin one at a time and bag the "dirt" in lots of buckets etc .... put it back. LATER. MY SOIL is hodgepodge of bagged topsoil bagged compost sand ashes. bagged manure nursery manure trucked in topsoil, vermulte. potting soil etc...

So that why yall advice if FUNNY>

I saw some testing kits years ago for sale. I should have bought while cheaper.

I would have to take many many samples. Cost a fortune..... ill ask about soil test sample in another post

Thanks all...Blessings

Your beds probably have all similar soil. To the extent you do, you need ONE soil test. Maybe $20. At least with regard to pH, you are simply not going to have alkaline soil in one bed and acidic soil in another. For that matter, you can buy pH paper for a few bucks.