[Terrapreta] Terra Preta and Ants

[Gerald Van Koeverden]

Jim,

There is such a thing as too much of a good thing...

1.  For example, Japanese studies on mychorizal development  
demonstrate that too much charcoal can inhibit plant growth:

The application of charcoal is very effective for VAM development.  
But an excess of charcoal inhibits plant growth. This inhibition by  
an excessive application of charcoal might be concerned with an  
increment of soil pH value. Therefore, an appropriate amount of  
charcoal to be applied is less than 20 ton per hectare. Zeolite is  
one of the soil materilas. It absorbs chemicals which inhibit VAM  
growth, and cleans the soil as charcoal does. But the application of  
zeolite does not change soil pH value.


http://bio.kpu.ac.jp/pomlab/Vaminf.html

2. Perhaps some of this inhibitory effect comes from its properties  
as a mild pesticide?  Or is it just that an excess of anything is bad?

  see "Insecticidal Effects of Activated Charcoal and Clays"

http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v184/n4693/abs/1841165a0.html

Geral

On 15-Dec-07, at 9:40 AM, jimstoy at dtccom.net wrote:

> I think we should hope that charcoal is Not a pesticide. There are  
> no good
> or bad insects. They all have a job to do. Just like bacteria or  
> viruses
> in our bodies, they do not cause the problems. They are only  
> responding to
> a biological terrain. You are either healthy or you are compost.  
> Same is
> true of plants.
>
> If, like DE, charcoal kills insects, it will not discriminate between
> honey bees and squash bugs.
>
> Hopefully, biochar will help the farmer/gardener to grow well  
> nourished,
> healthy plants, where pesticides are not needed. Pesticides, like  
> drugs,
> after all, are only expedients, not cures.
>
> Jim
>
>> Though I've no luck in finding more references to charcoal as a
>> pesticide, I did find several references to using charcoal-dust
>> instead of fungicide to protect cut surfaces of vegetatively
>> propagated plants.  Here's one of them from a Hungarian website:
>>
>> "During the rooting of soft leafed species the leaves should be cut
>> back by 2/3 in order to fit the rootless rosette leaves economically
>> and reduce the size of their evaporating surface. Perlit or sieved
>> river-sand can be used for the rooting. Cut surfaces should be dipped
>> in charcoal-dust or fungicide and left to dry for at least 1-2 days.
>> Rooting hormones can accelerate the process. Then we plant them into
>> pots in a half-shaded area and water the plants 2-3 times a week,
>> then just wait patiently. We may occasionally water the leaves by
>> some nutritive solution in order for faster results. The rooted
>> plants should be planted into their permanent habitat in spring in
>> order to leave them time for rooting."
>>
>
>

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