[Terrapreta] Char made made under pressurized conditions?

[Greg and April]

Larry,

If I may, I would like to relate my experience to you.

When I first moved in to my home, the dirt in the back yard was just that dirt.    No structure, dog's had trashed it, the owners before my parents, had a large above ground pool in place for years, so it was compacted.    Some parts, were literally covered in dog (     ) as that was where a previous owner shoveled all the stuff that collected.    I dug in it many time - several places and it was almost like rock - and never saw any worms.


Years later, I started raising rabbits.    At first inside, then as my experience with them grew, I moved them outside.    Sitting the cages on legs, I didn't worry about the urine soaked straw / moldy hay / poo and other things that fell through the cage floor, until it was almost to the cage floor, then I dumped it all into the 4x8 frame of 2x12 that I called a garden - usually by this time it was fall and so I let it compost in place, till spring.    The point is, the materials were already biological active before I dumped them into the garden.

The first year there was little improvement the soil, dandelions had taken over the area where the dog doo was disposed of ( no big deal, because they provided fresh greens for the rabbits ).    

Second year, I couldn't believe it earthworms were reasonably numerous in the garden. 

The third year ( last year ) I went out in late spring after a rain, and I couldn't believe it - earthworms all over the yard.    They were so thick in the garden, that I couldn't plant with out disturbing them, and the robins pulled up all the onions with all their digging.


You can make soil structure, it just takes time.


Greg H.


  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Larry Williams 
  To: Tom Miles 
  Cc: 'Terra Preta List' 
  Sent: Sunday, March 30, 2008 14:23
  Subject: Re: [Terrapreta] Char made made under pressurized conditions?


  Tom-------I still question the value of composting in an urban or rural smallholder environment. In general, from my perspective, the collection, turning and necessary incorporation into the soil is energy intensive and with the opportunities for volatilization and leaching of nutrients composting is overrated.


  I have moved to a new garden location with a highly disturbed soil condition. I added amendments to a very heavy clay soil so that I could have raised beds. In this situation with no stable soil community, a input of compost may have helped. Early indications are showing that this year's garden may suffer from the mixing. I will use compost tea instead of compost and will interplant with a crop of buckwheat which I will cut at an appropriate time. The purpose of the buckwheat is it's roots system's release an exudates which feed the "wee little beasties".


  I do have a reasonable amount of prepared charcoal in most of the garden.


  Food for thought as one eats--------Larry






  ---------------------------------------------

  On Mar 30, 2008, at 12:42 PM, Tom Miles wrote:


    Jim,



    “sequestering massive amounts of carbon” is the key. You seem to be saying that compositing doesn’t scale in a modern agricultural environment. Composting would seem to fit better at a small scale, as an urban high value soil amendment, or for a rural smallholder where the ingredients may be more available.



    I agree that Eduard in that at least in our environment the TP product must be prepared so that there are clear and predictable agronomic and economic benefits. That’s why I think the urban homeowner would be a good target for TP products that may in another form be applied to agriculture. Ag buyers will not pay as much as the homeowner, landscaper or enthusiastic gardener.    



    I look at charcoal as a means of facilitating the growth of biomass. It becomes a stable part of the mix of OM rather than an attempt to replace or create OM. 



    Tom



    >For those thinking about saving the world by reducing CO2, composting maybe a nice academic subject but it has no place in the practices for sequestering massive amounts of carbon.

    >Jim



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