[Terrapreta] Char sizes

[Kevin Chisholm]

Dear Larry

Larry Williams wrote:
> Max-------Richard Haard tried the cement mixer 
> <http://www.flickr.com/photos/rchaard/396830225/in/set-72157594444994347/> on 
> some charcoal that we made and found it to hard to break up. For that 
> batch of charcoal the "landscaper two-step" (stomp-stomp) was used on 
> a concrete floor to greater effect. Since then we have observed that 
> charcoal that has been "wetted" allows the charcoal, on most pieces, 
> to break apart fairly easy with one's fingers. No, we will not used 
> our fingers to do the next cord-plus batch of charcoal. I need to try 
> wetting more charcoal in different ways to get a sense of what I like 
> best. The wetting process, I believe, is an important part of the 
> results that I had.

OK! What about simply dumping the charcoal on a paved driveway, spray 
lightly with a hose, and drive back and forth over teh charcoal with a 
tractor?

>
> Over a period of eight months I plucked pieces of charcoal from the 
> Weber grill and threw the pieces in a pile on the ground (well rotted 
> wood chips) on a weekly basis. This occurred over three maritime 
> seasons, two of which were wet. With a minimum of human urine (three 
> or four times) used as fertilizer, the charcoal and charred wood laid 
> on the ground. I was impressed with the rich human scent when the 
> small pile was pick-up and transfered to the garden bed. I had no idea 
> the strength of urine... the rain did not wash the urine away. The 
> scent indicated to me that the charcoal had absorbed some urine and it 
> is possible that it help to wet the charcoal.

Great observation!! I wonder well urinated charcoal would wok well as a 
Deer Repellent around gardens??
>
> During the early spring Richard and I dug around in this garden bed 
> and found charcoal that was still dry. Rain water and soil had not 
> saturated the piece of charcoal. This piece of charcoal may have not 
> laid on the ground but came from the Weber. Again, this points to 
> something else that assisted in the wetting process... urine? 
> Bellingham gets around 35" (90 cm) per year.

Interesting also. Could this perhaps be part of teh explanation for why 
"nothing much hapens in teh first year" when adding charcoal to soil?
>
> Yes, I will get more serious about recording data. Numbers are other's 
> strong point. This is a fun exercise to work on and who knows we may 
> help to lower the percentage of atmospheric CO2. I will sleep on that 
> thought... be well-------Larry

Yes, indeed... a "No Regrets" situation!

Best wishes,

Kevin
>
>
>
> -----------------------------
> On May 6, 2008, at 1:19 AM, MFH wrote:
>
>> Larry – many thanks for all the excellent photos. Some of your 
>> results like the swiss chard are stunning.
>>  
>> Looks like a small concrete mixer in the background of one of the 
>> photos. If a couple of river stones weighing a few pounds/kilos were 
>> added to e load of char, this should pulverise it nicely in a few 
>> minutes.
>>  
>> Do you have any data that compares biomass weight of plants from a 
>> char plot vs from an un-charred plot?
>>  
>> Max H
>>  
>>  
>> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
>> *From:* Larry Williams [mailto:lwilliams at nas.com] 
>> *Sent:* Tuesday, 6 May 2008 5:50 PM
>> *To:* MFH
>> *Cc:* Terra Preta
>> *Subject:* Re: [Terrapreta] Char sizes
>>  
>> Max and list members-------With the learned folks on this list, I 
>> really need a comment or two on whether this set of pictures 
>> <http://www.flickr.com/photos/rchaard/336553821/in/set-72157594444994347/> represent 
>> an effective component to the Terra Preta nova concept that is being 
>> explored in the temperate Pacific Northwest.
>>  
>> Do note that the soil was/ is very high in organics and has been so 
>> for around 12 years. I have no way of knowing if Dr. Wardle tests 
>> apply to this situation or not. I do know that the Swiss Chard above 
>> these chunks of charcoal was 42" high. The largest that I have ever 
>> seen in this garden or anywhere else. This is low fired charcoal made 
>> in the presence of wood smoke and sizzling meat. Some on this list 
>> may remember the Weber charcoal claim.
>>  
>> The garden soil was as rich as I could provide. And yes, I blew the 
>> second year's result, I believe, with to much lime when I have never 
>> used lime before. Do look at the link provided. Your gardener-------Larry
>>  
>>  
>> -------------------------
>> On May 5, 2008, at 6:37 PM, MFH wrote:
>>
>>
>> I suspect that this has a bearing on the effectiveness of the added 
>> char, e.g. the available surface area for a 1mm char particle is 
>> likely to be relatively much greater than for a piece of char the 
>> size of a golf ball.
>>  
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
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