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<div class="moz-cite-prefix">David,<br>
<br>
<br>
I really hate to ask this but how does one make rock dust? Kind of
sounds like clay. Could I dig clay out of a pond and spray it on
my compost pile?<br>
<br>
What's your thought on Hugelkultur?<br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
Thanks,<br>
Jeff<br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
On 12/07/2013 11:15 PM, David Murphy wrote:<br>
</div>
<blockquote cite="mid:52A3F251.2080701@dodo.com.au" type="cite">Joe,
you might find it of interest to look up John D. Hamaker on the
net. He was an American Mechanical Engineer who turned his mind
(and subsequently devoted his life) to improving soil by the
addition of rock dust. He saw global warming as a precursor to
the next ice age. He saw an ice age as essential refurbishment of
the earth's resources. His argument has a lot of good solid
logioc to it and it's worth adding to your store of knowledge on
the general topic. If he's proven right, then we're in a lot
of trouble ! If you want to study it further I have a DVD I
made from a tape he produced I could let you have.<br>
<br>
Rock dust is a storehouse of minerals, all of which are essential
to growth. First to plants and then to the animals which eat
them - including us humans. Rock dust is insoluble to water but
not to enzymes which are produced by soil benevolent bacteria -
bacteria which are present in soil with good OM and in
compost. Many readers of this string will be aware of it's
benefits when used as fertiliser.<br>
<br>
Seeking to remedy climate change purported to be caused by
anthropomorphic global warming is an extraordinarily complex
question. And seeking to make a contribution by sequestering
carbon as charcoal is in itself another complex range of issues.
The charcoal must be first ligneos carbon - wood - and it is
probably almost as good to lock up some of that carbon in timber
for building houses or making furniture.<br>
<br>
I'd promote the first step by making the sequestration of the
carbon as part of a broader program of building building soil
organic matter OM. This includes animate carbon as well as
vegetative. At least get it up to 5% to plough depth, say 10
inches (250mm) as a minimum, aiming at 20%. That in itself locks
away a lot of carbon, but of a different nature, in that it's
available to contribute to plant growth, growth without the need
for chemical or artificial fertilisers. <br>
<br>
Every 1% increase in soil OM (world wide) would be a lockup of
around 30 billion tonnes of carbon in a world which generates now
(probably) 20 million tonnes annually. Just for the record, the
biggest emitter of CO2, bigger than every other agency combined -
every factory, airplane, car truck tractor etc and so on - is the
soil of the earth as it respires. So, the more land we put down
under crop to feed the increasing billions, the more CO2 we
produce and put into the atmosphere. <br>
<br>
So, it's a race against a proven runner - so called mother Nature
- and she's a proven stayer.<br>
<br>
On the other hand, some of the wise owls are now saying it's not
CO2 at all, but PCB's causing the damage. Maybe they're right -
who knows <u>for sure ?</u> Nobody I'm aware of despite what
they say. It's all conjecture, some of it soundly based, but
still conjecture relying on historical info compiled over a
geological blink.<br>
<br>
Using charcoal and zeolite together is a bit like wearing belt
& braces with self-supporting trousers. It certainly works
!<br>
<br>
The easy and less costly way is to just get the OM into the soil
and plant stuff to grow and suck up all the CO2 and N.<br>
<br>
But whatever you do, don't stop the good work.<br>
<br>
David Murphy.</blockquote>
<br>
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