Diatomaceous Earth in apple tree holes

[SD51555]

I planted an apple tree in the yard last year. I put a bunch of diatomaceous earth in the hole. I can't remember my reasoning, but it was a good one. I poured a bunch in the hole. That tree got the VIP treatment of mat, mulch around the outer part of the mat, rock around the inner portion, window screen around the trunk, cage around the whole tree. It was a hellacious drought last year, but I kept it watered every weekend through the drought. That tree never looked great, but it never died. I wonder if I didn't cause it some trouble by filling the hole with a good amount of DE.

 

[bigboreblr]

Anything other than DE you put in? I'd think that tree needed more than once a week water. IT needs about 15 gallons a week. A bucket with a small hole it in can be one of the best ways to slowly water it.

 

[Telemark]

That doesn't sound right. I think you are supposed to put DE on your tree to kill invertebrates. I've never heard of people adding it to the soil. If you added it to the soil, and your results are poor, then perhaps the same invertebrate-killing effect it had above ground translates to below ground? I find that a bit far-fetched, though. I would tend to believe the poor results are not related to the DE, unless it increased drainage in the soil, which partially negated your watering.

 

[bigboreblr]

Any other trees you planted there you can compare too? You have any mole gopher or vole issues in your ground.

I mix in some #1 crushed stone in the soil to deter animals from digging in the area. About a foot away and 2 inches down or so.

I could see benfit sprinkling on the sruface of the soil. I am using tanglefoot on my trees at home this year. You might ant to check that out. Keep ants and caterpillars at bay. When I read about the DE thread, I thought at first that stuff was banned. Not only bad to breathe, but it's crushed coral. Upsetting to the palm tree huggers.

 

[Native Hunter]

I’m no expert on DE but my understanding is that water retention is one of its properties. I wonder if you could get too much of a good thing if you overdid it.

 

[Telemark]

but it's crushed coral.

Diatoms are a very different organism to coral. Diatoms have a silica-based exoskeleton and are single celled, and generally free floating. Corals are usually fixed, with a calcium based exoskeleton.

 

[SD51555]

Any other trees you planted there you can compare too? You have any mole gopher or vole issues in your ground.

I mix in some #1 crushed stone in the soil to deter animals from digging in the area. About a foot away and 2 inches down or so.

I could see benfit sprinkling on the sruface of the soil. I am using tanglefoot on my trees at home this year. You might ant to check that out. Keep ants and caterpillars at bay. When I read about the DE thread, I thought at first that stuff was banned. Not only bad to breathe, but it's crushed coral. Upsetting to the palm tree huggers.

No rodent problems that I’m aware of. Very few small critter problems by me because of the heavy predator load. There’s so many wolves and coyotes and fox, that you never see skunk, coon, possum, very few squirrels, no chipmunk or gopher. Even rabbits are slim, but I’m hoping to see snowshoes make a comeback in my working areas.

I remember now why we dumped it all in the hole. My dad saw me putting a few handfuls in there and told me to just use it. It’s not inches thick between the root ball and side of the hole, but there’s probably an ice cream bucket in the hole.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[bigboreblr]

Diatoms are a very different organism to coral. Diatoms have a silica-based exoskeleton and are single celled, and generally free floating. Corals are usually fixed, with a calcium based exoskeleton.

My bad. Read that on a pool filter website.