Habitat out loud

[SD51555]

What will you be using the charcoal for?

I watched a few youtube videos that used old 55 gallon drums for charcoal production. I thought it would be a good way to improve sandy soil, but I haven't found the time to do that yet.

May eventually make some for grilling. Right now, I'm perfecting the process and dialing in the inputs. It uses up a good amount of wood, so you have to be strategic with it. What I'm making now will get ground up and turned into biochar for my gardens.

I use a 10-gallon stainless pot. I don't want paints, gaskets, and resins getting into my charcoal. I don't know if that's a problem or not. But I'm not gonna be the one to find out.

 

[Ben.MN/WI]

May eventually make some for grilling. Right now, I'm perfecting the process and dialing in the inputs. It uses up a good amount of wood, so you have to be strategic with it. What I'm making now will get ground up and turned into biochar for my gardens.

I use a 10-gallon stainless pot. I don't want paints, gaskets, and resins getting into my charcoal. I don't know if that's a problem or not. But I'm not gonna be the one to find out.

I think you could probably burn out most of the contaminants with a small fire inside and outside the drum and discard that wood if there was a contamination concern. It would be interesting to see if some biochar tonnage could make a noticeable difference in plant growth in an area.

Are you going to soak the biochar in some type of compost or manure mix to charge them up before adding them to your gardenl? I use leftover coals and ash from my maple syrup operation in an attempt to build soil. I spread those ashes and coals around apple trees in some sandy locations and add leaves, grass clippings and dead varmints and deer carcasses over the course of the year. That combo turns into some really nice topsoil in a few years and tree growth explodes.

 

[Telemark]

I think you could probably burn out most of the contaminants with a small fire inside and outside the drum and discard that wood if there was a contamination concern. It would be interesting to see if some biochar tonnage could make a noticeable difference in plant growth in an area.

Are you going to soak the biochar in some type of compost or manure mix to charge them up before adding them to your gardenl? I use leftover coals and ash from my maple syrup operation in an attempt to build soil. I spread those ashes and coals around apple trees in some sandy locations and add leaves, grass clippings and dead varmints and deer carcasses over the course of the year. That combo turns into some really nice topsoil in a few years and tree growth explodes.

Try adding some clay to your sandy soil.

 

[SD51555]

I think you could probably burn out most of the contaminants with a small fire inside and outside the drum and discard that wood if there was a contamination concern. It would be interesting to see if some biochar tonnage could make a noticeable difference in plant growth in an area.

Are you going to soak the biochar in some type of compost or manure mix to charge them up before adding them to your gardenl? I use leftover coals and ash from my maple syrup operation in an attempt to build soil. I spread those ashes and coals around apple trees in some sandy locations and add leaves, grass clippings and dead varmints and deer carcasses over the course of the year. That combo turns into some really nice topsoil in a few years and tree growth explodes.

Yeah, that's the idea. I'm not sure how I'm going to do it just yet. I really want to source all my own compost from the land so I don't bring in pesticides or pharmaceuticals in bought composts. I've got rotten sawdust, rotten wood chips, grass clippings, and I'm planning to use some fish guts and possibly pond muck or pond weeds to mix it all together to charge it up over the summer.

 

[Skeeter]

Yeah, that's the idea. I'm not sure how I'm going to do it just yet. I really want to source all my own compost from the land so I don't bring in pesticides or pharmaceuticals in bought composts. I've got rotten sawdust, rotten wood chips, grass clippings, and I'm planning to use some fish guts and possibly pond muck or pond weeds to mix it all together to charge it up over the summer.

Urine makes a good input as well.

 

[SD51555]

I got out on Sunday and did one more round of ROD liberating.

Before

After

Another

Another

Update on a native clump I caged

Before

After

Another

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[SD51555]

A balsam fir I released five years ago

Another one I found Sunday while walking a different path. Before

After. Had to trim off a twin leader too.

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[Bowsnbucks]

Do deer browse your ROD there? They look pretty intact in the pics. Caged ROD cluster looks good. Nice woods work releasing the target stuff. Your pics remind me of places in Maine I've hunted.

 

[Jerry-B-WI]

A balsam fir I released five years ago

Another one I found Sunday while walking a different path. Before

After. Had to trim off a twin leader too.

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Aren't you afraid the tag alder will come back with a vengeance and smother your ROD? Or are you hoping the ROD will big big enough the tags won't bother it?

 

[SD51555]

Do deer browse your ROD there? They look pretty intact in the pics. Caged ROD cluster looks good. Nice woods work releasing the target stuff. Your pics remind me of places in Maine I've hunted.

They’re still hitting the convenient stuff, but not as hard as they used to. They whacked the ash stump sprouts pretty good this winter. I’m pretty much over the hump on ROD now, but wanna keep after it.


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[SD51555]

Aren't you afraid the tag alder will come back with a vengeance and smother your ROD? Or are you hoping the ROD will big big enough the tags won't bother it?

It does. I need to set that back about every other year. That’s quick and easy if you stay on it. Most places I let it go unless there is something of value right by it.


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