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Bentonite
Steve 309
Posts: 2,753
My friend has a box of this whitish powder which claims it's powdered volcanic rock. It's supposed to be used to fix nutrients near the plants, when you add fertiliser on top of it.
I've never heard of this. Does anyone know what it is, what it does and how it works?
(apologies if this turns up twice - it seemed to be in the talkback section, which it isn't 
)
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Hmmm... no - if it had we'd be off to Costa Rica or somewhere coz it's a 2kg box!
I have seen powdered volcanic rock for sale, supposed to add minerals to the soil, B&Q sell it under the Verve brand, some people swear by it.
Just found this http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=MtBkWDdpJiU
It's a type of clay, apparently, derived from volcanich ash. Loads of it quarried in USA - so it clearly has an environmental impact.
It seems that you mix it into the top foot of your sandy soil - looks like about a handful per square foot - to increase its water- and nutrient-holding capacity.
They seem keen on it in Oz - Perth has sandy soil like I do.
Anyone used it?
You can use it as a pond liner.
It's also used for clearing wine.
Steve, I have Sandy soil in part of the garden. Perth is a whole new game. They don't call the western Australians sandgropers for no reason. The only grass that will grow is called buffalo grass. I broke a spade trying to dig it up at my friends new house.
The link above is to a TV clip from Perth.
Tried it in my friend's garden (in northern Belgium) yesterday and it seemed to do the trick. Time will tell if it holds the nutrients & water in, as claimed. She has very sandy soil, as do I in Liverpool.
Yes. I suspect any finely divided clay would behave in the same way.
Whence stems the controversy? The quarries needed for extraction?
...so they're selling off the clay that's been used to absorb (actually, probably aDsorb) toxic heavy metals for us to put on our gardens? Where we grow food?
Shurley shome mishtake? Either that or something needs to be done about it! Do the Environment Agency know? Trading Standards? And if the FSA know about it, why is it still available?!
...and to EAT?