Farmers save money with wood ash

Over 40 people attended a Jan. 23 information meeting.

Brooklyn Power provides the wood ash for free to farmers and helps pay a trucking subsidy, said LP Consulting Nutrient Management Specialist, Lise LeBlanc.

“The wood ash is just wood waste from mills, there’s no garbage or junk in it,” she stated.

Brooklyn Power Corporation produces roughly 180 tonnes of wood ash a week, which moves onto farmland.

LeBlanc estimated a 30-tonne load of wood ash to equal $2,000 worth of lime and fertilizer and will cover about 10 acres of land.

LeBlanc noted about 80 per cent of fields in Lunenburg, Queens, Shelburne and Yarmouth Counties are too acidic because of acid rain.

“It’s very soluble,” she stated. “Wood ash takes three or four weeks to increase soil PH levels,” while lime and fertilizers take longer.

Wood ash is an excellent program for three reasons, she declared.

It is great for the agricultural community because lime and fertilizers have gone up in price.

If the wood ash is not used it is sent to the landfill, she explained.

Therefore this program helps reduce Brooklyn Power’s cost in landfill fees.

In addition, the general public benefits because it helps increase soil PH levels to buffer out the acid rain problem, she said.

“We’re currently working on a winter storage research program to see how well we can store it over the winter,” said LeBlanc.

Word spread about how well the wood ash works and now LeBlanc has all the wood ash booked for 2008 except for the last few weeks in November.

“That’s how well it’s working on the land,” she added.

Farmers interested in the Agricultural Wood Ash Program can contact LeBlanc at 902-792-2636.

A soil test is required before starting the program.