How to Enrich Soils with Charcoal

Using charcoal to enrich the soil around your home and in your garden helps the soil retain valuable nutrients that improve the quality of the plants you grow. Charcoal adds carbon to the soil, helps it retain moisture, and can even ward off some pests that could potentially damage your plants. There are a number of charcoal products on the market you can use in your garden, like BioChar, or you can even create your own charcoal at the end of the growing season.

Things You'll Need

• Heat-activated charcoal (crushed)
• Fertilizer
• Garden tiller

Instructions

1. Measure the size of your garden to determine how much heat-activated charcoal you will need to purchase from your lawn and garden center. Figure approximately 1 lb. of charcoal per every 2 square feet of garden area.

2. Apply charcoal over the soil in the early spring, before you plant, to give the soil time to absorb the benefits of the charcoal.

3. Work the charcoal into the soil with a garden tiller to a depth of about 2 inches.

4. Apply fertilizer to the soil, adding approximately 1 lb. of fertilizer per each square foot of garden. The fertilizer is a necessary component to keep the charcoal from stalling growth.

Tips & Warnings

• You can also use charcoal as mulch and in compost bins to help enrich your compost before you add it to the soil.

• Create your own soil charcoal by saving the coals from burnt hardwood. You can build a special kiln or grill to get dual use out of the wood, cooking over it and then using the remaining charcoal in your soil. If making your own charcoal, it will need to be crushed and liquid treated before use. Liquid treating means soaking the charcoal in water before crushing. This makes it easier to crush the charcoal for distribution.

References

• Survival Scoop: Charcoal in the Garden
• Africa Climate: Biochar
• Gardening with Biochar