Uses of Woodstove Ash

Pest Repellent

• Sprinkle cooled ashes around the border of your garden to discourage pests like snails and slugs from entering. Build small ash walls between vegetables and around plants to repel pests already in the garden. The salt content in the ash is drying for them and it also contains copper, which makes them avoid it. Spreading ashes on your garden path will also help to build it up.

De-Icer

• During winter months, sprinkle woodstove ashes along walkways and in driveways as a de-icing agent. This is a more environmentally friendly option than chemical de-icers because it is all natural as long as you burn only clean wood in your stove. The ashes provide traction when you walk on the ice and the natural salts help to melt the ice. Ashes will cling to your footwear however, so remove boots and shoes before walking across floors to avoid tracking ashes through the house.

Soap Making

• Wood ashes have been used for centuries to make soap by extracting potassium hydroxide, a liquid form of lye, from the ashes. To extract the lye, ashes are placed on top of a straw base, which acts as a filter ensuring that no bits of ash get into the solution. Then water is poured over the ashes and strained into another container to create a liquid solution. This process is repeated to concentrate the solution until it is strong enough to make homemade soap.

Compost

• Add some ash over each layer of your compost pile as you build it up to create a nutrient-rich mixture for your garden and lawn. The pH in the ashes adds nutrients such as potash, potassium and manganese and can be used as a substitute for lime in low pH soils. Use only clean wood ash in compost heaps. Painted or treated wood ash from coal fires should not go into the compost.

Fertilizer

• Wood ashes also contain boron, iron, phosphate and zinc which are beneficial to the soil adding to the alkalinity if the soil pH is below 7.0. The ideal time to add ashes to your garden is during the winter, so the ash is worked into the soil before planting season and cannot burn sensitive new growth. Avoid adding ashes directly over germinating seeds or new plant roots as the salts in the ashes may burn them. If you add them during the growing season, rinse the plants afterward.

Cleaning

• If you have dingy glassware or tarnished silverware and brass, dip a damp cloth into a bit of ash to polish it. Rinse thoroughly when you're through. Ashes can also be used with a scouring pad to make scrubbing tough grime from pots and pans easier. They also work as a grease cutter. This is particularly useful when you're camping and hot water and soap aren't available. Use the ashes on a damp rag to break up the grease and then rinse with clean water.