"If for no other reason it gives me an excuse to light up fires." This is the way.

Hi David, I have been experimenting with producing terra preta for almost a year. I realised that the original makers would not have had been able to easily transport water to extinguish the charcoal. It had to be a lazy process. The trick is to use compost material to put out the coals. The quenching charges the biochar and partially cooks the compost making it decompose very quickly. I have had excellent results using this method. Highly recommend.

@davidthegood

2 жыл бұрын

Thank you

@tonysaladino1062

2 жыл бұрын

That level of heat will kill the microbiome. Then, it will need to be re-introduced and allowed to re-establish.

@maverick9300

2 жыл бұрын

@@tonysaladino1062 Absolutely. This is often desirable because the hest will degrade persistent pesticides. There are no shortage of these in my country. Microbes are rapidly reintroduced via air, and accelerated by addition of a bit of ready compost. If this were a real issue, I would not have excellent soil within 15 days. I just spread the mixture in a garden bed and plant with anything that does well in a compost heap. The microbiome from a farmer's relatively sterile field is not going to help the compost in any way. Mold from rotting food also won't help make good soil. Better to kill it off.

@thehuntfortruth

2 жыл бұрын

I wondered if the clay shards were from pots that broke when trying to extinguish fires

@ziggybender9125

2 жыл бұрын

If you have banana growing you could use the stalk and leaves to cover the coals, they hold a ton of water and are full of potassium.

At the beginning of winter I cut down a pine that had beetles in it and burned it in a trench, then poured about 25 gallons of swamp water on it, along with some cow manure then threw some winter rye and it is the best looking spot in my yard.

@squirrlee6463

2 жыл бұрын

Bet that smelled amazing !

I just appreciate seeing someone dig a big hole with a shovel, and not a excavator

I just realized that David the Good is currently my favorite channel.

You are blessed to have your kids helping and learning farming skills. Warmed my heart when you asked which "shovel you want" and the youngen responded "which one you want " very thoughtful.

@tonysaladino1062

2 жыл бұрын

Children are a direct reflection of their parenting. Good children almost always reflect the intellect and character of their parents.

@jayo8621

2 жыл бұрын

I liked that part too especially when I saw that he ended up giving her what looked like the more scoop, newer shovel even though it may have been more efficient for him to use it, cause whether or not it is the better tool for them, kids are always stoked to get to use the cool new stuff. Then they become teens and suddenly everything has gotta be vintage, record players show up, your old leather jacket gets a second chance to shine till we get to the age where we want whatever we can't have or think we need to afford and the same old cycle repeats itself over and over with each generation....

@lucybrenton149

Жыл бұрын

@@jayo8621 I have to agree with your vintage assessment...my almost 18 year old daughter looks like she walked out of a 70s magazine ad....

@jayo8621

Жыл бұрын

woohoo , double digit likes on a comment, I feel special like I made into the big leagues, I bet if I breathe in real deep I could smell just a hint of the stench that follows fame...

@MarlzJinx

Жыл бұрын

​@@jayo8621 lol, love it😂

I got into Terra Preta bc of a Joe Rogan interview with Graham Hancock. And now I find you actually instructing people how to make it. Incredible. I’m a country boy and can’t wait to try this out.

Whatcom and Skagit counties are two farming areas here in Washington state. The newspaper, daily Olympian, had an article of logging companies will be burning the brush and slag for farms as biochar . Cool

@caroleshaw8389

2 жыл бұрын

Do you have to be a big farm? Also do you have to be in those counties? I am in Snohomish county.

@2010dragonclaw

2 жыл бұрын

@@inharmonywithearth9982 have u considered that not all forests are that wet? Maybe the drier ones need a different way to break down such as fire. True there are fungi etc but most need moisture

@carolgreenhill5684

2 жыл бұрын

@@inharmonywithearth9982 that's so terrible 😞

@2handsforu

Ай бұрын

@@carolgreenhill5684 "For Farms"

As a young father with a 3 year old, a 6 month old, and Lord willing, a handful more to come, I cannot wait to get the garden started and be able to just go out and work with the kids! We spent the last year building our house and there were plenty of fun memories, but now my daughter is old enough that she's actually interested and able to help with small tasks! I loved seeing your kids working alongside you!

@davidthegood

11 ай бұрын

You'll have a great time.

Your daughter at the end charging the biochar was magical. Silently gaining knowledge and nurturing the Earth unafraid to do manual labor and pitch in. It seemed like a scene from a movie.👍

@davidthegood

2 жыл бұрын

Thank you. I was using an old Russian lens and enjoyed that cinematic effect.

@michaelcontorno4305

8 ай бұрын

CD

It's 0530 in the morning as I'm watching this and drinking my coffee. At some point I swear I can start smelling that charcoal and the fire and the smoke and I think 'the mind is an amazing thing, smelling something I am just seeing' ...Walk outside and it turns out the neighbor had started a fire in his burn pit.

@davidthegood

2 жыл бұрын

That is hilarious.

@thatcrystallady_donna

Жыл бұрын

🤣🤣

This is my 5th year of making biochar in the wood stove using hotel pans with loose fitting lids. Also out in our swales, we prune the trees and have a steel "kiln" made from old roofing steel. The kiln, when set up is about a meter and a half across, so can do larger branches. Pro Tip: have a recipricating saw with a pruning blade on it, as well as your machete to take care of the "stringy" bits. Chop them down to what size will fit in your pit. I often just lay un-charged char on the top of the soil, and let the action of my footsteps grind it up. Also soil life will move into it on its own over time. I don't turn it in. The worms do it for me.

@trenomas1

Жыл бұрын

Thank you!

Perfect timing on this video for me! Arborist just unloaded 2 huge loads of brush and gave ME $100 for taking it. I've been saving an old half-cut fuel oil tank for years. The great charring of 2022 has begun! Added bonus: a good place for the boys to relieve themselves outdoors. It will be charged in no time! Thank you!

@georgecarlin2656

2 жыл бұрын

You lucky dawg!

@dogslobbergardens6606

2 жыл бұрын

@@georgecarlin2656 check with your local city/county park department. There's another channel where the farmer gets paid to allow the municipality to dump truckloads of fall leaves they collect on his land. He just lets it sit and compost and then spreads the leaf mold on his fields. It might be the same thing with brush in your area, worth looking into.

@georgecarlin2656

2 жыл бұрын

@@dogslobbergardens6606 Thanks, but I'm from Europe, in a country that doesn't really have such services. I once asked such a truck full of leaves to dump them in my yard (I told them I'll pay them) but the employees didn't care, told me to come in the evening and when I came it wasn't there anymore, didn't work out.

@peterson6824

Жыл бұрын

@@georgecarlin2656 don't give up so easily

@georgecarlin2656

Жыл бұрын

@@peterson6824 thanks, actually about 2 months ago my neighbor said I can take his corn stover for free as he didn't need it anymore and I made 50+ wheelbarrows of biochar, already grew some things in it, though most of it will kick in in the next year, a lot of it is still composting (to charge it). Got a few videos about biochar on my channel.

Fantastic video - The fact that I get video's like this that are practically how to guides documentaries from such knowledgeable sources like you is why the internet, for all of it's many flaws, is great. Thank you for putting in so much work to explain the what and why and address some of the criticisms with your jovial spirit. God Bless brother

@davidthegood

2 жыл бұрын

Thank you

I’ve been making char all winter in an old Coleman grill. I just plug the air holes in the bottom. Filled up five 5 gallon buckets worth so far, just from stuff around the yard. It’s now chilling in a vat of yellow gold.

@kristihicks3170

2 жыл бұрын

I did the very same thing.

@kdavis4910

2 жыл бұрын

I have naturally sourced hard and softwood pellets burning in the wood stove. I've been saving the ashes and tiny charcoal all winter. I also save our meat bones for bone meal later on. I should only need to buy some blood meal this year. Chicken manure composting and kitchen scrap composting.

@Mrbfgray

2 жыл бұрын

I gradually build a "teepee" shaped brush pile 10 to 12 ft high by 8 ft wide, all the long limbs arrayed around growing parameter upright angled in. It takes slightly longer to construct than a messy pile but takes much smaller footprint in my backyard which matters as I burn only 2 to 3X pre yr, as soon as one is burned the next is being built. Shaped like that it can be burned down to coals in 90 minutes with minimal smoke and some large chunks set aside for another couple hrs of burring, quench and harvest about 2 wheelbarrows of char. Fire shoots up the middle like a chimney high and narrow. Found this to be far more efficient in time, cleanliness and char production than my old way of burning a random pile, raking out and quenching char which takes several hrs, much more smoke, tending and less product.

@glorytogodhomestead3495

2 жыл бұрын

I would love to see how you do it!

@growshakephil

2 жыл бұрын

@@glorytogodhomestead3495 Maybe I’ll do a video

WE ARE IN! This experiment is perfect for this exact moment in time. Why you ask?! Because we just got a beautiful plot of land in the Ozarks of Missouri. This property has been a forest for many years. Several years ago it was clear cut. It's coming back beautifully. 90% of it is forest, and a small spot was cleared for us to park our bus, and start growing food ASAP. Along with get some chickens. Along the edges of the clearing are huge piles of trees. We are building with the logs that are still good. A green house, fences, yada yada. The branches that are too small for the fence would be perfect for biochar! We've been burning them. So glad you showed your friend who inspired you. We were like... Ooo no! We don't want to be those people that just waste it! Anyways... Thanks for taking the time to make this beautiful, creatively put together film. Really. You are your family are so inspiring. We jive with your vibe! We're pickin' up, what your puttin' down. LOL Gratitude to all of you. - Erin + Brian

Thank you for shouting out skillcult, I've been watching him for some time now and I must say that he is the most SUPREMELY underrated channel on youtube.

@davidthegood

2 жыл бұрын

Thank you. He is brilliant.

The vast hoard appreciates the work you guys put in.

Idea - rotate an outhouse around fruit trees, add biochar along the way, keep smell down and loads your char. Build it and they (roots) will come.

On our farm we make about 50 gallons a week of Biochar and that’s long enough for me to save enough urine if I dilute it 1:5 with water and soak the coal. It seems to work pretty well.

@davidthegood

2 жыл бұрын

That is perfect

@tonysaladino1062

2 жыл бұрын

I always vary the sources of N some from urine is good, but if you get some from turning in snow, or chicken manure, grass clippings or blood, worm castings, etc. the more and varied the sources of nitrogen are, the more broad range of microbes will find their niche.

@greatworkschiro

2 жыл бұрын

@@tonysaladino1062 nitrogen in snow? I knew about rain but didn’t make the connection to snow. This is exciting! I suppose letting barrels sit out and gather rainwater versus filling from a hose would be advantageous.

@greatworkschiro

2 жыл бұрын

@@tonysaladino1062 nitrogen in snow? I knew about rain but didn’t make the connection to snow. This is exciting!

@tonysaladino1062

2 жыл бұрын

@@greatworkschiro snow traps atmospheric N in the crystal structure. I have experienced great results when several sources of N are combined when making biochar.

It's 3.23.23 Thurs. I just put 1/2 a bucket of oak charcoal from the fireplace in my chicken coop. 😁🐓. 👍✝️🙏❤️

It is such a treat to listen to you and learn from you.

Thank you so much for making things so much easier for basic simple people like me. These “professionals “ are ALL. Talk & no action! I understand you! Thank you for that!👍🙏❤️

I would LOVE Rachel's pickled beets recipe!

Like your charging the char in the chicken coop ,simple and easy. And the chickens will have a clean gizzard !

One method I use for grinding biochar is to use a bucket or aluminum trash can and a sledgehammer - as it fills up just add more char on top and keep crushing

Hi David. I really love all the tips you give! Using many of them. I’ve been waiting for the courage. The thing that is missing from modern version of the black soil bio char is Menstrual Blood. Those clay shards were from the pots these women sat on to collect this precious commodity. Charcoal and partly burned bone bits from the fire kept the smell down. And someone noticed that plants grew very well where these pots were disposed of. So collection began. Now we sell plenty of stuff to women to avoid seeing and using this blood. It helps things grow. Too bad I don’t have this commodity any more.

@paulhand5015

Жыл бұрын

brilliant .... what did the pots look like ... fascinating ... really want to know more please

@rheac953

Жыл бұрын

@@paulhand5015 the article I read only had a drawing of these pots. Maybe 14 inches tall,narrowed at the neck and a wide lip, curled out . The illustration showed a woman sitting on it, so not much more detail than that. I suppose there could have been some that were just off the floor.

@paulhand5015

Жыл бұрын

@@rheac953 thank you so much for this information ... I will continue trying to find more information .. I have been working on biochar with my daughter for more than 10 years .. we intend to make pots for making terra preta if you find any more details I would be most interested ... happy to send any results from here we are in shropshire england

Just watched a KZread video produced by NHK and the Japanese have actually started producing biochar as a by product of forest management and energy production. The biochar is given to farmers to improve their soils for organic farming. Pretty impressive

Love the sense of humor you bring to your content. Enjoy seeing your family in the garden with you as well as your son's clay marbles. So wholesome 😍 Very inspiring to see how you do your biochar as well as your layers. I understand biochar a lot more now.

@davidthegood

Жыл бұрын

Thank you

It was a pleasure to burn. It was a special pleasure to see things eaten, to see things blackened and changed. With the brass nozzle in his fists, with this great python spitting its venomous kerosene upon the world, the blood pounded in his head, and his hands were the hands of some amazing conductor playing all the symphonies of blazing and burning to bring down the tatters and charcoal ruins of history. - Guy Montag, Fahrenheit 451

Man this whole video is wholesome my favorite part was “the difference between us and animals is microwaves”

I grew up in the fla panhandle near the bay. There was a spot on the water where there had been an indian village hundreds or thousands of years ago. We found arrowheads and pieces of pottery. One day we decided to dig a hole and see if we would come across any artifacts beneath the surface. We didn't find anything but oyster shells, but about three feet down, we found a campfire, and the charcoal was still intact and looked like they had just put out the fire.

I haven't read all the comments so what I do may be old news. I make charcoal through Vermont's winter. Most of the "waste" is just bark and some leftovers from from my firewood processing, about 10-15 50 lbs feed bags full. Through the winter when i get about a 5 gallon bucket full put mix it in with my chicken litter. It helps keep that ammonia smell down and it is good for the chickens too. Come spring I clean the coop out into the compost pile and mix it up with last falls leaves and the first cuttings of grass clippings making it a hot compost. When I can get into the gardens I pull the compost mix it in the beds and and later plant.

We've had great success at patching broken tubs by using old scrap inner tube material sandwiched between small lengths of plate metal, secured with quarter x 20 bolts and washers. When you tighten the bolts, the inner tube gets compressed and seals out water. The steel plates reinforce the tub, so that water weight doesn't put stress on the damaged area, causing water fractures.

@peterson6824

Жыл бұрын

that sounds like it would come in handy...wish there was a video so I could visualize it ;)

I'm not here to be entertained but rather to learn how to grow food. Thanks a lot for the information you are providing in these videos. Honestly, thank you!

@strilence4life970

2 жыл бұрын

after watching more of your videos and seeing a live stream with your music I changed my mind. I'm here to be entertained and to learn. your songs are hilarious

The only thing I would say in regards to the cone pit method, or Skillcult video on Biochar... it's really important that this is burnt really hot in the hot gas layer. Really important that you burn off all the PAH's and VOCs because they are carcinogenic. I know at 12:40 you said you don't care, but you really should care a little, at least if you are growing non-tree or bush veggies in them that you will eat. You don't want to bury a lot of PAHs and VOCs then consume them - not unless you want cancer. So it's really important that the hot gas layer gets HOT. The best way to get it really hot is to have tons of twiggy wood in there. Just be really careful when you start putting larger trees/logs in there (anything larger than about 2 inches).

Orlando Dump allows for One Yard of "Compost" a day! It's pretty full of small sticks (wood chips) they all floated to the top when spread pretty thin over the yard, raked it off and burned it, spread it back over the yard!

that south Alabama sandy soil is craving minerals. the bio char is full of the minor minerals that you get in commercial products, but this way you're making it yourself. If you want to grow vegetables for the table you'd better add this practice to your routine. thank you David

Dude! You’re so funny! Down to 21 degrees? Throw a cold frame over them. It’s what we have to do in October here in the frigid regions.😂 love your videos!

Bless this family...you are teaching them hands on skills that will carry them through life lessons spent together with precious one on one times to be treasured and savored always...❤️😘🙏🏻how many children are envious of being such an important piece of this beautiful family...!

Yay, another episode of Digging with David!

"Ain't Nobody got time for that!" You are so right...

Gotta love these southern winters. 20 degrees in the morning and 70 in the afternoon. High of 27 on Tuesday and low of 68 on Wednesday. Last frost? Could be February. Could be April. Who knows? My garden is still pretty small, so I just buy natural hardwood charcoal and smash it up. Soak it in water and fish emulsion. Made for an enormous tomato forest last year.

I like the disco chickens! Glad we got to meet all of you on Friday in Blountstown .. glad we were able to get some Seminole pumpkin seeds ... take care, keep on experimenting and sharing with us all ...

you know David TG I just want to put a roast or bird with some root vegetables, well wrapped in an area of this pit & leave it there for hours to slow cook & after the work of making this biochar I can serve a delicious meal to refuel. Mr. & Mrs. Good, I hope you join with us! very nice video I hope gets the attention it deserves, thanks again.

I watch for the jokes/humor just as much as for the knowledge. Thank you!!

The Chicken Disco was funny.

A huge H U G E thank you for sharing all this. Keep creating, keep healthy and safe.

I like supporting David The Good's experiment station.

You make it fun. Just burn a smart pit fire in your garden area. You did the smart fire, a Top Lit Up Draft fire has the least smoke and best production of charcoal if you cover, cook, and squelch with water. Love your show.

It was therapeutic watching this!

Shift and use the bigger pieces for the BBQ! Love that smokiness. ❤️❤️❤️

i dont recall if i mentioned before, but... on "the farm vids" (Tudor monastery farm, Victorian farm etc) they make charcoal as the charcoal makers did at the time. its making a small tower of wood and then burying it in soil to cut off the air. you may enjoy watching how they do it

@davidthegood

9 ай бұрын

I saw a similar method in Grenada! It is time-consuming but makes high quality charcoal.

Best bio-char video I've seen yet. Great Job and Thank You

@davidthegood

7 ай бұрын

Thank you

ahem...one of the vast horde, here--just wanted to thank you for all the hard work, research (books written and recommended), all your articles in m.e. news I used to read voraciously, and quite frankly being able to connect with my gardening and close family on some level through you! You make gardening brilliant and fun.

@davidthegood

2 жыл бұрын

Thank you.

I love the cheerful pyromania and fetted mayonnaise molecules in this episode, jokes aside I have been eagerly awaiting a biochar followup video and was glad to see you back on it. I'm glad to see it demonstrated simply like this, I agree burning inside of something and burning something else to burn that to char is a lot ...... this is simple. We may be pyros but we are not pyrolysis engineers, we just want some dank brix readings on our food!

@tonysaladino1062

2 жыл бұрын

It is important to make the particles small though. Larger than 2mm, the chunks resemble gravel, not soil.

@carmenortiz5294

2 жыл бұрын

@@tonysaladino1062 They are not supposed to look like soil. They continue evolving under ground.

@tonysaladino1062

2 жыл бұрын

@@carmenortiz5294 few natural processes crush or digest char chunks. I have done hundreds of batches and the particle sizes under 2mm always perform better. If chunks are too large, two problems are created, if water ever does get to the center, it is too pure for organisms to exploit for habitat and because they can dry out, that makes them rise in the soil column, when wet conditions return, breaking any associations they may have formed with the mirobiotic community. When particles are small enough to emulate soil particles, they work best, unless you are using char for pathways, larger chunks mean less performance.

@stevenpeeters6134

2 жыл бұрын

@@tonysaladino1062 Thanks for the info✓

A legal arsonist who improves garden soil?!?! What an amazing combo!!!!

Thank you for all the good info on making Biochar.

I’m gonna say it again I love you I’m making comments as I watch ,I love the disco!!!

I suggest you watch the Future Cannibis Project channel and FCP2 on KZread, especially the living soil conversation series of shows. It doesn't matter what you grow, they teach about soil microbes and biology that applies to growing anything. Also listen to Clackamas Coot and learn from his soil mixes. I grew my best tomatoes and peppers last year after learning to feed soil microbes instead of feeding plants, and those weed farmers taught me. Adding biochar to good soil with homemade worm and soldier fly castings and organic compost from food scraps will definitely improve your soil. A good indication of soil health is the presence of earthworms. If worms don't like soil neither will plants. If you put the right ingredients in the soil it will start attracting worms and retaining nutrients.

We used the same horse trough this year to brood our Plymouth rock chicks 😊 It was the perfect size for my young sons to peer in and talk to them too.

The energy potential and then afterwards the soil fertility potential of wood is incredible.

I love it! I'm also zone 8 and I chose it specifically for the once a year cold that kills bugs but still warm enough to have an amazing growing season

@jambohoofgood3417

2 жыл бұрын

And likely enough rain to live unlike most of the western US, that's beholden to pumping ground water or massive diversion infrastructure.

@heatherk8931

2 жыл бұрын

@@jambohoofgood3417 proof in my dry yard. Keeping this in mind for future

@jambohoofgood3417

2 жыл бұрын

@@heatherk8931 There's great videos about rainfall catching and native plants in Phoenix that turns dry places back green. Not standard American yard green but alive with plants. The square footage of your roof effectively doubles the amount of rainfall for about 1/2 the radius of your house. If you aren't "Pushing the Zone" via David The Good's book ideas that gives you 1000-3000 sq ft around the house where you possibly could have appropriate rainfall to grow things even if the piped water is gone. (doubling your annual rainfall by pushing all the rain off the area of your roof) Assuming no gutters and no catch tanks; with those you can really get to work. Maybe with less vigor of weeds to deal with too.

Yes David I love it chicken Disco I love it I'm learning a lot on your show I appreciate it thank you very much God bless you and God bless you beautiful family

I'm sure Kevin Kostner will love you for still quoting him!

I wish I had seen this video 2 months ago when I had a huge pile of brush and logs to burn to get them out of the way. They had been laying on the ground for over 10 years so was pretty useless for firewood. I took 3 wheel barrels of charchol out of the pit when I was done, but had no idea of what to do with it, so I took 2 barrels and put it around my rose bush as an experiment to choking out the weeds, but of course it wasn't thick enough so they are starting to grow back. Even if I put cardboard down first, would have made it more successful, but I had just brought all my cardboard to the dump where it cost me 5 bucks to dump it in the recycle bin. The rest I threw on the manure pile from my horses. Ii am hoping to start an 18 day compost pile with it come spring. Winters here are way different than yours. An average winter would leave a min. of 4 feet of snow on the ground in the fields. I have another brush pile to burn I was going to do over the winter, but I think I will wait till spring and do what you did here.. Only difference is, I don't have one of those things that was not in your background, I only have the shovel you used, lol.

I love hearing all the references to other channels that I have watched like Skillcult and OAG. I heard you mention Dirtpatchheaven recently too. It’s like a crossover episode! All that we need next is a Demolition Ranch reference and I’ll die happy.

@philsexton70

2 жыл бұрын

David the Good + Demo Ranch = Visit from Barney Fife

@jenbear8652

2 жыл бұрын

My adult son loves watching demolition ranch! To combine David the Good with that could be pretty fun

@kabbak

2 жыл бұрын

@@philsexton70 Barney, lol, pow, pow ,pow👍🏻

@mattpeacock5208

2 жыл бұрын

Today on Demolition Ranch, we're gonna find out how many organically grown turnips it takes to stop a .50BMG round!

14:25 "We're over here, just to your right!" lol

I am definitely going to try this. We are about 40/45 miles from the coast in SC and like your dirt (can’t call it soil) it is sand and grit. The one good thing about it when Florence we did have much standing water. A good rain storm and 5 minutes later you don’t even know it rained. But it sure is tough to garden unless you want the expense of raised beds. Thank you for sharing this method with us. I am trying to catch up on your videos and am learning something new with each on them. I have 3 of your books I am referencing also grow or die, compost everything and grocery row gardening that is what I am going to use the biochar in. Thanks again and God bless you and your family.

Thank you for keeping this stranger entertained 😄 No, truly, I learned a lot. Thank you 😊

YOUR CHICKEN DISCO IS LIT YO

Am crushing my organic comfrey I dried the last two weeks. Going to make a Comfrey Salve for 4 people. ❤️ ya David the Good! I made a little bit of charcoal for my garden. Need a ton more. With winter coming....I'll have a little bit more. 👍✝️🙏🤪

God bless you and your family ❤️

Too much to comment on David, but yeah, watching this I was definitely having camera envy, so that was hilarious. That opening shot makes me queasy with the spriral bokeh, but so many good shots in there! You're killing it lately. Great flow and story building too. Keep beating the dead horse of context and maybe people will get it eventually ;)

@davidthegood

2 жыл бұрын

Thank you, bro.

Waiting for the morning to do another burn, it rained today so it’s safer for me. I built a kontiki style pit lined with bricks and it's all I would ever want, works fan fing tastic! Making biochar is so addicting and I will have lots and lots and have cleaned up the disposed of brush piles out back over the years well. If you save up your urine, use it as the first quench and you'll be inoculating before it's even cold.

You build it with the microbes you’re so close David take to the next level please you deserve to give the earth(soil) the garden of Eden and it will keep growing

This Bio-char method and remedy for poor soil is absolutely intriguing!!

Like many urban dwellers, I do not have the luxury of creating my own biochar on my own property. I have found a workaround. It is hardwood charcoal, biochar in a bag. Used for bar b que grilling, my local grocer carries it as does places like trader joes. I hope this helps someone trying to improve soil and grow a garden. David the good, love your channel. Happy horticulturing.... 😀

@davidthegood

Жыл бұрын

Yes - that works! In the city I used a bronze firepit. You can keep a few hotdogs nearby in case the FD shows up. :)

Next you need a mid size excavator and about a year later a sawmill. Between the 3 machines you are covered. I now even use the excavator to load the loader bucket to the max. The sawmill saves a fortune on lumber. It all works together for a happy homestead.👍😎👌

@davidthegood

2 жыл бұрын

That would be amazing.

"If for no other reason, it gives me an excuse to light huge fires." This is a man comfortable with his inner -child- pyro preteen.

Hay David and family! This was a very enjoyable and inspiring episode for me. I loved so many things about it but especially how it shows you guys enjoying your lives while working and still playing around and having fun. Really well done Video too! One thing I noticed though.. You're creating all this beautiful biomass and nutrients to make your soil healthy and thriving, but you also dump a bunch of chemicals into the char by using that chemical fertilizer. That basically kills everything that soil needs which is biological activity. To me it seems more likely that you kill your soil with this stuff. By the time the plants soak out all the fake nutrients from the charcoal, there's no activity in the soil left for it to regenerate. I think that soaking it in a JADAM liquid fertilizer would be a trillion times better choice for everyone. I still loved the rest of it all!

This is my first year after having read one of Steve Solomons books that gives the organic fertilizer mix. I can’t wait to see how it goes.

Great video! Entertaining & informative. I love your humor, too! I bet your wife is always grinning & laughing at your jokes ;) Keep em coming & that means the videos, too

David speaking... "I want whole limbs, because if for no other reason, it gives me an excuse to light huge fires" 😆

Finally someone on the tube yoobs that understands the problems with alabama dirt!! I'll definitely be spending this winter making char. Thank you!!

chicken disco very cool. A little Saturday Night Fever would be a nice touch.

The other thing about biochar is that it improves the aeration of the soil being microporous it allows better air penetration. The porosity in the charcoal granules also forms a good habitat for microbes and fungi. The biochar you made also will contain abundant natural minerals as these are more abundant in the leaves and twigs you burnt, compared to trunk wood, and therefore in the ash that is also present in your product.

@Goethite_A

2 жыл бұрын

Sorry, I commented before watching to the end, or I would have realised you had discussed the value of porosity in providing habitat for microbes.

Another piece that fits in the puzzle. Nature does fires and renewals...

So many Great Efforts! Of course, households may have to cut corners to get the job done. In ancient times they built a second story and had fires going on underneath. And so they were making use of the heat from the fire. I can imagine a steel platform built over your brush fire and have a big steel tank over the brush fire. Cook water, plastics, or whatever. Another thought is how to immediately seal the air out of brush fire with a sheet of steel. Burning brush is certainly not as bad as burning all kinds of plastics, rubber, and garbage. Thank you

Chicken disco party for the win. I soaked my biochar in liquid gold, everyone thinks I'm mad but my condos are thriving for free yo!

That kind of "soil" is what we have here in Florida, only worse. Just sand. But I saw that trees didn't seem to have a problem growing, or even bushes. So that is what I started doing. Planting fruit trees. Some are doing great, others not so much. Starfruit took off with a little help of woodchips, tangerines did OK, lemon trees did fine, figs are struggling, mango does great but doesn't produce. Papaya does great with a little attendance, and mulberry, OMG. Grows like a weed and will bury you in berries. My neighbor's car may be the biggest beneficiary of them due to the birds, but they can't track them back to me, no sir. Can't prove it! : ) Tried peach trees bred for Florida, but it's been a struggle. Moringa does great, as do some flowering trees and shrubs. This spring I will try some new ones. I've done container gardening and the water bill is terrible. Some areas just aren't made for small food plants. I tried wild edibles, and dandelion broadcast in bulk provided a summer of great greens. Sweet potatoes struggled, and the greens I grew them for were very sad, but I've seen areas where they just took off.

Ohhhh, small cabbages are great when roasted. The enzymes within convert the starches to sugar as the temperature rises in the roasting pan (I put them on top so they don't get saturated, with ham and Kielbasa and carrots) they turn out dark (I quarter them) on the cut sides, and so sweet. Many thanks for the video (and the others)

I like your practical sensibilities and they validate my own. For me, the simple trench method is fine and thanks to you I'm no longer intimidated by the elaborate pyrolysis (sp?) methods that some insist on. And for inoculation? ...there's plenty of organic stuff and pee that should be fine.

Awesome video! Random tip: T: 41:00 When using silicone, get dishwashing liquid with water in a spray bottle and spray over the silicone once you're ready to spread it. This will stop it sticking to your finger and give you a really clean finish.

your videos and way of thinking only confirm my own theories that I will implement in the near future.

@davidthegood

Жыл бұрын

Thank you, Patrick. May you do excellently.

Just imagine you had an old metal bathtub near full of liquid manure/ chicken manure tea/ urine etc. and you quenched it by shovelling the ultra dry char into it. This would / will instantly bond the nutrients with / onto the cell walls. In our KON-TIKI-TAS Deep Cone Kilns we can flood quench from a tank by gravity via a 50mm/ 2" flexible hose.

Your comment about microwaves and dinosaurs had me cracking up 😂

You should try worm castings. Fresh ones. They will bring in microbes and fungi that might be absent. They also have retention properties. They might hold the minerals longer.

The biochar is easier for soil fungi to consume than straight wood. Innoculate with a variety of fungi. Mushroom compost is an excellent amendment to the biochar.

Love how you get your children involved

@davidthegood

2 жыл бұрын

They are my favorite thing to grow.