Lighter Fluid in Organic Garden

I was just thinking the same thing.

It's been raining here, so even if the wood weren't green, it would have been wet.

Some of the gardeners do sell their extras at the farmer's market.

Guess I better plan on removing that row.

My BF said he would help and would pay for all the materials I used.

Is there any hope? Any way around it?

Would vinegar help?

awwww..... poor you.

I don't know anything about this - wish I could help!

dupre
I wish I had something positive to tell you. I know farmerman would know what you should do, but since he's not here at the moment, I suggest you find out what he used to burn the wood before you do anything. I'm sure your sweetheart could ask in the sweetheartest of ways.

I wish there was more I could tell you.

I look forward to farmerman's thoughts.

And I thank you all for being here for me.

I searched the whole google-wide world, and apparantly no one else has admitted to making this same error!

I talked to a friend who used to do that gasoline-on-weeds trick, and he said his weeds would return in about 2 to 3 months, so my guess is it doesn't kill the soil entirely.

And the residue remaining on a cubic foot of ash can't be that much, after all.

Our area probably gets as much oil and gas from the heavy equipment that turns the compost piles and the runoff from the two busy streets surrounding the gardens, and the cars that are brought right onto the property and parked.

My beds are deeply dug, and then the bottom 6 inches of soil is ruffed up and run through with a fork, so my guess is that any runoff from that row will go straight down.

And I can leave that row fallow for a while and store my compost pile and other supplies there for a season with no real loss.

So, I'm hoping for the best, but I've not made a firm decision as to what to do yet.

sounds like a good plan!

littlek, Montana, fishin', thank you very much for all your help last night.

I feel much better now.

Sure. Of course you do. Unless you are REALLY hungry!

Try setting it on fire. Tell the other gardeners it's a controlled burn.

If you can detect te lighter fluid by smell, it may be a problem for your garden this year. All hydrocarbons can be broken down by microbial action so, In ordr to speed things up youve already added a goodly amount of manure (correct?) Thats a good start. Degredation will occur best with lots of air. Youll be "composting" the lighter fluid out of existence. Im assuming that fishin meant hexane. Im not sure what hexamine is, but , by its fomulation (6 aminos) its explosive , so lets say that its a mix of benzene , hexane , and toluene, or some other crap like that. Itll take a while to break down to cyclohexane and then it just breaks down further with water. "Bugs" can speed this up, and bugs live in manures and you can add more N compounds if needed. (dont be too quick to pour stuff on until you see how things work)
In order to test out your "toxic cleanup" put down some annual rye seed and see if itgrows well before you start gardening. If it doesnt work , let the ground lie fallow till fall.

DONT pour acids (like vinegar) unless your growing blueberries or other acid loving plants. Sounds like, with the ash, youve got enough K for the year.
Now, I wouldnt be a good farmer unless i told you to TEST YOUR SOIL. You should never just "pile on" any kind of stuff (except good compost) until you know your actual needs and deficiencies.

The difference between organic and chemical farming is that organic style makes one a steward of the soil and chemical farming you just fertilize the plants and turn your soil into a nutrient desert.

Im no religious nut cause I do both. I plant row crops bychemical fertilizing and my grasses and pastures are only treated with spent mushroom compost (even that is not truly organic)

I wouldnt worry, just keep the soil mix stirred up so that air can get into the mix and the lighter fluid will volatilize and break down.
Good Luck.
Im assuming that your in a southern clime.

Hi, farmerman.

Been waitin' for ya!

Thanks so much for your specific answer and information.

And, yep, you guessed right. Central Texas climate.

I will keep turning it over to airate the ash.

I talked to a chemistry major who said that microbial life and worms are really pretty tough, and the amount I'm talking about left on the ash after the burn is very little.

Also found out it was about one cup of gasoline, just to start the pile. So since I used a fourth of the amount given me, that's about 1/4rth of a cup of gasoline with most of that already burned off.

Seems I overreacted a bit.

I will store my supplies on it and keep turning it over to let it air out.

Thanks everyone for your answers.

Y'all are truely the absolute best!

Youve got nothin to worry about. Hell, I leak more diesel out on the ground when I sit too long.
Id still plant a quick row of rye grass and let it sprout and go for about 2 weeks, then plow it under, that will distribute the nutrients through the buried rootlest of the rye grasses. We call it "green manure"
When do you normally plant a garden? Iused to plant a little one in Jan when I lived out near Stockton Cal. There the ground turned to fire brick by June, and if you watered, the crappy Kesterson water had so much salt that it built up in the soil.

Oh good, farmerman came to the rescue :-D

I know I didn't offer much help, dupre, but you're very welcome.

Hi, farmerman.

From the Country Extension Agency web site for our area we can plant something almost year round, so anytime is the right time.

This is my first year, although I've been reading about it forever. Mostly about how to prepare the perfect soil-sans gasoline!

It'll be my first time for radishes, lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, and all the rest. I'm real excited about it. Plan to get something in on March 1st when I return from vacation, assuming I can get the beds prepared in between the rain and waiting for the soil to dry out enough to work.

I've added composted cow manure, greensand, dry molasses, vermiculite, peat moss, ash. I've got blood meal and bone meal, and the center provides compost with a mixture of everything you could want!

I would like to get a PH test, because our soil is alkaline. I'd like to know how much sulfur to add, some beans and stuff prefer a PH just a little below 7, but will do OK at 7.

I've got a lot to learn.

We have an organic gardening club I hope to be a part of, and the people I've met so far are really interesting.

go to a school supply company like carolina supply and buy some pH test paper. Put a big handfulof your soil (about 6"deep) into a mayonnaise jar (cleaned and scrubbed) then add about half that amount of distilled water (gotten in jugs at a supermarket) shake this up and dip the pH paper into the water , after the soil particles settle a little. Then match the color on the paper with the pH scale on the jar.
If you have some screwy numbers let me know and Ill show you how to calculate how much sulfur or Iron sulphate to add.
All the other veggies youve mentioned like a neutral or slightly alkaline pH. Wait till you return because the peat moss is acidic.
Still , dont forget to get about 4 cups of rye seed per 100 square feet. They should really sprout till you return, and they will smother any weed seeds . When your ready to plant, just till the rye under. ( I know, I sound like a busted CD but rye is the cheapest soil amendment for organic gardening) I plant some in all my fields and in my garden each fall.

You are right in the zone for great watermelons no?
How about artichokes? These are usually biennials , but, in Tex, they oughta do great. I miss fresh artichokes. I can say, outside of the Yosemite Valley, the only other thing I liked about California was the artichokes. Wed have a meal just of boiled artichokes and butter.

Wow. I had no idea it would be that easy. and the rye, too. It just sounded so difficult.

Thanks.

I'm heading out there right now to work on the double digging.

Have some help today, so hope to get that hard work finished very soon, now.

Thanks!

Hi Dupre,

You might want to reconsider using peat moss in the future.

http://www.ondelmarva.com/peat.html
http://www.rbgkew.org.uk/ksheets/peat.html#help

This site has the pH requirements of many plants and veggies.
http://www.seedman.com/Tips/ph.htm

Glad Farmerman was able to help with your situation.
Newt

Newt, thanks for the environmental education. I had no idea.

Hi Dupre,

You are so very welcome. It was a surprise to me too when I learned about it.

Regards,
Newt