The previous owners of our house had four different burn piles around the property. I am taking over one particular area that has one of the burn piles. I'd like to be able to plant flowers in this area. Do I have to work around the burn area; do I remove all of the soil and start new; or, can I just till it under and plant there?
What to do with an old burn pile?
the burn pile hopefully doesn't have toxic things burnt there. If it was trees it will be just fine. Maybe a little alkaline? Lots of calcium and some nitrogen there. I would add composted manure and some top soil and rototill it in and plant away.
Sounds like a spot that is a candidate for a soil test! There are people on this board that do that on a regular basis, contact your local extension office.
If it isn't a large area, I would remove the dirt and fill in with compost. I've moved the burn barrel in my garden a couple of times and made it the new compost pile for a year. I can plant there now.
Thanks for all your input. The burn pile has been used to burn just about everything I think. I see the metal remnants of old garden tools, food cans, and most recently - a piece of lamenated press board, the kind they make cabinets with. That last worries me the most. I've been thinking of what to do with my compost bin lately. It needs to be turned and my FIL keeps adding to it. Maybe if I clean up the old burn pile and move the compost bin contents to the hole, I'll solve two problems at once.
Thanks again!
got2Bgreen, if you like mushrooms you could innoculate the pile with morel mushroom spawn, I did this. the co. is in Olympia , Wash. called Fungi Perfecti. www.fungi.com. hostajim1
How difficult are they to grow? I am not a mushroom eater myself but we are looking for something to grow to make our property pay for itself.