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#1 2023-04-16 16:10:17
- Loohan
- Administrator
- Registered: 2014-10-31
- Posts: 32,777
For gardeners: "electroculture"
I recently found out about "electroculture". There is much info on the web about this. There are many types of electroculture. Some use an actual current of electricity by stabbing electrified probes into the soil. Others take advantage of the different electrical potentials of different metals by putting a chunk of zinc in one spot and copper in another nearby.
And some just use spirals wrapped around wooden stakes -- i'm not sure how electrical that is, but that is what people call it.
I made up a few using brass wire because supposedly it is a bit better than copper:
I used 16awg brass wire except for the fattest one which got 14awg.
I will be making more of the skinny ones to put in individual planters. The fat guys are made with old tool handles that broke and i saved, being a pack rat. They had been linseed oiled a couple times in years past and i re-oiled them and let them dry out. They should last a while.
The skinny ones are easy. Brass is much more springy than copper wire, so on a larger diameter, i had to tape the top ends in place. Then i cut the tops off of some plastic pill bottles and inverted them over the tape with some silicone caulk, for protection, and painted these.
On the thinner ones, because the wrap is tighter it overcomes the springiness of the wire.
Copper wire might be more tractable.
I drilled holes the same diameter as the wire to start the wraps. You can see the direction of twist i used, which seems to be more popular and also felt right to me.
We will see if my crops seem to be more abundant with fewer pests this summer. People report that this stuff is effective. I can feel a shift right away when i stab one into a planter or bed that i have something growing in.
One can stab these next to trees one wants to help, too.
My hunch was to start the wrap about where ground level will be, leaving enough bare stick below to hold it up.
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#2 2023-05-06 10:53:28
- Loohan
- Administrator
- Registered: 2014-10-31
- Posts: 32,777
Re: For gardeners: "electroculture"
And the stake does not need to be wood or bamboo. I have a bunch of these nice 6 ft long fiberglass poles that i bought from a garden supply place many years ago which i have started wrapping with 16 awg brass, taped in place at the ends with 181B-FX tape. They feel real good.
I stuck one of these in a planter of mint that was getting covered in powdery white mildew in this humid weather; we'll see if it recovers.
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#3 2023-05-20 14:11:34
- Loohan
- Administrator
- Registered: 2014-10-31
- Posts: 32,777
Re: For gardeners: "electroculture"
And the stake does not need to be wood or bamboo. I have a bunch of these nice 6 ft long fiberglass poles that i bought from a garden supply place many years ago which i have started wrapping with 16 awg brass, taped in place at the ends with 181B-FX tape. They feel real good.
I stuck one of these in a planter of mint that was getting covered in powdery white mildew in this humid weather; we'll see if it recovers.
Yup, we've had 2 more weeks of humid weather, and several more inches of rain, but the mint has recovered. Brewing some up now.
My lettuce has been growing well too, and has hardly been bothered by bugs yet. However, in part that is because i dust it with strong cayenne powder occasionally. After the last big rain especially, there were various little bugs around it.
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