this post was submitted on 05 Dec 2023
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Nature and Gardening

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Hey there everybody

For folks who are unfamiliar with us, we're a small scale plant nursery that follows permaculture and regenerative agriculture principles. We've used tons of wood chips over the years and we're getting ready to receive more over today and tomorrow. What would you like to know?

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[–] CadeJohnson@slrpnk.net 1 points 11 months ago

Have you tried your hand at biochar? I know composting the chips for mulch is high value in a farm operation, but a few tons of biochar can work like a permanent upgrade - improving the soil permanently with one addition - though ongoing permaculture operation continues. I am about to make a biochar cooker out of two steel barrels - inner fuel chamber and outer draft shell. It would probably be more effective with wood scraps than chips though - some air passages through the fuel.

To test it out for myself, I made a miniature version documented at https://github.com/jcadej/TLUD-biochar-reactor (uses a gallon paint can for the fuel chamber. You could test it small and see how it does with wood chips. When I make my bigger version, I will add it to the github project. My rough idea is to cut one barrel down the side and squeeze it smaller and bolt it so it fits inside the other.