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Diatomaceous Earth
I would love to know how everyone from our Homesteading community uses diatomaceous earth. There’s many ways to use it But how do you all use it.? Do you measure it? If so how much and for what animal(s)?
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17 Replies
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I use it to get rid of ground bees, wasp/hornets nest. I wait until evening or cool days and spray it around the entrance/exit holes. I also spread it around the base of my plants to keep the creepy/crawly critters away. I have found slugs do not like DE.
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That’s good to know. Thank you so much!
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Deworm your dogs + acts as a mineral supplement, clean water, keep pests away, my dad eats it daily mixed with a glass of water 75+ yrs old and still sharp as can be, I use it as a plant supplement for my peas daikons and night shades. Experimenting this year with squashes and greens. seems good so far.
DE as a plant supplement improves the structure, roots, and resilience of the plant. Think of it as collagen for the human body, as DE is to plants.
My mammoth melting snow pea leaves are the biggest ever seen by the seed specialist at the company I bought them from. Some are as big as my open hand and I have an XL hand. Look at the pics, the peas fought with the crab grass, cleavers, pineapple weed, and potatoes…..and they won.
This is a combo of black strap molasses and DE. Both for animals in bulk from the ranch store.
3.5 gallon bucket probably 20$ usd
50 lbs Perma-Gard DE around 30-40$ usd
These supplements are super versatile and go a long way for little $$$
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Do u just sprinkle it it over their food?
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For animal food like grain with molasses. DE is used as an “anti-caking supplement”. I guess that means it prevents the food from clumping together so much the animals don’t want to eat it. So, in essence you can add a bit of molasses to your grain, then add DE as a mineral supplement. You might want to google all the minerals that are in DE.
This is kind of the old school way done before fertilizer was readily available.
DE can be a soil amendment, you want to mix it in the soil before planting. Or you can add it to water.
Water dispersal is tricky because the DE does not stay suspended in water for long. Your soil must drain well and accept water quickly for this to work. I recommend sandy loam or peat moss with vermiculite, then i take that and mix it 1/2 and 1/2 with my local dirt. Sometimes sand is added to keep the soil from clumping when wet. helps drainage.
I add a fist size volume of DE and a fist size volume of molasses in a 5 gallon bucket, stir frantically and immediately pour onto already wet soil. I have tried to “reasonably overfeed” blooming tomatoes with this mix and failed to see any negative effects. I don’t have an accurate measurement of how much to put on each plant. I increase application rate on plants as soon as i see flower petals start to open up.
The molasses makes all of my seed stock smell like bee pollen or just sweet pollen in general.
I verified it when both my daikon and pea seed had the same smell when dried and in jars.
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I taken notes and definitely going to try this. Thank you!
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If you use this supplement on smaller plants, use it sparingly until they start to develop fruits.
I usually wait until my veggie plants are at least 1 foot tall before I add any to the soil via watering method. That way they are almost mature adults and the plant structure can more happily accept the nutrients.
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I put it in my chicken’s feed to keep it from clumping in this high humidity. It also is a natural de-wormer. I also spread it around their coop and run. When I do a deep clean of the coop, I spread a layer on all floors before I put the litter down. It keeps the mites away.
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I will be trying that, this weekend.
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I’ve been using DE for years, as a wormer for my dogs and as a way to keep bugs out of my food in my pie safe. Just run a thin line along the shelves and the nasty little devils won’t infest your dried goods. My daugher puts it along her window sills. When viewed under a powerful magnifying glass, it looks like millions of tiny razor blades. It cuts the insect which starts the process of desiccation. Note: deadly for cats. Also, use food grade. Even humans claim its benefits for the body. Look it up!
Fascinating. -
I put it in my chicken feed and their sandbox. Had little ant like creatures on their pellet lid. Sprinkled some on there. Hope it kills them.
Tried using it for dewormer for horses a few years ago. Big failure.
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Thank you for sharing. That’s great knowledge to share.
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Success. Ants dead and no new ones.
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I’m definitely going to try it!
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A word of caution: Do not breath it in or inhale it.
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I use it mostly on my bean and potato plants when the bugs start eating the leaves.
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