Keith wrote:
Ken, do you have a handy reference with more info on this? Are all
FFAs herbicides? I know VFAs are generally recognised as phytotoxins,
don't know about other FFAs.
Here's a first stab, not very detailed:
http://wlapwww.gov.bc.ca/epd/ipm/docs/envirowe/chap8.htm
go to the section on fatty acids.
Also try a Google search on herbicidal properties fatty acids for
another 350 hits.
BTW, what does VFA stand for? -K
Thankyou Ken. VFA = Very Fine Answer? g Sorry - volatile fatty
acid. What you get when your compost doesn't reach completion (as
opposed to your biodiesel!). As in anaerobic, not good for plants,
nor for the soil life. Phenolic acids (PCs) are also phytotoxins
(plant poinsons), also breakdown products. But these phytotoxins are
such things as acetic acid, propionic acid, butyric acid, vanillic
acid, p-hydroxybenzoic acid, p-coumaric acid, not things you'd find
with your glyc, I don't think. The main FFAs in the oils after
splitting are lauric acid, myristic acid, palmitic acid, stearic
acid, oleic acid, linolic acid, linolenic acid. (Hey, I don't know
too much about this stuff!) But I think these are all long-chain
fatty acids, not VFAs, and I don't find much about their phytotoxic
properties, although they do inhibit seed germination. The VFAs seem
to be breakdown products. Fatty acids are certainly used as
herbicides, but I think not just any fatty acid. I'll keep looking,
thanks much for the leads.
Anyway, Ken, if you do good compost, that is aerobic compost that
gets hot (thermophilic), above 60 deg C, and you let it cure a bit
after it's finished, all FFAs will be broken down safely and won't
kill your plants. The difficulty with such gunky stuff would be to
ensure that the oxygen supply can get at it. You'd have to cut it
thoroughly with something dry and crumbly (sawdust, woodchips,
whatever) so it wasn't just a sticky mess. (Squeeze some in your fist
and it should make a ball, but the ball should crumble apart easily.)
Then, with the usual provisos re C:N ratio, moisture content and
aeration, you'll be fine. With vermicomposting, the worms wouldn't be
able to handle it directly, but if there was enough other stuff in
there breaking down (the worms have a great influence on the whole
process even before they start eating the stuff), they'd be able to
deal with it eventually and again you'd end up with a safe product.
One test of finished compost is whether cress seeds will germinate in
it, and that's just what it's testing - cress seeds are very
sensitive to fatty acids. If they won't germinate, it doesn't mean
you shouldn't have put fatty acids in it in the first place, just
that the process wasn't properly controlled or that it hasn't cured
for long enough.
Two commercial herbicides are currently causing trouble because they
don't break down in compost, but these are synthetic products, not
natural FFAs, and they're toxic to plants in tiny amounts. Picloram -
4-amino-3,5,6-trichloropicolinic acid, aka Tordon, Grazon, Access,
Pathway, Agent White, and especially Clopyralid -
3,6-dichloro-2-pyridinecarboxylic acid, aka Stinger, Reclaim,
Transline. But anything that was once part of something alive and
hasn't since been fossilised will break down safely.
Regards
Keith
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