[CH] Drywall as a Gypsum Application
George Nelson (70431.3065@compuserve.com)
Fri, 10 Apr 1998 11:43:16 -0400
Welcome back, Cardinal!
The point about broken up drywall aiding soil texture improvement is a good
one. The first effect would be temporary from the simple addition of small
particles to separate the clay. A longer-term effect would come from the
mechanism Dave Anderson mentioned about calcium ions attaching to the
charged sites on clay, forcing it apart. It is just that some time would
be needed to observe this second effect if wallboard is used.
Cameron then suggested: "How about a C-H special growing medium made of
composted wallboard, coffee grounds and chile seeds and skins?"
Well, I have some waterlogged stuff in the basement that needs replacing
and have plenty of the other two ingredients so that looks like a "research
proposal!"
Finally he suggested, "Alba is the old name for Scotland; so 'Terra Alba'
might be 'Scottish Soil.' This could start a whole new, off-topic, thread
about ancient names for ancient places, but since "[Chile-Heads] looks more
sensible than [Mr. Begg] remember[s]!" I will only state that I think the
name "Terra Alba" means "White Earth." I believe this refers to the
extreme whiteness of the natural deposits of gypsum. A colleague of mine
has visited SW US desert deposits and says the whiteness barely an inch
below the surface is amazing for something "out in the elements."
George Nelson
70431.3065@compuserve.com