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Gravel is usually removed, but in certain situations it is needed. My garden had a very fine soil, bordering on potter's clay. The stones and gravel were the only thing that consistently kept it from solidifying into hardpan, and they allowed more moisture penetration. Organics added in are fine, but they can quickly either grow into weeds or rot into carbon dioxide.
An interesting side note - for a couple of years I kept some 12 volt lead-acid storage batteries on my deck. They didn't leak, there was no outgassing to speak of, but I had to replace the decking near them because of rot.
The location a gardener is in and type of native soil they have and the soil amendments needed does have to be taken into consideration. I'm fortunate in the composition and drainability of our native rainforest soil and river bottom soil where I live so have never had to add gravel to my soil. The only times I've needed to add any kind of gravel is if I had to put a layer of gravel in the bottom of a plant container for improved drainage, but never directly into the ground around plants outside. Even then, I'm picky about what type and size and shape of gravel I use, and picky about what the mineral composition of the gravel is.
I prefer our local river tumbled round pea-gravel about the size of an almond or apricot pit. Crushed rock is verboten for me even if it's local because crushed will have higher levels of mineral powders leaking out of it into soil (tumbled doesn't leak powders, it leaks dissolved particulate matter slowly) and crushed is too rough with sharp edges that can damage roots of plants or my hand tools (tumbled and rounded has no sharp edges).
If your deck was made of wood maybe that rotted section got 'cooked' by the electrical emissions from the batteries.
--if significant advantages were accrued with growing crops in EM fields, it could be accomplished with micro-wave towers instead of hanging wires, etc...Considering that just putting in proper drain tiling in fields increases yield by 25%, I'm not so sure we need to do anything more high tech....I won't argue that EM doesn't effect growth. The question is--How much? Is it worth it?
-rotting deck wood under batteries-- due to wicking of moisture under the casing of the battery and retaining it there. Any flat bottomed object would do the same.
We live in an energetic world where everything is energy. Energy balances and imbalances things, so is it all worth it? The Chinese have been using a system of energy balancing in their Traditional Chinese Medicine for thousands of years and still use it today, but the West does not acknowledge there is anything going on at all. This same system works for all beings both plant and animal which is why we have energy medicine in its various forms and this is what we are talking about with these rocks which provide the 'something' plants need to keep them healthy.
We live in an energetic world where everything is energy. Energy balances and imbalances things, so is it all worth it? The Chinese have been using a system of energy balancing in their Traditional Chinese Medicine for thousands of years and still use it today, but the West does not acknowledge there is anything going on at all. This same system works for all beings both plant and animal which is why we have energy medicine in its various forms and this is what we are talking about with these rocks which provide the 'something' plants need to keep them healthy.
I'd have repped you again but must spread some more love around first. Anyway, just wanted to say "well said!" about the above post.
-can't find the episode now https://www.growingagreenerworld.com...+in+containers but they did a demonstration of rocks in the bottom of containers for drainage purposes-- no dif with or without the rocks...........
Then I'd say their demonstration was flawed. I'd like to know what plants and mediums they used for their demonstration. I bet they didn't use orchids and orchid mediums for their demonstration, or Norfolk pines, or mosses or ferns, or succulents or cacti, or bamboos or any other number of different kinds of plants and different mediums in containers that require rocks in the bottom for improved drainage and discouragement of root growth below the rocks to avoid rot and fungal infections.
People need to expand their horizons and look at the big picture.
Can we move the "woo woo" stuff about "electromagnetic crystals" and "all life is energy" to the "Occult and Unexplained" forum, please, and keep this discussion about the possible effects of actual electric fields on plant growth?
Can we move the "woo woo" stuff about "electromagnetic crystals" and "all life is energy" to the "Occult and Unexplained" forum, please, and keep this discussion about the possible effects of actual electric fields on plant growth?
I think moving it is not a good idea, and I bet there are a few others who would think the same thing.
Do you have problems with control issues about what you think other people should read according to you? If you wish, I would be very happy to recommend a good crystal for you to wear to eliminate your problems with your control issues.
Are you not aware that nobody is forcing you or anyone else to read anyone's suggestions?
This is the gardening forum, it's exactly the right forum for discussions about anything that is considered to be good for growing plants. Even electromagnetism and electric fields.
I'd suggest that the things you call woo woo about "electromagnetic crystals" and "all life is energy" is very relevant and should not be moved to the occult forum since it is not an occult subject. It's a scientific subject based on what has already been tested and proven by gardeners and scientists around the world over many millenia.
How about you simply pretend that it was moved and you can just not read the things you don't want to read. Don't be afraid of things of nature just because you don't understand them and haven't been educated about them. It's good to have an open mind about nature's gifts to us and to continue to learn more about them and how to use them properly.
--if significant advantages were accrued with growing crops in EM fields, it could be accomplished with micro-wave towers instead of hanging wires, etc...Considering that just putting in proper drain tiling in fields increases yield by 25%, I'm not so sure we need to do anything more high tech....I won't argue that EM doesn't effect growth. The question is--How much? Is it worth it?
-rotting deck wood under batteries-- due to wicking of moisture under the casing of the battery and retaining it there. Any flat bottomed object would do the same.
Nope. Not even close to an answer. The same deck also had planters, 5 gal pails, and other objects on it. What was even more curious was the 2" x 8" joists underneath also had damage. All the wood was pressure treated and from the same batch and constructed at the same time.
As for the "woo woo" comment someone else made, I'm sorry, but it seems obvious that person has never encountered a person with a green thumb and had to place their ego in competition to what such a person can do.
I agree completely that there are many, if not a majority of factors in horticulture that are based in solid science and have been properly researched. The county extension services are a first line of education, and master gardeners are extremely knowledgeable (my wife was one in both Alabama and Florida). There are still people who can do the most inexplicable things and outshine others.
My comment about occult BS comes from statements like "I think pieces of crystal create an electromagnetic field in the ground because I misunderstood the piezoelectric effect that's used in quartz clocks" or "everything has energy so any thing you say about it has equal validity whether it bears any relationship to the laws of physics or not".
None of that has any bearing on the initial question from the OP, which was a question about whether actual electromagnetic fields (as, generated by actual measurable currents flowing through actual wires, not nonexistent "energy fields" caused by burying pieces of crystals) have a positive or negative effect on plant growth, which is a valid subject for investigation.
I'd just like to point out that every second year engineering student has to take a course in materials science, and the first thing learnt is that the crystal form of a substance is actually the LOWEST ENERGY state of that material...
.... < snip > ..... None of that has any bearing on the initial question from the OP, which was a question about whether actual electromagnetic fields (as, generated by actual measurable currents flowing through actual wires, ..... < snip > ..... have a positive or negative effect on plant growth, which is a valid subject for investigation.... < snip > .....
Rabbit, the OP has not asked any questions. None. The OP has kindly started this thread to share with us all some interesting information he has been reading about something which is indeed a valid subject for further investigation.
You've stated in other posts elsewhere that you're an engineer, so perhaps you would care to contribute a constructive opinion with regard to your own question that you just now brought to the conversation, as bolded above.
Do YOU believe that electromagnetic fields generated by measurable currents flowing through wires would have a positive or a negative effect on plant growth, and why do you believe it?
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