Gardeners, please help me identify this supply!

My father recently brought me a huge stash of gardening supplies from my late mother. Among them is a large unmarked open bag of white powder. It doesn’t have that very distinctive odor of bone meal and seems to be smooth and not clumpy (If it were obviously not in my mom’s gardening stash, I would have thought it was plaster). Any ideas what it could be?

NewOwner

in Garden 11 years ago

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thetinkerswagon | 11 years ago

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we once found a box of white powder in a shed. turned out to be ddt. the lime actually feels a lot like plaster when you handle it.

nyc_sport | 11 years ago

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Perhaps diatomaceous earth?

marie-helene | 11 years ago

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Your comment that “you would have thought it was plaster” tells me that it’s probably calcium carbonate (aka chalk), that is, just powdered limestone to adjust a soil that’s too acidic. It’s rarely a problem in the city.

NewOwner | 11 years ago

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Thanks! I’ll try the vinegar test. Don’t think I really need to lime my soil any time soon so might just sit there even longer…

daveinbedstuy | 11 years ago

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Most likely lime but what Bob said. If I can remember my chemistry background, you can test it by adding some vinegar to it and if it is it will fizzle.

BobMarvin | 11 years ago

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Perhaps lime, to adjust the PH of the soil? Personally, I’d be a bit reluctant to use any unidentified powder.