Hair as fertilizer? (Not for orchids)

[The Orchid Boy]

You guys are probably right about the plant becoming established. But I know that I heard there were some good nutrients in decomposed hair that aren't found as easily in other things.

The more I think about decomposed hair, the more disgusting it seems...

 

[Ruth]

How long does it take for hair to decompose?

 

[gonewild]

How long does it take for hair to decompose?

I don't know, mine just fell out.
Never did decompose.
Just laid there.
:sob:

 

[Dido]

I can sell you breastle meal so much you want

 

[Rick]

You guys are probably right about the plant becoming established. But I know that I heard there were some good nutrients in decomposed hair that aren't found as easily in other things.

The more I think about decomposed hair, the more disgusting it seems...

I didn't think hair was much different than finger nails. Pretty inert, 99% carbon fiber. I guess the folicles can end up with trace amounts of whatever you are smoking or otherwise ingesting, since they use hair for drug and toxicity testing.

http://www.texascollaborative.org/hildasustaita/module files/topic3.htm

I was wrong its only about 45% carbon. However the protein making up hair is Keratin (same as finger nails). So it's not an easily degraded material. But leaves/sticks/wood, are mostly cellulose which are about as good for mulching with.

Actually I have a compot of callosum seedlings that I set up in a mix of shredded fall leaves, sand, charcoal, and sponge rock. They doing just fine, and I haven't fertilized them at all since setting the up almost a year ago.

 

[cnycharles]

http://dsc.discovery.com/news/2009/01/15/hair-fertilizer.html

it seems that there can be delayed benefit for using hair as a fertilizer. it does take time to break down, but then can benefit a crop after a certain period of time

 

[SlipperFan]

Interesting thought -- all that hair going into fertilizer instead of landfills.

 

[Candace]

I cut both my son's and husbands hair by one our clivias. We've just hosed it into the plant for a few years. Honestly, it doesn't look any different than the others.