Kitchen Garden Forum

Does anyone know whether Cuttlefish bones have any beneficial use in the soil? There are so many lying around on the beaches I always want to collect them. Remember giving them to my budgie as a child for the minerals.

I would guess that there could perhaps be a small proportion of ground up cuttlefish bones in bonemeal or any general fertiliser but even if that were the case, I suspect they would have to be ground up before much of their minerals were in a form that was suitable for releasing into the soil. Hopefully somebody else on here will have more knowledge.

Hello IF
I think that they are almost entirely made up of calcium carbonate. So adding them to the soil would have the same effect as adding lime. I agree with Primrose that to have any effect you would have to grind them up - perhaps a shredder would do the job?

John

As they are calcium carbonate they would have no nutritional value. They are likely also to contain a good deal of salt.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cuttlebone

Au contraire Alan, calcium is an important element in plant nutrition. After nitrogen, potassium and phosphorus, calcium, magnesium and to lesser extent iron are essential for plant growth. These last three are more likely to present naturally in the soil in sufficient quantities and so only need to be added to soils occasionally. Lime is not just added to soil to correct acidity but because it contains essential nutrients. Cuttlefish bone seems to be a pure form of calcium carbonate whereas the various forms of lime used on soils will contain some magnesium and traces of iron. I think the pulverised cuttlefish bone would be a useful slow release way of getting the benefits of lime.

John

As I'm about to construct a mesh box to fit on my motorcycle trailer. It will give me a break from loading seaweed to go and beachcombe for bones. Cheers, Tony.