How to use crushed egg shell in garden

[katnmo]

Good evening, I'm new here but thought I'd jump right in.
Will adding crushed egg shell into the garden around tomatoes and peppers help them produce? I am in zone 5, mid missouri. Soil is yellow clay, call it elastic clay soil, that I have been trying to amend for past 5 years but I'm just not getting the best in production. although I have rotated crops and haven't in fact used this particular section for 2 years while adding oak leaves, ash, manure and all the potting soil from pots, and tilling the dickens out of it for 2 years. although this section is the best of the three I have available this year. I even covered this section after tilling it deeply with a double black plastic sheet last year, all year.
I added egg shell to my roses of which one is doing well the other is just flat dying. How do I use the eggshell? thickly, lightly, on top, dig it in? could sure use some advise here. Thanks:

 

[me&thegals]

I've only heard of using it to boost your soil's calcium levels, which is supposed to help prevent blossom-end rot in tomatoes and peppers. Good luck. It take so much patience to help improve soil

ETA: Forgot to answer your question! I dig mine in, believing that I need to in order for the roots to be able to absorb the calcium.

 

[Dace]

I would suggest that you get a soil testing kit and see what nutrients your soil is lacking....based on lack of production, I would guess that you need phosphorous. Run the test and then take your results to your local nursery and they will tell you what to add to the soil to help correct it.

I have poor soil and I add bags and bags of compost, composted chicken manure, composted steer manure and peat moss. Like I said I have added many many many bags!

Edited to add...Calcium from egg shells is good to boost your calcium level as was previously posted, but not to increase production.

 

[bills]

Depending on your soil, which sometimes involves getting your soil tested, (check with your local garden center), increased production will not necessarily happen by adding one ingredient. As the last poster suggested digging finally crushed egg shells in, can help with some things, but you need a soil that is well balanced to get good production. Egg shells alone is not necessarily going to increase production.

You could try top dressing the plants with well rotted chicken manure, or watering them well with a fish fertilizer. This might help raise the nitrogen levels, which if you have composted a lot of oak leaves could be depleted somewhat. I would think the manure you added would help with this, but it depends on the manure in some cases. Chicken manure is high in nitrogen, while cow, or horse is quite low. If you added a lot of ashes, the soil may be a little to alkaline. Tomatos usually like a tad more acidic soil, to do really well. Be careful not to overtill the soil as well, as this can lead to other problems...

So many factors depend on how a crop will produce. It really is a science. Watering, drainage, day temperatures, night temperatures, alkalinity, variety planted, etc, etc...

All I can say is that anybody who perseveres, http://www.merriam-webster.com/cgi-bin/dictionary?book=Dictionary&va=perseveres is usually eventually rewarded. Sounds like you are working hard at it!

edit- I see Dace was thinking along the same lines. I guess I was typing while she was posting..

 

[akyramoto]

I heard some where that tomatoes don't like ash. I had some planted last year over an old burn pile area, I didn't get any tomatoes all season.

I could be totally wrong, but that's what I've heard.

 

[Tutter]

I don't think that everyone needs to test their soil, but I think the information would be useful for you. Test a patch you've not touched, and some you've amended.

Clay isn't as nutrient depleted as people think; probably because it doesn't tend to leach, like sandy soil does.

You can also make a tea from the shells, when you use them, and just water with it, leaving the shells out of the garden, if you like.

Good luck!

 

[katnmo]

Thank you all. You've given me a lot more to go on. Maybe it is time to test and see what I have now. happy gardening to all.
k