Use of Greensand on Bamboo

[firemountain]

I was told by my local nursery to use the product Greensand on my bamboo in the fall. He said it sorta acts like an antifreeze for your plants, preventing the soil from freezing too early in the winter. He personally have a huge amount of Yellow Grove on his own personal property, which is right next to the nursery.

I did use it for the first time this past year on my F. Sp. Scabrida, and it seemed to work ok. Unfortunatley the Scabrida is not meant for my area (6a) and was subjected to a lot of wind even though they were covered. I had a 90% total top kill late in the winter, but the plants did come back.

Question: What is the added benefit...if any....for using greensand in the fall? If anyone has used this product, please let me know your thoughts on it. Or is it just like snake oil??

[tstoehr]

Sounds like nonsense to me, but I'm no expert. Greensand does contain various minerals which may or may not have a positive effect on your bamboo. If it's healthier, it may resist cold weather better. I guess. Alot of people do use greensand as a soil "amendment". I wouldn't touch the stuff where I live cuz it has quite a bit of Potassium and our local soils are already naturally high in Potassium.

[bambooweb]

I have used greensand because my soil is low in Potassium but I did not notice any difference in the plants that I used it on.
Since I am also low in Sulfur, I have had better luck with Sul-Po-Mag which is cheaper and has more Potassium. It seems to keep the leaves green longer but it might also be caused by decreasing the pH.

Bill