How do you pronounce "diatomacious" earth?

[chicknmania]

I think you might have better luck referring to it as "food grade DE"; and be sure to tell them you don't want the swimming pool kind. I got "huh???" when I asked for it at the bigger stores, including TSC, but we live in a small town and our local feed mill knew what it was. They didn't have it in stock but said they could probably order it in a 50 lb bag. I bought it last at www.hoeggergoatsupply.com. It's awesome stuff; we put some on our ferret and haven't seen him scratch once since we put it on. Same with the chickens for bugs but you have to get them to dust in it every day.

 

[Godiva]

I bought some diatomaceous earth at our local feed store. I mixed it in the dusting pans and I have noticed that the chickens are eating it. How do I know if this is poisoning them. WHat does it do? Yikes!!!

 

[Barnyard Dawg]

Quote:
Read this link:
http://www.freshwaterorganics.com/

 

[DaKid]

can't see to fine this stuff anywhere around Berkley Ma. in a 50 lb bag . I found it on line but I'm looking at around $65 -$75 dollars for 50 lbs with shipping ,thats a bit high seeing the 50lb bag is going only for the cheaps on the internet $25- $27.00 a 50 lbs and other are around $45-60 with out shipping cost

is there any one in eastern ma know where to get this food grade DE locally

 

[The Chicken Lady]

I'm not really sure why it's called "diatom"-aceous earth, because diatoms are very, very small, unicellular organisms that live in water. They have all sorts of interesting shapes. The word "diatomaceous" would lead me to believe that the stuff is filled with diatoms because -aceous means "made of", and I'm not sure if that's true (haven't seen an ingredient list).

Anyway, to pronounce the word, you need to say "diatom" first. It has three syllables, and you can pronounce it just like the following English words: "die-a-Tom." Make the "a" sound more like "uh" (it's the "schwa" sound). Put emphasis on the first syllable: DIE-a-Tom.

The next "a" says its name (put emphasis on that syllable also), and the "ceous" is pronounced exactly like the "cious" in "delicious."

I'd compare "diatomaceous" to the other English adjectives "loquacious" or "vivacious" for how to pronounce the last part.

Now you have way too much information on how to pronounce this word.

 

[MissPrissy]

Quote:
Diatomaceous earth is fossilized remains of diatoms -hard-shelled algae.

Food grade DE is most often found as Codex Grade Fossil Shell Flour.

Di- a - toe- may - shus

 

[spatcher]

I sell DE in 3,5 and 8# weights for 15.30, 18.30 and 22.30 respectively. Includes 9.30 for USPS Priority Shipping 2-3 day shipping. This is PermaGuard Codex food grade fossil shell flour. See www.freshwaterorganics.com/what_is_de.htm

 

[derby]

Oh- and "earth" is pronounced "erth".

 

[JennsPeeps]

Webster.com pronunciation here (click on red icon for the audio file)
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/diatomaceous

 

[ChickaD]

Two more excellent (good price) sources of food grade DE are:
Custom Milling (close to $50 for 50 lbs, incl shpg)
Earthworks Health ($29 for 10 lbs, incl shpg) sells Perma Guard, the BEST and most tested brand

These are if you can't find it locally, esp at this time of year (up north).

This stuff is without equal - just be very sure you insist on food grade.