Horse Sh##

[John D]

Well after finaly getting a tractor and cleaning out stalls,runs and pens I now have a mountain of manure. I have heard its not that good for gardens. I also have a large hill of oak leaves that has been composting for a little over a year. can this be used for anything? should I add them together? when I got down to the dirt there was grubs as big as you thumb. never seen them that big. jb

 

[deereguy]

I would pile the manure on top of the leaves, then once a week or twice a month (whatever your time permits), run the loader into the bottom of the pile and put the bottom on the top of the pile. It will be a steamy and rather smelly mess at first. The moisture from the manure/bedding will break down the leaves and in a year or less you should have some great compost. The pile needs to stay "hot" and turned so that weed seeds won't germinate.

Make sure the pile is in full sun and well drained. I have been going this for about 6 years and had great success until last year, I didn't have time to turn it as often- looks like a pile of weeds now.

Good Luck!

 

[bontai_Joe]

I am surprised to hear that Horse manure is not as good as "blank" for gardens. It sure works fine for me and zillions of others. They eat basically the same stuff cows eat and that also works well in a garden, so I would dismiss that thought. Mixing and turning it with your leaves will give you excellent compost as mentioned above.

 

[Jimbrown]

Well cows have 7 stomachs and horses do not. Horses by nature are flee animals and their natural instinct is to run. Their digestive system does not process the grass ect completly. It does not digest seeds hardly at all. If they are fed bermuda grass hay and you put the poop in your garden you are gonna have a nice crop of bermuda.

 

[ToadHill]

If you want to compost it you have to remember that you need to have a ratio of about 4 parts carbon (leaves) to one part nitrogen (manure). For the carbon you can use anything that was once green, leaves, grass clippings etc.

 

[drssg]

I've read about people who find a landscaping company to come pick it up free, and sometimes even pay for it! I suppose it would vary by area, but if you'd like to minimize your horse sh## handling, it might be worth looking into.

 

[Mike120]

There's not much you can do with horse manure and bedding other than composting it or finding someone who will delight in taking it off your hands for the same purpose. You just have to get it hot enough in the compost pile to kill the seeds. I looked at O2 Compost ( O2Compost -- Compost Systems & Training ) before I took the other approach and bought a manure spreader. It's a lot less trouble and now I just spread it on my hay fields.

 

[John D]

Thanks for the info guys. I would like to spread it but cant see spending alot of money on a spreader to use 1-2 times a year. some of the neighbors have gardens and could prob use it. jb

 

[bontai_Joe]

I confess that I had forgotten about the seeds. I was thinking more about the value of nitrogen, etc.

 

[kossetx]

John, Blend the manure and those leaves together, make some compost and spread it with your fel by backdraging, or make some tea.

Now that I've talked you into using it do you still have some for me?

I've never even noticed this forum until you pointed it out to me. Duh, I probably should have put the compost thread here.

Yes, Bamboo fly rods. It takes about 50 hours to complete one but casting with a live fiber, OK, once alive fiber, is much more enjoyable to me than using plastic.

As usual, just my .02, MP

 

[John D]

Thanks Mark. Ill have plenty cuz the horses aint going nowhere says the wife so? Ive casted one boo that Al Crise got from J R Russle that was a gem. come meet me on the paluxy this summer and we'll try them out. jb

 

[BTDT]

Thanks Mark. Ill have plenty cuz the horses aint going nowhere says the wife so? Ive casted one boo that Al Crise got from J R Russle that was a gem. come meet me on the paluxy this summer and we'll try them out. jb

Meet me on the Paluxy 'cause the horses ain't going nowhere....sounds like a Country and Western song title.

 

[gb19711]

Around my area (Northern Delaware / Southeast PA) people have rather large businesses growing mushrooms. They use primarily horse manure and straw (from the racetracks and stables) combined with sand etc. as a growing medium. After awhile the nutrients are used up in the compost so they empty the mushroom house beds and sell the weak stuff as mushroom soil. (I believe it sometimes has some topsoil mixed in as well.) Anyway, homeowners buy it to topdress their yards. I use it in my raised vegetable beds and it performs well! You're right about the weeds though - I have to mulch or weed to stay ahead of the weed crop. It's a small trade off though for getting your own fresh veggies!
The only downside to using fresh manure is that you have to let it sit before you use it. I've heard it is too "hot" to use right away. Tea seems to be a good use as well.

Greg

 

[Justaplain]

What beddiing is in that manure, if any? Straw is one thing and shaveings or sawdust is another.
Sawdust will tie up Nitrogen like crazy. I add urea to the pile. bcs

 

[deereguy]

Horse Manure Management: The Nitrogen Enhancement System and Ohioline might have helpful information for you.

 

[gotrocks]

Sorry guys, I just received this e-mail, I seemed to fit the topic.

For all those Smart alecs out there!!!
A young, well-educated man on a business trip gets on a plane to find
himself seated next to an older, weathered man in a western snap shirt,
faded jeans and a cowboy hat. Thinking himself above the old cowboy, the
young man decides to make sport of him.

"You know," he says, "I've heard these flights go much more quickly if
you strike up a conversation with a fellow passenger. So, let's talk."

The cowboy looks at him wryly and says, "Well I s'pose that'd be all right.
What'd ya like to discuss?"

"Oh, I don't know," says the young man with a hint of sarcasm, "How
about nuclear proliferation?"

"Hmm," says the cowboy, sensing the young man's attempt to belittle him,
"That could be an interesting topic. But, let me ask you a question first.
Horses, cows, and deer all eat the same stuff, grass. Yet, a deer passes
little pellets, a cow turns out a flat patty, and a horse makes muffins
of dried poop. Why do you suppose that is?"

Dumbfounded, the young man replies, "I haven't the slightest idea."

"So tell me then," says the cowboy with a smile, "How is it that you
feel qualified to discuss nukes when you don't know sh**?"

 

[QRTRHRS]

I built a ramp to dump wheelbarrow loads of horse manure into our 330 bushel spreader. When we first bought this place, the fields were in rough shape so I used it to get them into pasture. Now, I just fertilize and overseed. So, once a week, it gets spread on one of my neighbors farm fields either by me or my neighbor.

We have few neighbors and the smell disapates quickly except for damp periods and even then is no where near as bad as pig or cow manure.

A friend piles it close to the road where he has a sign posted "Free Manure". People come by and shovel it on their pickups by hand.

By the way, the mushroom growers won't take manure with sawdust in it, just straw bedding. I use fine sawdust rather than shavings so except for the "wet spot", the ratio is minimal. My neighbor is plenty happy with it anyway.