New poo 2010!!

Each year, as soon as the soil is workable, I start looking for people cleaning out barns. Last year I hit the jackpot and a fellow one street over had four years of horse and cow manure- already aged. He *delivered* for free on his flatbed trailer. Four trailers full- lots of unloading, sore muscles, and SUPER gardens.

This year I have only picked up one load of aged horse manure so far. In an hour I am going to get a load of goat manure, which I have never used before.

What is your favorite manure for the garden?

My favorite is whatever I can get.. nice looking load!!
horses and chickens are available 'round here
I love manure.. but the jokes just keep coming.
-joe-

I know! We're on the second load of goat manure and my husband hasn't stopped cracking jokes about me and my loads of manure.
The goat manure is fresh and hot. I think I prefer the horse thus far.

Some people are just lucky!

Wow, you really did hit the Motherload!

I like bunny because I can use it right away but take all the poop I can get :D

I wish I ahd a good source of rabbit manure around here. That stuff is GOLD.

The goat manure is good, but is HOT, so it's being used on some currently unused space that is being turned into pasture this summer.

I found my bunny poop by putting an ad in craiglists. I had some funny responses but was contacted by a rabbit rescue place that was more than happy to let me pick up their trash. A different sort of "trash to treasure"

Aged horse would be the nicest. One street over--jackpot!
Llama is available to me- I'm told it can be used fresh too. Its like big pellets. I should look up a local goat rescue and help clean there. I'd probably come home with a goat though.

I get a lot of bull manure at work but it's not the kind I can take home and use in my garden unfortunately.

LOL GardenSox!
I feel the same about the hot air that I hear all around me--too bad it can't propel windmills!

We'd have to get a bigger yard if hubby brought home all the manure at his workplace, yikes!

so glad to hear I'm not the only one with DH cracking loads of manure jokes.

I rented a 5 yard dump trailer this weekend and posted an ad on craigslist about wanting free manure from people with loaders. I had so many calls I had to turn a lot of people down.

Over ten loads! Ten! Not to mention the dump trailer saved my back- and it was only $80 for the entire weekend. Phew.

Good Job!! That's using your noggin.

ultrasol - HEY - I lived, back in the 80's, in Rancho Reata, in Kennewick. WOW - that much manure would really help the local soil there.

It really does. I actually live three miels from Rancho Reata,.. picked up some manure there this year too.

small world. I lived on Mata Road. you used to be able to see the house for a long ways, because there was a huge satellite dish in the yard! corner of Mata and Escolar. not sure if it's still there - a bit of an eyesore - by now I'll bet someone has taken it down.

when I lived there, I had a gorgeous garden, lots of roses, evergreen shubs, blooming shrubs, sod lawn, and big raised veggie garden - most of that is gone.

When we moved there, I was surprised, and tickled to find that the amount of ash left still from Mt. St. Helens eruption really fertilized the soil there.

They still have a vinyard up that road? If so, can you tell me sometime what's the name of it?

I'd have to go exploring. I'm still not very familiar with all the roads here. You know, I've been looking for one of those giant old satellite dishes.

It is a small world. I live a few miles into Badger Canyon.

Since I have fresh access, I have to say chicken. Last year was my first year applying it. Boy, did it make a difference. Beautiful tomatoes and peppers.

Read recently that soil comunities need both animal and plant wastes to function properly. Yeah for poop!!!

I guess this is where I need to be to learn about using Manures, huh?

I want my newly built compost pile to break down in 4-5 months, to use it as an additive for my cole crop veggies in August. Last weekend, I layered confetti shredder paper, coffee grinds, veggie peel slush, and brown oak leaves (the bulk of my breakdown is leaves). I don't use the grass in my compost cause we have stray cats in our yard... I made two entire layers. In between the two layers I added 1 lb. of alfalfa pellets, and one 5-gallon bucket of aged bunny poo to get the breakdown going. I added another 1lb of alfalfa pellets on top of the second layer, followed by a thick layer of leaves.

I have access to some horse product and am wondering how to introduce this into my compost pile. Also, how much alfalfa do I need to start some heat? I had no idea, and went with the 2 lbs., but I truly didn't know what I was doing. I can always get more alfalfa pellets from the local feedstore.

Thanks!

Linda

Folks here have kind of been tipped to chicken and rabbit, so it's sort of hard to get that. Still plenty of horse from some of the boarding stables. Mostly you have to haul, but they'll load your truck.

Dove/pigeon manure is even more nutrient dense. If there are people that keep them around you, ask if you can clean up their roosting spot and keep the refuse.

Gymgirl, by now you probably know if you need more nitrogen. Is it hot yet? Be sure to keep up the moisture, I find the brown leaves can be hard to actually thoroughly moisten.

I have fresh llama poo. It is said to be non burning. I don't want to use it around my spring crops but I have used it on the raspberry bed, and buried it under a spot where I just divided up some comfrey.

my DH won't let me have a chicken coop. man what I wouldn't give for free (well, not really) chicken poop and all the fresh fresh fresh eggs I could want!

Bonjon,
Good to know someone else who's NOT counting cholesterols! I grew up eating eggs almost every morning for breakfast.

How about wild bird poop? The birds drop their "gifts" all over my garden - I assume it's good manure, as it probably comes from the seeds/insects they ingest. I spend a small fortune on seeds for them each month, it's nice that they turn it into garden manure for me :)

Well sure! That's keeping some N and P in your place. I "feel ya" on the investment in bird food.