h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I've put an entry into Peer Review about the of manure in the garden.

I think the title might be putting people off though

Go have a Peer and let me know what you think... A2302093


Frenchbean

The article is very informative F/b. The only things I would disagree with concern regional differences and so don't count. For example, it is easier where I live to find cow manure than horse manure.

We used to have a local dairy - now closed - where we got our cow manure. For some reason, the last two loads we got from them had roofing shingles mixed in with it. I'm assuming they floored the stalls with it, but I can't imagine why.

If you're concerned about the title putting people off, you could always call it "The Scoop on Poop".

And unfortunately we don't have a source of elephant dung nearby. I'd sure hate to have to shovel that on a regular basis.

H

Good point about accessibility to stables H I'll amend the entry to reflect that. In UK it's certainly easier to get horse manure.

Farmers here are beginning to wake up to the fact that if they hang onto their winter cow manure, they can put it onto the fields in spring. Soil is is a really bad way here now, so all the humous and nutrients that manure+straw puts back into soil is a big bonus - especially when it's free.

It just shows how far from natural processes farming has moved, in a relatively short space of time, when they see this method of soil improvement as 'new' and 'unusual'


Frenchbean

It's the same here. Farmers use much more chemical fertilizer than organic fertilizer. Our family-owned farms are disappearing at an alarming rate. It makes me dispair for the future of the region. we have these hugh corporations who come in and buy them up. They don't care anything about the land since they have no real connection to it. So they farm it out, sell it off for housing developments, then go off and do it someplace else.

H

double

I found a woman who has several horses. Now all I have to do is find a way to haul the manure from her barn to my garden.

And I have found someone to split a load of mushroom compost with me. Things are looking up, poop wise.

H

Good for you H

I just use big plastic bags for the horse manure - loaded into the back of the car. I can get a maximum of 12 bags per trip (before the back axles start complaining!) and reckon that 6 trips a year is the minimum number I need.

I don't know how much poo that adds up to.

72 bags at probably 15kg each...

Crikey! 1080kg

That's a whole lot of poo


F/b