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NEPA roller46@hotmail.com KB3QKV

FINALLY, I found someone that I can get some manure from but it is chicken manure. Is it all right to put this into the ground after the season? If so then how much? Will it "burn" the pumpkin vines next year? Should I add anything to the chicken poop to help it along?

8/29/2005 8:23:19 PM

Menomonie, WI (mail@gr8pumpkin.net)

Use it sparingly, like 1/4 the amount of regular manure. If its dry wear a mask to avoid the dust. It is better composted than fresh...but free manure is good manure.

8/29/2005 9:01:48 PM

Hobbiton New Zealand

if it has a lot of wood shavings in it you may want to add some urea at the same time to help compost it off. I believe if you can get it on soon enough and get it worked well into the soil and get a cover crop in then you will struggle to put on to much. I have put in 5 ton into 1800sq ft for the last two seasons which is about 4-5 inches thick all over the cover crop this year is growing way ahead of last year so I say go for it.

8/29/2005 9:08:03 PM

Commack, NY

wear a mask, it smells absolutely aweful.

8/29/2005 9:11:14 PM

addison Il

dont haul it in a small car unless you have all windows open lol

8/29/2005 9:25:12 PM

Menomonie, WI (mail@gr8pumpkin.net)

The smell is bad but the dust can kill you!!!!

8/29/2005 10:06:06 PM

Rhode Island

pls be advised if your soil ph is high already adding chicken manure of any age will raise the ph even higher
we put a layer no more than a couple inches atop our patch last year and the soil ph this spring went from 6.5 to 7.0 and in one spot 7.2
so if you use it be very carefull as to the quantity
dick

8/30/2005 6:53:22 AM

NEPA roller46@hotmail.com KB3QKV

If I use an inch or two of chicken manure, I guess that would be sufficient. What is urea and what does it do? Thanks for the warnings about the smell and the ph. My ph this year was a little lower than what was suggested to grow pumpkins, so maybe a little manure would help. Will it harm the winter rye grass? Would it help in a compost pile?

8/30/2005 9:15:17 AM

Utah

Urea is like 46-0-0 ... a high nitorgen fert.

8/30/2005 10:32:05 AM

Montoursville, PA

The information in this thread is very good. Each grower must relate this data and blend, in some common sense.

8/30/2005 11:12:24 AM

Hudsonville, Michigan (michiganpumpkins@sbcglobal.net)

Dick, it RAISES pH? Good to know, but
doesn't most manure usually lower pH?

Frank

8/30/2005 11:32:27 AM

Menomonie, WI (mail@gr8pumpkin.net)

Chicken manure from Laying hens has an elevated level of Calcium. The Chicken feed they are fed contains an outrageous amount of calcium. Most of it being excreted in the manure. So if you can get manure from egg layers it is sad to be better than lime to raise PH. The calcium is also suppose to be more readily available to the plants.

8/30/2005 11:48:59 AM

NEPA roller46@hotmail.com KB3QKV

blend, how? Second question, doesn't nitrogen leach fromm the ground rapidly? If so what would be purpose of adding such a great quantity of nitrogen? Lastly for the time being, would chicken manure help the compost pile?

8/30/2005 4:49:13 PM

Rhode Island

frank
we all at one timr or another thought that chicken,horse,cow manure was going to lower the ph
all we could think of was that urine an crap being a natural source for lowering ph
believe me its just the opposite
dick

8/30/2005 6:06:58 PM

Montoursville, PA

Dick........All rotted completely converted, to humus material tests, at about, a PH of 7.0. With that, in mind, it would raise PH where it was low and lower PH where it was high. However any given years additives would not be expected to raise or lower much if it is placed in the patch, in the fall.

There is one condition that would change the above facts. If a patch's bacteria is nuked and can not perform the conversions you would still have undigested material which may not have adjusted via natural biological actions. A good indicator, for this condition, would be a cover crop that does not rot, in four weeks or the absence, of worms in the soil. The presence, of the manure red worms, indicates undigested manures as well. Worms occupy both but the grey garden worms and nightcrawlers are the worms that occupy digested ballenced soil. No worms you are chemical gardening, to the extent, that much biological life is at a very low level.

8/30/2005 10:13:50 PM