Using the chicken manure/ cleany out bits

[Becca]

Hello,

About to clean my new girls out for the first time and I'm just wondering how best you use the chicken rubbish on the allotment..? It will be a combination of newspaper, sawdust, straw and of course chicken poo.. Is the best place for this the compost heap? or could the straw etc go straight onto the ground as mulch? and if so, any plants that will appreciate/ not appreciate this?

Many thanks

Becca

[shirlthegirl43]

I would suggest the compost bin as the best place for the chicken cleanings. They may be too 'hot' for round plants and could cause damage.

[rustylady]

I would put it all on the compost heap. Fresh chicken poo will burn any plants you try to mulch with it, but given time it will rot down to make excellent compost.

[open-cases]

Hi Becca, open-cases here, chicken manure is excellent after approx two years, as after this settling period the nitrogen in the poo is reduced to a level which is almost perfect for the garden, and can be used on practically anything, another reason to leave it for a while is the pong & flies it attracts, although they do lessen after a while, i use pigeon poo, two year old in my hanging baskets, flowers seem to love it also, hope this is of some help for you. Keep the good work up.
All the best Geoff

[Becca]

is it worth having a special heap for it rather than adding it to the main one?

[davefromthechipie]

Hi Becca, open-cases here, chicken manure is excellent after approx two years, as after this settling period the nitrogen in the poo is reduced to a level which is almost perfect for the garden, and can be used on practically anything, another reason to leave it for a while is the pong & flies it attracts, although they do lessen after a while, i use pigeon poo, two year old in my hanging baskets, flowers seem to love it also, hope this is of some help for you. Keep the good work up.
All the best Geoff

2 years waiting seems along time . Just got hens myself and just been putting the paper/straw/poo in with my veg,weed,grass cutting bins . was planing to use to dig in at the end of the year . Hope i havnt made my compost to strong :/

[JILLY JACKSON]

Me too!perhaps i shouldnt have put mine in the compost bin either!Wont we be able to use it at all for a couple of years really?

[carlseawolf]

The compost bin is the best place , this will allow it to rot a bit before it can do damage to your plants.
The extra nitrogen in the poo will help the compost break down more easily and quicker.
I personally use rabbit / guinea pig waste around my potatoes by spreading them on the surface and letting the rain take the goodness to the tubers forming under the ground , i also did this with pig muck the year before and had good results .