Mulching veg plots over winter

[Peanut]

Hi folks,

Just wanted your thoughts on whether it's ok to put fresh horse manure over empty ground as a kind of winter mulch?

The idea would then be to dig it all in next Spring before planting.

Yay or nay.?

Thanks in advance.

[Capsid]

I think well rotted manure would be preferable. The fresh stuff will extract nitrogen as it rots which will then get washed away (I think) by the rains.

If it were me I'd let it rot over winter and then dig it in the spring or later.

[PAULW]

Thats exactly what I will be doing shortly, covering the area where the spuds are going to go with loads of fresh horse manure the winter and the worms will break it down ready for digging in just before planting. You do not see Fields where cows are turned out in the summer denuded of grass and you cant get much fresher than hot steaming cow pats much fresher than hoss muck off a midden.

[rustylady]

Fresh is fine if you are going to leave the beds unplanted till Spring. Only needs to be well rotted if you are planning to plant / sow really soon.

[Peanut]

That's brilliant news....many thanks folks

[Snadger]

I suppose their are two schools of thought on this one! Covering the land over winter with fresh stuff will stop any weed growth and look better than bare soil.
If the same amount of fresh manure was composted though over the winter period in a heap,and then applied as a mulch in the spring, it would probably be more beneficial to the growing crops?
I personally would compost it and grow something in the beds over winter!

[Peanut]

Oh Snadger....you're making me re-think again!!

So....as I can get lots of fresh horse manure i'll use it fresh as a mulch to cover the beds i'm not using over winter then leave a load to rot down for use next year!!

Sorted!

[walldanzig]

why not do both as an experiment one bed mulch the other added in spring

[Tam]

I never use fresh horse manure as I find that it always introduces loads of weeds. Horses don't digest seeds = just distribute them. Cow manure doesn't have this problem as before excretion practically everything has been thoroughly digested.

[Snadger]

Oh Snadger....you're making me re-think again!!

So....as I can get lots of fresh horse manure i'll use it fresh as a mulch to cover the beds i'm not using over winter then leave a load to rot down for use next year!!

Sorted!

Belt and braces !

[Two_Sheds]

I never use horse muck, but do sprinkle green manures on any bare soil for the winter. It gets dug in or composted in the spring.
Does a fab job at keeping the weeds down.

[gojiberry]

I always like to have all beds covered with something over the winter. So if it isn't fresh horse manure then it needs to be a winter crop, green manure or black polythene. Personally I would go with the horse manure covered with black polythene. That way the manure will rot down and encourage a good worm population and keep the weeds down, and stop the rain washing nutrients away.

Ian

[PAULW]

I never use fresh horse manure as I find that it always introduces loads of weeds. Horses don't digest seeds = just distribute them. Cow manure doesn't have this problem as before excretion practically everything has been thoroughly digested.

But if you didn't introduce weed seeds on to your plot you would have nothing to do

[Peanut]

Weeds don't bother me!

Have hoe...will use it!!