Compost

[becann99]

Hi,
I am new to this whole thing and My chicks have not even been hatched yet but I have a question. When you clean out the coop how do you compost the poop and shavings effectively that works for you. I guess I a looking for the ideas for a small coop with a small flock a few so there will not be a ton but I am sure it cant go right into the garden there has to be some kind of bin it should go into it and turned for a amount of time. Looking for the secrets to the compost as I have never compost before.

Thanks

 

[Fred's Hens]

Here's what works for me. Bear in mind, we live on a small farmette.

From late September thru March, I take the litter directly to the garden and methodically spread it, attempting to cover the entire 1/2 acre garden. From April thru September, our growing season, manure should not be applied as plants are growing.

I just pile it up. I might turn it a couple times during the summer. When September comes again, I spread that half rotted pile.

 

[vfem]

I agree, if you want to put directly into the garden, do it when the garden is empty and over winter it. Turn in the late winter early spring and make sure its broken down enough before planting as not to burn roots of new plants.

I personally put everything right into a compost pile with yard clippings and our food waste from the house the chickens don't want.

That's some valuable stuff you are going to have there!!!

 

[galanie]

Spread it out, wet it down, pile it up. All of it should be moist. If it's pretty dry and you pile it then run the hose on it, most of the water will run off. You can just pile it up and let the rain wet it, but it'll take a lot longer that way. You need a pile around 4x4x4 to effectively compost but you know, if you pile it and wait long enough, everything rots. Compost needs nitrogen (which yes, chick poo is full of but you might need grass clippings too in order to get enough) and carbon (which shavings are REALLY full of). Get the right combination and have it moist enough for the microbes to get busy and it will heat up and be steaming in no time.

What I with the brooder bedding is just put it right on my rose beds. But this really isn't very much stuff so even though fresh it doesn't burn and I wait to water it in. For some reason the weather guy keeps telling me I'll get rain and yet I never get any, darn him!

There is an art to making compost quickly and well, but really most of us don't care to spend our time and energy that way and just pile the stuff up and wait. I make sure it's moist because usually what I compost starts out dry and I find it speeds the process up considerably just to make sure the whole pile is moist through and through (like a wet sponge) to begin with. I could get it quicker but due to back problems I can't be turning it a lot.

A lot of people use the deep litter method and let it compost right in the coop. You have to be able to accommodate a foot thick layer of litter for this. I'm no expert on deep litter though, that's about all I know about it. My coop wont' let me put that much in it or I'd never be able to open the doors and it would be coming out the open wire front. It doesn't get very dirty though since most gets on the poop board and I scrape it off every couple days.

Which brings us to another thing: Use a poop board! Have a board or piece of plywood (preferably painted or even covered with flooring) under their roost. That's where most of the poo will end up. Then you can scape it off and next you'll be wondering the best thing to do with pure poopoo hehe.

 

[h8snags]

Great question, thanks for asking! I am wondering the same thing! Thanks to those who have answered already, good info!

 

[juliette2009]

I agree with the above posts...never use it straight from the birds, it's way too hot!

Juliette