Composting in the chicken run?

[Henrik Petersson]

Hey guys! I'm bumping this thread because I have a simple question.

We always collect chicken poop from the poop board, the backyard, even the chicken run, and put it on the compost. But if I have the compost pile in the chicken run - where to put the poop?

 

[myfivegirls]

Hey guys! I'm bumping this thread because I have a simple question.

We always collect chicken poop from the poop board, the backyard, even the chicken run, and put it on the compost. But if I have the compost pile in the chicken run - where to put the poop?

I put the chicken poop right in the compost & cover it with other "brown" materials - either soiled/wet bedding from the coop, leaves, etc.

 

[lazy gardener]

Hey guys! I'm bumping this thread because I have a simple question.

We always collect chicken poop from the poop board, the backyard, even the chicken run, and put it on the compost. But if I have the compost pile in the chicken run - where to put the poop?

That is the question of the day. I find myself asking that question, even when I have a shovel full of dog poo! So many possibilities! Does I fling it in the woods around the orchard to deter deer? Does I fling it behind the chicken run to deter predators? Does I bury it at the bottom of the next section of HK mound? Does I fling it around the slash pile to deter ground hogs? Or Does I put it in it's dedicated doggie poo compost pile? Bottom line, put it where ever you think it will do the most good.

 

[Henrik Petersson]

I put the chicken poop right in the compost & cover it with other "brown" materials - either soiled/wet bedding from the coop, leaves, etc.

Thanks!

That is the question of the day. I find myself asking that question, even when I have a shovel full of dog poo! So many possibilities! Does I fling it in the woods around the orchard to deter deer? Does I fling it behind the chicken run to deter predators? Does I bury it at the bottom of the next section of HK mound? Does I fling it around the slash pile to deter ground hogs? Or Does I put it in it's dedicated doggie poo compost pile? Bottom line, put it where ever you think it will do the most good.

It's more about "where will it do the least amount of damage". A basic tenet of animal care in general is to do your utmost to keep your animals away from their poop. And to by all means make sure they don't eat it. So it seems counter-intuitive to put more poop into the coop. But you're saying it's a good thing to do in this case?

 

[myfivegirls]

Quote:
It also depends on the size of your chicken yard. I have a huge area, so the compost pile where I add the poop & litter from cleaning out the coops isn't what they have to walk on every single day. They have other places to walk, scratch & dig that's mulched/compost. So, no, I wouldn't put more poop IN the coop, that's asking for issues. But if your chicken yard allows a deeper compost pile in one section, that's where I'd put the chicken poop. If you have a smaller chicken yard, then it might be better to put it in a compost pile outside the chicken yard.

 

[Henrik Petersson]

It also depends on the size of your chicken yard. I have a huge area, so the compost pile where I add the poop & litter from cleaning out the coops isn't what they have to walk on every single day. They have other places to walk, scratch & dig that's mulched/compost. So, no, I wouldn't put more poop IN the coop, that's asking for issues. But if your chicken yard allows a deeper compost pile in one section, that's where I'd put the chicken poop. If you have a smaller chicken yard, then it might be better to put it in a compost pile outside the chicken yard.

Thank you!

Our chicken pen is large, but not huge. Some 40 by 40 feet for 12 chickens, with a lot of bushes in there. So it would feel better to go in the non chicken poop direction.

Which begs the question: Which compost should I put in the chicken run, and which should I put with the poop? Should I just divide all compost 50/50 between the two places?

 

[myfivegirls]

It also depends on the size of your chicken yard. I have a huge area, so the compost pile where I add the poop & litter from cleaning out the coops isn't what they have to walk on every single day. They have other places to walk, scratch & dig that's mulched/compost. So, no, I wouldn't put more poop IN the coop, that's asking for issues. But if your chicken yard allows a deeper compost pile in one section, that's where I'd put the chicken poop. If you have a smaller chicken yard, then it might be better to put it in a compost pile outside the chicken yard.

Thank you!

Our chicken pen is large, but not huge. Some 40 by 40 feet for 12 chickens, with a lot of bushes in there. So it would feel better to go in the non chicken poop direction.

Which begs the question: Which compost should I put in the chicken run, and which should I put with the poop? Should I just divide all compost 50/50 between the two places?

If you're going to do separate compost piles...

What I'd do is use leaves, grass clippings, food scraps, wood chips, shavings, etc in the chicken yard compost.

Then, in your outside compost - put the chicken coop litter & poop in that pile. If the carbon ratio needs to be more, then add extra "brown material"; primarily, put your compost in with the chickens, except for what you feel you don't want in there.

But, for what I do, I keep it simple & just keep everything in the chicken yard, even in yards smaller than 50sq ft - otherwise I'd be hauling a lot!

Another option, is to do compost "rings" inside the yard with fencing - that way they don't have access to it, but it's still close by. I just saw a video of a guy doing this. I'll find the link.

 

[myfivegirls]

Chicken Compost - Spring 2017 update

 

[Henrik Petersson]

If you're going to do separate compost piles...

What I'd do is use leaves, grass clippings, food scraps, wood chips, shavings, etc in the chicken yard compost.

Then, in your outside compost - put the chicken coop litter & poop in that pile. If the carbon ratio needs to be more, then add extra "brown material"; primarily, put your compost in with the chickens, except for what you feel you don't want in there.

But, for what I do, I keep it simple & just keep everything in the chicken yard, even in yards smaller than 50sq ft - otherwise I'd be hauling a lot!

Another option, is to do compost "rings" inside the yard with fencing - that way they don't have access to it, but it's still close by. I just saw a video of a guy doing this. I'll find the link.

Thank you!

I've read a bit more about the subject of compost in the chicken run. Most sources don't mention the poop issue at all - an oversight, if you ask me - but I've read one person who didn't do it, and one who did. At least one person put manure from cattle in there, but since that's a completely different animal from chicken, I guess their poop is less harmful to them? Most write that they put "all the compost" in there, but in the pictures, I can make out a lot of plants, but not one definite piece of chicken poop.

Seems as if I'll have to use my own common sense... *Sigh* Don't you hate it when it comes to that?

I'm leaning towards putting the poop + bedding in one place, and all the other compost with the chickens. There's an awful lot of poop, perhaps as much as 1/2 the current compost, which to me doesn't seem nice to scratch in for a chicken.

 

[lazy gardener]

Quote:

That is the question of the day. I find myself asking that question, even when I have a shovel full of dog poo! So many possibilities! Does I fling it in the woods around the orchard to deter deer? Does I fling it behind the chicken run to deter predators? Does I bury it at the bottom of the next section of HK mound? Does I fling it around the slash pile to deter ground hogs? Or Does I put it in it's dedicated doggie poo compost pile? Bottom line, put it where ever you think it will do the most good.

It's more about "where will it do the least amount of damage". A basic tenet of animal care in general is to do your utmost to keep your animals away from their poop. And to by all means make sure they don't eat it. So it seems counter-intuitive to put more poop into the coop. But you're saying it's a good thing to do in this case?

Choose your own method. But, it seems counter intuitive to me to go to great lengths to keep the chicken poo out of the run, where it will mix in with all of the high carbon materials that you are putting into that run, and it will feed the micro and macro organisms while it speeds the breakdown process. Why separate the chicken poop out of the mix, and worry about them having contact with it, when there are copious amounts of it in the bedding right in the coop? They have plenty of contact with their own poo right there!!! Also, I DL in the coop AND in the run, so it makes no sense for me to spend the extra time and effort hauling that coop bedding all the way through the run to some distant compost pile, when it can compost right there in the run. I will clarify, that I would never put dog or cat poo in the coop or run. I would put poo from hooved animals and turkeys in the run.

Good discussion, HP. An other aspect of poo management that is discussed in great length in Harvey Ussery's book, The Small-Scale Poultry Flock: An All-Natural Approach to Raising Chickens and Other Fowl for Home and Market Growers, is to pay close attention to your soil nutrient levels. It's possible to overload your soil with Phosphorous. Particularly if you have a flock that is larger than your property can manage. He lays out management plans to help deal with that issue. Also important to see to it that we don't have nutrient run off that can have an adverse effect on plant and animal life down stream from us.