garden composting + chicken poop

[6chickens in St. Charles]

New idea: I have everything it takes to make a fantastic garden, but I dont know how. I need help. This is why:

My family has celiac disease, so we cook produce every day and could easily pile up all those scraps into compost, then I would enjoy growing more cukes/carrots etc in my own garden!

My 6 little chickens will be moving into a little coop and run in a few weeks, where their poop will be easily contained in a manageable little 6X8 ft heap.

So, does anybody know about composting with chicken poop? I tried one black plastic compost device, but I failed. It has growing onions in it and lots of spiderwebs and the whole thing smells like mold. I never added chicken poop to it. But I sure won't be adding any of that moldy stuff to a garden I want to eat from! I have a bum shoulder, so I never was able to turn the contents of it. I believe my compost pile will have to be different so I can get in and maybe flip the contents over.

I try to use Square Foot Gardening, so I have that book. But if anybody has pictures of a good way that works for them, please post!

 

[cyrixlord]

Just get a nice tumbling composter. its basically a 55 gallon drum that you can easily rotate on a U shaped platform that it rests on. I put leaves, food scraps, bread, hay, lawn clippings, chicken poo i shovel in there, and my shredded bills

rotate once or twice a week when you're in the chicken coop and in a few months boom! you have compost! no heavy lifting just a quick spin. They also have a composter that can dump the contents on the ground when its 'done'. good times! I have the regular composters which are plastic containers I fill. when i want dirt i shovel the compost into a 2 foot by 2 foot hardware cloth mesh bottomed strainer and the girls just hop up there and scratch away at it and the good stuff falls through the mesh. they even hop down on cue

http://tamanaka.com/MainGallery/ImageAndCaption.aspx?ImgID=463
my composters are in the upper left hand corner. they poo in those containers. be sure to use plenty of water in your composter to get things going, like when it rains just leave the lids open for a day unless its a downpour all day

hope it helps and good luck!

 

[6chickens in St. Charles]

If I want to compost my chicken's poop, what bedding for their run is best for this?

What if I kept their run floor AS a composter? Some dirt, some scraps, some leaves...chickens scratching through it and pooping.....

No wait. That sounds like a garbage heap. Never mind.

 

[CoyoteMagic]

You are going to get all kinds of replies, lol

1. If you want a "composter" get a 50 gallon drum that still has it's top. Make sure it has only contained food grade material. Drill a few 3/8 inch holes around it. Cut a 2ft x 2xft hole in the side. This is where you will put debris in and take compost out. Screw a couple of hindges into the piece of plastic that was removed and a hasp, reconnect it to the drum. Toss in your "to be composted" materials in small amounts. (couple shovel fulls at a time not a truck load) I toss in a couple rocks to keep things broke up. Latch it closed, let the kids roll it around the yard every other day.

2. Or get a few pallets. Make a square. Toss stuff in. Flip it around every now and then. You can build this with one low side so that the chickens go in and do the flipping for you.

My method.

Take all the stuff you are gonna compost, throw it into the run. Take all your old bedding and such, throw it into the run. Maybe an old bale of straw or 2 to get wet and rot down. Go the run in the fall, rake it all up, put it in the garden beds and let it rest over winter. In the spring your beds will be ready to go and you will have enough produce to give to your neighbors, their neighbors and the local soup kitchen!!!

 

[6chickens in St. Charles]

what's the best bedding to compost?

DH says don't use newspaper, its no longer made with soy ink, now its toner, which is toxic.

 

[CoyoteMagic]

I just use straw or wood shavings. News paper can get slippery, especially with chicks. I know colored print contains heavy metals