Pine Shavings Question

[Kenny_]

I'm sure this has possibly been covered in all of the years of this forum, however in my amateur googling of the forum, I didn't find it. When I've been dumping my pine shavings with chicken fecal matter on my bushes, these shavings have developed a orange, grey, and other colors fungus I guess. Gases come out of various places since they are all in various stages of decay. There were a ton of ants going in and out of all of the pine shavings.

My question is.. is this OK? Expected? Do I need to add anything to make the ants die? Are they beneficial? Do I need to add anything to make breakdown of the shavings quicker, more efficient, or a more complete break down? Honestly, they are ok to me if they are just being used as a mulch, but the colors of the fungi freaked me a wee bit and then the gases on top of it all, I was like I need to make sure this is all kosher.

Thank you all for your expertise!

 

[Smuvers Farm]

I think you actually have to compost them FIRST, with other things, before they'd be usable as fertilizer.

 

[Dayrel]

It's perfectly fine and natural. Fungus is actually part of the breakdown process. Ants aren't hurting anything.

 

[mortorffsquail]

In my opinion I would get a compost barrel to start the compost process without just plainly dumping it directly on the bushes. It would help prevent the ants possibly eating your bushes.

 

[Sunshine Flock]

This is a really good question. I'm glad you asked.

It's pine shavings city over here on our little homestead. We buy large bales made for horse stalls and use it for kitty litter and for the chickens. Gradually I'd like to mostly use what we already have naturally on our land: pine needles, leaves, etc.

When pine shavings break down, it's not very elegant. They discolor and darken, and they stay looking like pine shavings for a pretty long time. Lots of rain and other material (greens like trimmed grasses) will really help.

As long as it's not on veggies a direct application to your shrubbery and plants should be fine. It's probably not much different than the deep litter method inside the coop. I do know mold and mildew has mentioned a lot, and that's one reason why some people won't use straw or mulch, but so far I'm not feeling terribly concerned when the flock digs around in the compost. They do a great job churning it around, and it's breaking down faster thanks to their active diggers.

Cheerios!

 

[Folly's place]

It's Mother Nature at work! Don't mess with Mother Nature, she knows what she's doing. The shavings will be good mulch and break down over time, complete with interesting color changes, etc. Just don't eat the stuff, and you're good. Mary

 

[RonP]

Once the nutrients from the manure leaches out, or is consumed by the microbes, the pine shavings will stabilize and take a few years to compost naturally.

As a topdressing, it will be fine for shrubbery.

 

[Rasputin66]

Hi, this is a good question. Wood chips or shavings are not effective fertilizers until they have decayed and broken down. Some wood components, like lignin, can only be decomposed by certain types of fungus. Fungi are detritivores that are beneficial to composting. Long story short, you need fungal growth to compost your wood litter. If you want to get the full benefit of your henhouse waste, you should be composting your litter before dumping it on your plants. Otherwise you are basically just mulching your garden with poop and wood.