Planting where there used to be a run.

[Brian Pickleman]

I recently moved my chicken coop and run. It had been in the previous location for a little over a year. Is there any way to speed up the breakdown of ammonia in the soil to enable me to plant a few heavy feeding plants there this season? Anything I can do to neutralize the smell?
Thanks

 

[ChickenCanoe]

IMO, the biggest problems with growing where there were chickens is the soil compaction and excess phosphorus. That inhibits uptake of zinc and iron, causing a deficiency of those minerals.
I don't think ammonia is a problem in the soil.
As far as smell and the organic matter, there's a product called Farm360 from Gro2Max that will do the job.

 

[Rock Home Isle]

The ground that you are talking about is experiencing a nutrient over load. You'll need to increase the carbon content of the ground so that composting can take place and the nutrients made available. The composting will go a LONG WAY towards reducing the smells that you mentioned.

You'll need to incorporate high carbon organic materials into the soil and then let the ground go fallow for a season. Cover the ground with large portions of Wood Shavings, Leaf Litter, Straw or Lawn Clippings, then rototill the material into the ground. Another source would be to run a bunch of tree pruning material through a wood chipper...its bulky, but with a high nutrient load it should break down well. It will probably take a lot of material to offset the nutrient load, a soil test would give you a better idea of how much material you'll need to incorporate. Ask for a recommendation with the soil test...

Once everything is rototilled into the ground then water the area and let it sit for the summer. Next spring you should have a nice rich soil...great, awesome garden soil...and NO smell.

 

[Brian Pickleman]

Thanks!

 

[Brian Pickleman]

Thank you!