Show Me Your Pallet Projects!

[Molpet]

My cousin has a 2x8 run up the horse manure pile that she rolls the wheelbarrow up to dump the manure. The pile is about as tall as me, 5ft. She's 76

Nature's gift to you! Volunteer plants.



I have read that also. Recently, on another thread, I posted my idea to turn an old wood pile into a hügelkultur mound. I have started dumping grass clippings and leaves on top of the wood. Next, I will add straight chicken run compost and plan to put some squash in it. The only problem I have with the mound is that it is about 6 feet tall and that is too high for me to really work with and dump some compost on top. But maybe the pile will compress down and be better next year. In any case, squash is what I plan to plant in it this year if I get it done in time.

Here is a picture of that wood mound a few days ago. It might not look 6 feet tall in the picture, but it is. I have more than doubled the amount of grass clippings on the pile since this picture...

View attachment 4137057

 

[gtaus]

I've known where my Y adapter was since I used it last year. I placed it right next to the outdoor spigot so it wouldn't get lost. LOL

I have one of those big hose reels with a small shelf. In the past, I just put the Y-adapter on that shelf. For some reason, I did not do that last year, it ended up in the garage for the winter, then hidden by all the pallet wood this spring, and only rediscovered after 3 hours of cleaning up the other day.

Google picture of the type of hose reel I have - holds about 150 feet of hose...

 

[gtaus]

My cousin has a 2x8 run up the horse manure pile that she rolls the wheelbarrow up to dump the manure. The pile is about as tall as me, 5ft. She's 76

Nothing about that seems right. A horse manure pile 5 feet tall!? As much as I enjoy country life and smells of nature, I don't think I would care to have a big pile of horse manure like that. I can't imagine pushing a wheelbarrow up a 2X8 board to dump it on top of the manure pile.

 

[gtaus]

Pallet Wood Planter Boxes? - Update

A while back, I mentioned that Dear Wife wanted to get rid of her plastic pots she had on top of logs in her "wildflower garden." At first, I thought she meant she wanted regular sized pots made out of pallet wood, so I made a small 8X8 inch planter and put it on a log to show her...

Notice that she has 3 cut rounds, each at a different height, and previously each round had a plastic pot on top. I thought I was going to build a bunch of small pallet wood pots. As usual, I failed to read her mind or understand the words coming out of her mouth - even though we talked about the 8X8 inch pallet wood pot and I showed her, with a tape measure, how big it would be.

I ended up making a much bigger pallet wood planter box with her new instructions, but that was too big. So, third time's the charm, and the middle planter box in this picture was just the right size...

They don't look like pots for plants like I had imagined, but it is what she wanted. My job is to make the planters, not question the design...

On Memorial Day, we had to level off all those rounds to the same height, and then put the pallet wood planter box over the groups of three rounds. I sifted out a wagon full of chicken run compost and filled the boxes for her...

I don't know where she is going with this flat box type planter, but I'm just along for the ride.

I am very happy with my Black Gold chicken run compost. Those planters were filled with 100% compost. Just look at how deep black that stuff is. After sifting, it is light and fluffy and has a great natural earth smell to it. If you like quality compost, my chickens are earning their keep!

Here is a picture of my four-wheeled wagon with compost in it. The compost is every bit as black as the wagon. I posted a comment a few days ago that one full wagon, heaped up higher than the sides, holds about 7-cubit feet. Given the current $12.99 cost of organic compost for a 0.75-cubic feet bag at the nursery, a full wagon of my chicken run compost would have cost me about $125.00!

Today, Dear Wife planted some flowers in those boxes, and here is what they look like right now...

Here in northern Minnesota, we are just getting plants in the ground and gardens. It still dips down to the upper 30F's at night, so the plants have not started growing out yet. I don't know what those flowers will look like in a month, or so, but I imagine they will fill out and cover the planter boxes.

For now, Dear Wife is happy with the pallet wood planter boxes. I am hoping that it turns out to work well like she has in her mind. But if not, or if she decides to try some other design, it's no big deal to me. That's one of the great things using pallet wood. It cost me zero dollars to make those boxes, just a bit of my time.

 

[gtaus]

Pallet Wood Protective Cage for Planter

We have squirrels and chipmunks that will dig up and eat flower bulbs in the garden. So, if we plant bulbs, they need to be protected until they have a chance to grow.

Dear Wife planted some bulbs in one of the pallet wood planters I built a couple of years ago. She took a wire cage from our deck that we use to protect her eggplants from the squirrels. It's just a 4-foot-tall chicken wire cage that we slip over the pots on the deck. It was too tall and did not fit very good on the larger pallet wood planter...

Well, it was protecting the bulbs planted in the planter, but it looked a little whacky. So, she asked me if I could make a protective cage that was shorter.

Of course I would. I found some old 2-foot-tall chicken wire that was used in the past as fencing that was looking for a new purpose in life. Then I ripped some 2X4's into slats, built a frame, and stapled the chicken wire to it. Here is what I came up with...

Cost to me, zero. Appreciation from Dear Wife - priceless!

That cage will work great to keep out the squirrels. When the plant grows big enough, she can take off that cage and put it aside until next year, or use it somewhere else.

 

[Molpet]

Nothing about that seems right. A horse manure pile 5 feet tall!? As much as I enjoy country life and smells of nature, I don't think I would care to have a big pile of horse manure like that. I can't imagine pushing a wheelbarrow up a 2X8 board to dump it on top of the manure pile.

They have 5 acres less than a mile down wind from a pig farm...
every few years they spread it on the farm fields next door with his dads old manure spreader...and if anybody wants it for the garden they will load up the persons pickup or trailer. A couple times I took a couple pickup loads and it didn't make a dent in the pile.

 

[gtaus]

They have 5 acres less than a mile down wind from a pig farm...
every few years they spread it on the farm fields next door with his dads old manure spreader...and if anybody wants it for the garden they will load up the persons pickup or trailer. A couple times I took a couple pickup loads and it didn't make a dent in the pile.

I grew up in a small rural town. There was a cattle pasture behind our back yard. I'm not unfamiliar with the scent of livestock on a warm day if you happen to be downwind that day. Even so, that was a whole pasture with manure spread out. I don't know if I could handle a pile of horse manure 5 feet high. That's a lot of manure in one place.

I don't know any farmers, or ranchers, who have cattle or horses where I live now. If I did, I would probably want to ask if I could get some free manure for my composting. Speaking of which, I have seen some YouTube videos where people have chickens in mobile pens and rotate them in fields after the cows have been there. From what I understand, the chickens find all kinds of good things to eat in cattle manure and in the process, they scratch it out over the broader area. Probably don't need a manure spreader if you have composting chickens following up in the fields after the cows.

It's great that they actually will load up your trailer or pickup. That's the part I think a lot of people might not want to do. But if the manure is free, I guess I'd be willing to pitch a fork and fill up a trailer for myself.

How do you compost the manure you get? I converted my entire chicken run into a composting system, so I think I would just dump the manure in the run and let the chickens work it. If it got too smelly, I suppose I could cover it with grass clippings or leaves, maybe wood chips. In any case, I think cow or horse manure might be really good for the chicken run compost litter.

That is assuming the grass fields were chemical free. If not, you could end up with some bad compost. Here is a little bit of that problem I found online...

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Livestock can consume grass treated with chemicals, such as herbicides, pesticides, or fertilizers, and this can affect the quality of their manure for composting. Here’s why:

Potential Issues with Manure from Chemically Treated Grass

Persistent Herbicides – Some herbicides, like aminopyralid, clopyralid, and picloram, can remain active in manure and compost, potentially harming plants when applied to gardens.
Chemical Residues – Pesticides and fertilizers can linger in manure, affecting soil health and microbial activity.
Pathogen Risks – If manure isn’t composted properly, it can contain harmful bacteria like E. coli or Salmonella, which pose food safety risks.

How to Safely Compost Livestock Manure

1. Check for Chemical Use – If livestock grazes on treated fields, verify whether the chemicals used are safe for composting.
2. Compost at High Temperatures – Proper composting (above 130°F to 160°F) helps break down harmful compounds and kill pathogens.
3. Test the Compost – Before using manure-based compost, conduct a bioassay test by growing seedlings in it to check for herbicide residues.
4. Use Aged Manure – Let manure age for several months to allow chemicals to degrade naturally.

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[Molpet]

Use Aged Manure – Let manure age for several months to allow chemicals to degrade naturally.

They would give people the oldest, a year or 2 old. The problem I had was horsefly from the grubs I missed. I hadn't had horsefly since me and neighbors got rid of the hayburners, I mean horses .....and then only the years I brought back the manure.

My grandparents had the chickens loose and they ate whatever the draft horses and other livestock left. They only fed grain in the winter. got about 30 eggs out of a hen before she went off and was broody.
Predators were shot on sight back then.
Dog was fed scraps, I doubt there was kibble around here back then. Before electricity came through, after WWI.

 

[gtaus]

My grandparents had the chickens loose and they ate whatever the draft horses and other livestock left. They only fed grain in the winter. got about 30 eggs out of a hen before she went off and was broody.

I have heard many stories about chickens in the past living off the ground, without the need for commercial feed and such. But they also did not have very good egg production.

I think my hybrid egg layers might not be very good at finding their own food. Well, they were bred for egg production, not self-sufficiency. And it is very rare that my production hens will go broody. They just lay eggs and make compost for me out in the chicken run.

 

[chickengr]

They would give people the oldest, a year or 2 old. The problem I had was horsefly from the grubs I missed. I hadn't had horsefly since me and neighbors got rid of the hayburners, I mean horses .....and then only the years I brought back the manure.

My grandparents had the chickens loose and they ate whatever the draft horses and other livestock left. They only fed grain in the winter. got about 30 eggs out of a hen before she went off and was broody.
Predators were shot on sight back then.
Dog was fed scraps, I doubt there was kibble around here back then. Before electricity came through, after WWI.

I have heard many stories about chickens in the past living off the ground, without the need for commercial feed and such. But they also did not have very good egg production.

I think my hybrid egg layers might not be very good at finding their own food. Well, they were bred for egg production, not self-sufficiency. And it is very rare that my production hens will go broody. They just lay eggs and make compost for me out in the chicken run.

I've got egyptian fayoumis bc they can find their food by foraging. a friend gives me some old bread from a bakery. I drop it and it attracts bugs. I do give them some grain in the morning and evening. even my 4 meat hens are ok with that. when meat hens were contained in their coop and run I had to feed them 3-4 times more. the same with 4 layer hybrids. my chickens, geese and ducks have 1/2 acre for foraging.