What do YOU do with old coop bedding?

[charlotte-and-the-bees]

Compost it and use it in the garden beds and potted plants once it’s done being composted.

How long does it take to compost? I've been scooping into our compost but worried it'll take a long time to break down.

 

[bcmama]

We compost ours.

 

[RebelEgger]

Show us your run and tell us how many birds you have.

We have 5 birds, probably soon to be 4, once we rehome one of the roosters.
The run is 15’5 x 5’8

 

[MysteryChicken]

We turn it into compost, & fertilizer for the garden.

 

[FortCluck]

We compost ours.

I wait until spring to use it

 

[Flockincrazy]

I either compost it or put it in my run you said no compost bin so toss it in your run

 

[3KillerBs]

I dumped it into the compost pile. Because I used deep bedding and only changed it when I found the poop-to-shaving was getting too high for comfort (6-12 weeks depending on weather and the precise nature of the bedding), it composted beautifully in my hot, wet climate even without the intensive turning and management that dedicated members of the Cult of Compost deem necessary.

I never bothered with a bin. I just made a pile -- watering the layers as I built it and dishing the top to catch and funnel rainwater. In 3-6 months, I had compost. That time will probably be longer in a cooler climate.

Oh, I almost forgot, I always "seeded" the compost bacteria by including a few forks of partially degraded fall leaves or pine straw when I first made up the coop bedding. Also, some lime will be necessary to adjust the pH before using it.

 

[nao57]

Technically, what you can do with it is partly influenced by climate.

If you are in a high humidity area, or area that really promotes insect reproduction you will have to cycle it out faster and get it into the compost pile faster.

Out here out west, we have such a hot dry climate that we can technically re-bake the wood chips a few extra times, after rinsing them off, and reuse them more than once before retiring them the way you guys have. (Dry heat.) (I also don't recycle them too many times...)

However, I wouldn't do this trick in an area where I couldn't be sure I wasn't exposing an area to mold, or insect pests etc.