What do you do with the bedding?

[Biddylover]

I started out using straw, ick big mess

it doesn't break down and it holds water, which keeps the odor going and going

. We are now using pine shavings and I LOVE It. When I clean out the hen house the shavings just get thrown out in our garden, our Corn just loves all the extra nitrogen. Hope this helps.

 

[mom2chicksandpups]

My husband tills some of ours into the dirt where he plants his garden. We bag the rest up in really thick black garbage bags and put it in the trash cans to be picked up every week by the city. I think it may actually be against their regulations, but they have took it all off for us for several months now. We make sure we use thick bags that won't tear open when they pick them up.

 

[lovelychicken]

I might have saved the site, not sure, but found out that wood pine shavings deplete the nitrogen from where you put it so don't use too much. I have composted for years, everything except grease and meat and processed foods. Hay actually decomposed rather quick compared to the shavings, maybe depends on where you live and the heat. The biggest problem was not at all the smell but the animals that loved to eat/sleep in there. I get grossed by snails and they really loved it PLUS SNAKES found it heaven in there. Everytime I'd go to stir it, snakes would come out of the holes or id have to wake them up to get them out...only garter snakes here. I actually like the garter snakes! Snails, uhg, grandmas fault (long story.)

 

[kathyinmo]

I don't know much about composting. I was told that too much chicken poo in the garden was bad, that it would, "burn," your garden produce. Is that true? Another question.... I heard that you can not put meat or grease into compost pile for some reason, is that true? What is meant by equal parts of green and brown? Thanks for the info.

 

[bethandjoeync]

Quote:
if you put it directly at the roots of your plants, and it is not composted, then yes the high levels of nitrogen can burn your plants...but you shouldn't put any manure directly with your plants...it should be mixed in the soil before planting.

as far as the meat and grease...I have heard you can and you can't. so maybe someone else can help with that one

 

[briznian]

Anything organic can be composted, but meat and grease turn rancid and putrid so your compost will begin to stink. Additionally adding these items will attract skunks and raccoons to your yard.

'Brown' is generally high carbon low nitrogen.
'Green' is generally high Nitrogen low carbon.

Without the green stuff (N) the brown stuff (C) will just sit there and take forever to break down. Without the brown stuff (C) the green stuff will begin to have an ammonia smell (NH3).

Not to be too gross, but birds don't urinate. The urates that are removed normally via urine in most organisms are, in birds, expelled in the manure instead and shows up as the white part of the manure. Urates are extremely high in nitrogen thus making it really good for the green growth of your plants but too much nitrogen will 'burn' your plants making them appear yellow or brown so you must compost it first.

 

[davidr]

So when making a compost pile I should have alternate layers of pine wood shavings and GREEN GRASS CLIPPINGS or DRIED LEAVES. ??.

Green/Brown 1:1 ratio ??

I think I may have done something wrong.

Thanx,

David

 

[lovelychicken]

Honestly, I don't make it complicated, I just throw stuff in there, it always decomposts well. Never had a smell in mine, it actually smells good if anything. Maybe you guys are adding the grease and meat to it, I dont know. On average, its the lettuce/fruit/coffee grounds/tea/veggies/grass/hay/pine shavings/weeds...that is if the chickens don't get some of the food listed here. I did go get some alpaca poop to throw in there when I first started. Don't make it complicated or you won't want to do it. Like I said I used to do it in the dirt but because of the snakes I started doing it in those huge plastic bins. I did like having the worms go through it but didn't like the snakes. Maybe you won't have snake problems though.