Wood mulch and mold question

RubyLady

Songster
Jun 21, 2021
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We got a load of wood mulch dropped off by the local tree trimming service. They did this last year and we used it in the garden. Both last year and this year, it immediately started cooking in the damp and heat and when you dig into the pile for any reason, you can see the mold spores flying off of the mulch from inside the pile. The chicken run gets terribly muddy and I'd like to have used some mulch but I'm worried about the molds. Once it's spread out and hosed down, it seems fine, but can it make the chickens sick? Could I keep them in the chicken tractor while the mulch settles down in their run for a day? Or could I "bake" it on some black plastic in the sun for a day and then put it in the run? Ideas?
 
I believe @aart mentioned a similar experience in a thread a week or three ago - may have more advice.

I've had exactly what you are now experiencing happen to me, many years ago, before I had chickens. I was young and invincible, didn't wear a mask, suffered for that decision quite a long time. Definite danger to you, and your chickens.

DO not know how to correct, sorry. Summoning help.
 
We got a load of wood mulch dropped off by the local tree trimming service. They did this last year and we used it in the garden. Both last year and this year, it immediately started cooking in the damp and heat and when you dig into the pile for any reason, you can see the mold spores flying off of the mulch from inside the pile. The chicken run gets terribly muddy and I'd like to have used some mulch but I'm worried about the molds. Once it's spread out and hosed down, it seems fine, but can it make the chickens sick? Could I keep them in the chicken tractor while the mulch settles down in their run for a day? Or could I "bake" it on some black plastic in the sun for a day and then put it in the run? Ideas?
Are you using last years chips now? I believe they tend to do better if they're aged, but let's wait on the experts for their knowledge
 
I have the same issue, I have a huge pile from last year & it's full of mold. It sits in a very wet shaded part of the property so it never dries out. I won't use it that way for the chickens.

What I have done is taken a tractor bucket full & spread it on a tarp & let it cook in the sun, that worked well. I spoke to aart about what she does & she says she scrapes off the top dry layer only & spreads it thin in her very open air run. She said she'll mix in straw or leaves if she has them to help dry them out too. Right now I have a little pile drying behind the coop, I keep scraping the dry top layer off & adding that a wheelbarrow full at a time.

But aspergillus is a very serious issue & most definitely grows in wood chip piles (I did some research a couple years ago), it's dangerous to you and your chickens so please take precautions & you & the chickens will be fine.
 
she says she scrapes off the top dry layer only & spreads it thin in her very open air run. She said she'll mix in straw or leaves if she has them to help dry them out too. Right now I have a little pile drying behind the coop, I keep scraping the dry top layer off & adding that a wheelbarrow full at a time.
Yep!

Not all 'mold' is bad.....lots of organisms grow in a chip pile.

Freshly chipped wood is the most 'dangerous'.
It's wet, especially when chipped with green leaves, bark is covered with growing things that can bloom into toxic levels quickly.

Just go slow....outer layer of pile spread thinly.
 
Thank you everyone. That helps a lot. When I heard wood chips would be good in the run I thought, oh we have that! But then my oldest friend has had chickens for years and years in a plain dirt floor pen (she used to let them out but no longer) and they're fine. So maybe I'll leave well enough alone.
 

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