Composting manure for gardern/farming use-- include stray hay in the pile? Yes or no?

[vxf111]

Simple question for a composting noob.

I am creating a manure pile and plan to turn it/let it get rained on/turn it into compost and then offer it to whoever wants it (all around me are corn fields, so my first offer will be to the farmer-- then to 2 nurseries on my block, then to home gardeners I guess). My 2 horses essentially live out and come in only to eat. Any poop in the stall goes elsewhere… not in the pile. So the pile is JUST manure from the pasture. I had been fastidiously picking stray hay bits out of it to keep it pure… but there was some suggestion on another thread that cutting the manure with hay is GOOD for the compost.

So… yes or no to including the hay?

And while we’re at it, confirm that excluding the shavings is the right way to go.

Thanks!

[Calvincrowe]

Yes, exclude the shavings if possible, as they take forever to break down. I use pelleted bedding, so the pee spot sawdust goes in, but essentially my pile is 75% pure poop (stalls, paddock, field pickup) and 25% pee spot sawdust and random bits of hay. I find the hay does not break down quickly, unless the pile is turned and re-piled to speed the process. If my pile (it is in a big bin, which I create three piles in) is not turned for a week or so for some reason, I find hay buried, not composting at all. So, if you turn, turn, turn it will be fine.

[Jealoushe]

I put straw and hay in mine and my compost soil was amazing last year!

[merrygoround]

Straw and shavings take the most time to break down… Hay goes pretty quickly when mixed with used bedding.

[qtrhrslvr]

Someone who collects manure from my farm says that hay helps with drainage. I usually save my hay for local chicken farmers so large amounts of hay aren’t in the manure but you can’t catch it all.

[SmartAlex]

Hay, shavings, you name it. It all goes in. However, pile is turned religiously and aged for about a year before it gets used as compost so your mileage may vary.

The chief problem with putting hay in a horse manure compost pile is that if the pile is not appropriately cooked you can still have viable grass seeds left over and grass seeds in a garden = weeds.

[horsepoor]

This is from my side of the country (WA State), but a good source of info on composting: http://whatcom.wsu.edu/ag/compost/horsecompost.htm There might be similar information available from your local extension but I think this one applies in most areas anyway.

We compost our manure – most is cleaned from outside areas, whether the pea gravel dry paddocks or the pasture. I bed with pellets and one horse insists on peeing inside, so we have that soiled bedding in the mix too, but since they have outside access all the time, most manure is outside (and one horse pees outside only – he gets a gold star of gratitude!). I don’t make a point of avoiding putting hay in to the compost mix, but also don’t have much to go in since my boys are pretty good at hoovering it all up. We do a three bin system, so it gets turned only as we move from bin to bin, and keep it covered in the heavy rain. It breaks down amazingly fast. It is good stuff and I have no problem getting rid of whatever we can’t use ourselves, now that my one neighbor saw what we have, he’s waiting for all we can spare!

[SuzieQNutter]

Anything organic is good for the garden.

Avoid putting manure in for a few days after worming the horses. You don’t want to kill your customer’s earth and compost worms.

[Riverotter]

Wow, you guys all seem to think about this a lot.
Everything goes in my compost pile. EVERYTHING. I don’t sort or separate or worry about wormer. I put 3 pallets together, throw some twiggy, brushy stuff on the bottom and then just pile it up. Once it’s full- which takes longer than you think- I ignore it for oh, at least 6 months (I have several)

When I want it, I move the pallets, re-form them, throw some twiggy stuff on the bottom, follow it with the top layer from the old pile and WOOT - compost! Every time, never fails. Where it’s cooled, it will be full of worms, wormer residue in poo decomposes well.

If you want it faster you can sort and turn, but you can also just dump it in a pile and wait.

[The_Crone_of_Cottonmouth_Count]

I’m also a fan of throw-it-all-in-a-pile-and-wait. Shavings, hay, leaves, kitchen scraps, old tires, whatever. It gets turned only semi-annually, is open to the elements, and two years later – presto: dirt!

(I’m kidding about the tires).

[2DogsFarm]

{raises hand}
Another ItAllGoesIn here.
And the only time I turn a pile is when I need to level it so the wheelbarrow can get up the slope.
Right now it is cooking in the Midwest Winter proven by steam & ashy residue when I do my shifting of mass.
Gorgeous compost every Spring from my neglectful husbandry.

[S1969]

It all goes in mine too (pelleted bedding, not shavings). Stall waste - of all kinds, including old hay. Manure and old hay all get raked up out of the field together. I don’t separate medicated poop…although maybe if I had a horse on serious meds I might consider it…but I don’t really think dewormers are going to do any harm by the time they have been digested by my horses, turned into manure, and then added to a 1000lb pile of other manure and aged for 6-12 months.

It is true that you might sprout hay in someone’s garden if it’s “new” compost. That’s why it is useful to have a couple of piles; once you get the first to a good size, start turning it and add “new” materials to the next pile. That way it is less likely that any leftover hay will have viable seeds in it.

My manure pile did grow some awesome sunflowers when I used to feed BOSS. I hated to turn it, they were so pretty.

[Justa_Bob]

You want the straw and the shavings, it provides the carbon that is needed to balance the poop and urine (nitrogen). Without the carbon, the poops stinks more and the composting is much, much slower.

Look at the chart here:
http://www.planetnatural.com/composting-101/c-n-ratio/

And this is an excerpt:
All organic matter is made up of substantial amounts of carbon © combined with lesser amounts of nitrogen (N). The balance of these two elements in an organism is called the carbon-to-nitrogen ratio (C:N ratio). For best performance, the compost pile, or more to the point the composting microorganisms, require the correct proportion of carbon for energy and nitrogen for protein production. Scientists (yes, there are compost scientists) have determined that the fastest way to produce fertile, sweet-smelling compost is to maintain a C:N ratio somewhere around 25 to 30 parts carbon to 1 part nitrogen, or 25-30:1. If the C:N ratio is too high (excess carbon), decomposition slows down. If the C:N ratio is too low (excess nitrogen) you will end up with a stinky pile.

[buck22]

yes, hay is good for manure compost!

I get best results from mine by scraping together any uneaten hay and laying on top of freshly-added-to compost pile. The hay blanket keeps in moisture, keeps in warmth, keeps flies from breeding, accelerates the composting, and - not least important - makes the pile look more attractive - like a heap of hay rather than a pile 'o poo.

I actually covet and save sweepings from the hay barn, iffy looking end flakes, the outer layer on a round bale… any waste hay is eagerly saved for compost pile blanketing.

I pile fresh manure on top of the old hay blankets and put down more hay on top. Basically layering all year. The hay enhances the compost greatly.

[Ambitious_Kate]

So, JAB - to finish your thought, how do you go about assuring the correct ratio in the pile? What produces/contributes the requisite carbon and nitrogen, and how to you know to add more of something with say nitrogen? Hmmm?

[Trevelyan96]

[QUOTE=buck22;7933449]
yes, hay is good for manure compost!

I get best results from mine by scraping together any uneaten hay and laying on top of freshly-added-to compost pile. The hay blanket keeps in moisture, keeps in warmth, keeps flies from breeding, accelerates the composting, and - not least important - makes the pile look more attractive - like a heap of hay rather than a pile 'o poo.

I actually covet and save sweepings from the hay barn, iffy looking end flakes, the outer layer on a round bale… any waste hay is eagerly saved for compost pile blanketing.

I pile fresh manure on top of the old hay blankets and put down more hay on top. Basically layering all year. The hay enhances the compost greatly.[/QUOTE]

I think your method also assists with aeration - the layers of hay help keep air pockets in the pile.

[Mtn_trails]

I find I have an inordinate amount of weed seeds in my hay and even when composted they still come up when I use it on the garden. Any tips for getting rid of the weeds?

[SuzieQNutter]

[QUOTE=buck22;7933449]
yes, hay is good for manure compost!

I get best results from mine by scraping together any uneaten hay and laying on top of freshly-added-to compost pile. The hay blanket keeps in moisture, keeps in warmth, keeps flies from breeding, accelerates the composting, and - not least important - makes the pile look more attractive - like a heap of hay rather than a pile 'o poo.

I actually covet and save sweepings from the hay barn, iffy looking end flakes, the outer layer on a round bale… any waste hay is eagerly saved for compost pile blanketing.

I pile fresh manure on top of the old hay blankets and put down more hay on top. Basically layering all year. The hay enhances the compost greatly.[/QUOTE]

This is called Lasagne Gardening or in Australia No Dig Gardening. Add a couple of layers in between like dried leaves or shredded paper and you can plant anything you like.

Tip: Don’t start too big. You won’t be able to feed it!!!

[Alagirl]

[QUOTE=Mtn trails;7933613]
I find I have an inordinate amount of weed seeds in my hay and even when composted they still come up when I use it on the garden. Any tips for getting rid of the weeds?[/QUOTE]

You pile does not get hot enough.

As to weeds: Mulch. A Lot!

[Alagirl]

[QUOTE=Ambitious Kate;7933509]
So, JAB - to finish your thought, how do you go about assuring the correct ratio in the pile? What produces/contributes the requisite carbon and nitrogen, and how to you know to add more of something with say nitrogen? Hmmm?[/QUOTE]

Composting can be an exact science.

But it really isn’t. All plant matter is nitrogen and carbon, So is poop.

like, shavings seem to strip the manure pile off nitrogen, but in the end, it will still be returned to the pile, as the wood begins to decompose. The pee and poop should supply that.

If you want to know the composition of your pile, you test it.