horse manure with sawdust in it

 

hello,
bought a trailer load of horse manure from teh stables, but sadly it
contains sawdust (rather than straw - not that i blame them when comparing
prices of the two things).

i'm concerned there is so much sawdust in there that mulching with it atm is
not a good idea - having read that the sawdust will break down quite slowly,
using up all the nitrogen in the process. it looks to be up to about 50%(??)
sawdust although it is hard to tell. it's old & hot & breaking down, but you
can still see sawdust, iyswim.

how long would you wait until using it? i put a very little over the
asparagus (which i mulch constantly, having put the plants in too shallowly
in the first place), & mulched some empty beds with it (going to use the
beds for potatoes in a month or two) but that is all.

any thoughts? ta!
kylie

 

On Thu, 28 Aug 2008 23:33:59 +0000, 0tterbot wrote:



We just end to apply it directly to the beds as mulch, just making sure it
doesn't come in contact with the plants.


Otherwise, try adding some dynamic lifter if you want to compost it. BTDT.

 



I would expect the nutrients in the manure and urine would be adequate to
support the breakdown of the sawdust and other fibre.  This seems to have
commenced already so I would use it directly in moderation.

David

 



Sawdust isn't such a bad thing unless it was from treated pine and then I
would be avoiding it. Also for horse manure as mulch make sure the horses
haven't been drenched for worms lately as it will knock off earthworms. Also
avoid manure from racehorses as they are feed a lot of oats and it comes up
everywhere.

The fresh smell of horse manure isn't such a pleasant thing either.

 

That exact thing happened to me. I used horse manure from stables near a
local racetrack to create a flower bed. Next thing I know I had a crop of
grains coming up in my front yard. All my mates thought I'd become a farmer
in Metro Perth!