Omlet Smart Autodoor - New in box

[louise62]

I hope this doesn't sound stupid but when I collect up the poo, old straw and feathers, can it all go onto the compost heap? Should I pick the feathers out first?

[penelope]

Hi There

 

Chicken poo etc is really great for activating compost. Its high in nitrogen & makes lovely compost.

 

You must make sure it gets composted first tho as it is too strong to put on neat.

 

The feathers will rot down too. I have 4 heaps that get turned several times before using & anything that has not rotted down goes back on to the first heap. The large feathers are the only ones that I chuck out.

[stehaggan]

I have been wondering all about this, I have been putting it all in the compost but only since i got them on saturday.

 

Somenone has told me it can go in the compost.

 

Someone else said i can put the poo straight onto my veg beds but not flowers.

 

And someone else has said i should collect it in a bag for a month and then i can put it on the veg beds.

 

So any ideas which is the right way to use the poo?

 

Also should i be trying to break the poo down (i.e. squash it) or do i just chuck the lumps on the beds and let them break down themselves?

 

Sorry for hi-jacking your thread

[C&T]

You should compost the poo, and not put it neat on any garden. The poo is very acidic, and can burn the plants - especially young leafy plants like lettuce, pansies etc. .

 

If you haven't got one, I would recomend a compost bin. Use for the poo, but also "green stuff" like grass cuttings, leaves in autumn, veg peelings from the kitchen (that aren't fed to the chooks!). The poo will really help get the compost going. Turn the heap every few months, and after 6 months you should be able to start using the oldest of the compost. We use Hemcore in the run, and that all goes in the compost heap with no problems too. If you use woodchip, it will take ages to rot down, and isn't so easy to dispose of.

 

The compost is then great to dig into the veg patch at the end of the season, ready for the start of the next. Or it is great as a mulch for larger plants - roses just love it, as will anything that likes acidic conditions like azaleas and Blueberry bushes!

[louise62]

Thanks for the replies Stehaggan, you haven't hijaked the thread...I'm glad I'm not the only one with a compost dilema My main concern was about the feathers, so I guess they are ok to add to the heap then?

[jennydavies]

The poo that I collect from the hen-house in the mornings I put into a 5 litre bucket and mix with water. I do this for a week and at the end of it I have 5 litres of brown water which I pour onto the ground around the tomato plants - this year we will have a bumper crop - our tomatoes are more robust and fruiting better than any of our friends ones

[stehaggan]

Oo I like the idea of the water I'll start doing that I need to get my strawberrys and rhubarbd going

[HENthusiastic]

I love the idea of the poo in water idea too. Could you use that as a liquid fertiliser on anything?

[Ain't Nobody Here]

Would it work putting the poo straight into my water butt ? Seems a bit but I suppose it's just like a big bucket .

[HENthusiastic]

Would it work putting the poo straight into my water butt ? Seems a bit but I suppose it's just like a big bucket .

 

 

Great idea. But does sounds a bit . I rinse my hands under my water but sometimes when I'm out in the garden.

 

Looking forwrad to hearing feedback about this

[Tutti Frutti]

Hmm personally I don't think I would because (1) we don't get through it quickly enough so it could stagnate, (2) it might just sink to the bottom and the water that's below tap level would fester and (3) if it doesn't sink, knowing my luck it'll just block the tap instead! Oh and (4) it's be easier to stir in a brewing bucket or WHY.

[sjp]

I love the idea of the poo in water idea too. Could you use that as a liquid fertiliser on anything?

yes but it has to be well diluted about 10 parts water-1 poo juice I think

I've not done chicken poo but I did horse poo a long time ago but mother didn't like the smell when it was 'fermenting'

so I've never bothered since

[stehaggan]

Ive only been adding poo to water for 3 days when i opened the lid yesterday i was heaving it smells vile, I hope it works out well or it will just be going in my compost bin in future

[Tutti Frutti]

poo juice

 

:lol:

[Ain't Nobody Here]

Do you want ice in that ?

[HENthusiastic]

Do you want ice in that ?

[Lizzie50]

I need to join this little thread as I started last year growing veg but have not a clue how to compost! The chicken poo I have been collecting each morning and just throw onto my veggie bed then dig it in. Questions: if I get a compost bin what goes in it, does it smell and what do I do with it Thanks, Lizzie

[stehaggan]

Hey lizzie, you can put veg in, Hoover bag, fruit, chicken manure, grass cuttings, paper (shredded), bits of card, loo roll card allsorts really. Try to keep foodstuff and dry stuff such as paper balanced so it doesn't get too wet and smelly. Also old egg shells can go in and slugs and worms you don't feed to chooks

 

[HENthusiastic]

Hoover bag

 

you sure

[Redwing]

You can add the contents of the hoover and the bag too but only if your carpets are natural fibres otherwise the contents wont all compost

 

feathers are fine, when we pluck our table birds we put the feathers in the compost

[stehaggan]

sorry yes i meant the contents of the hoover bag... (i have a dyson) somehow don't think i'll be wanting to compost my hoover bag

[Lizzie50]

ok very stupid question but what does all this go into? ~ do I buy one of those little compost bins and do I keep it in garden ~ will it smell!

[C&T]

ok very stupid question but what does all this go into? ~ do I buy one of those little compost bins and do I keep it in garden ~ will it smell!

 

 

No such thing as a stupid question!

 

A plastic compost bins are great - it keeps all the compost in one place and much easier to manage in the average garden! I would though say get the biggest one that you can, that will fit in the garden. Sit it straight onto the earth, or if you worried about rodents, put a layer or two of chicken wire or similar on the ground first, and the compost bin on top of that.

 

And it really shouldn't smell at all. I was turning mine at the weekend, and there wasn't any smell. The only time it may smell is if it gets waterlogged for any reason. That is not saying i would want it by the back door, but I certainly can't smell mine in our small garden.

 

Keep it well aerated, turning regularly and not squashing it down too much, and wait for nature to do her job - and before you know it it you will have fabulous compost, full of worms and other bugs, and your chooks will go mad everytime you go near it to empty it!!

[Lizzie50]

THANK YOU Composting here I come!

[chickencam]

We have 3 plastic bins in our small garden and they don't really smell, if you keep them well turned.

 

I made the mistake of putting the contents of my Dyson in the compost and now have lumps of carpet fluff, and all sorts of strange bits and bobs from the children's bedroom floors scatttered about the garden a couple of years on.