Does horse manure make good compost?
- Manure from large animals like horses has the potential to form a great soil additive, but it should be composted first. After you have the materials, you need to find a good spot, and create your compost pile. Select a site. Find a place on your property that is on high ground. A compost pile that is too low to the ground will become damp easily.
Where can I get rid of my horse manure?
First you must decide whether to haul waste off-site, or manage it on the farm. If you choose the first option, look into commercial compost facilities that accept livestock manure for a fee. Another option is to find a nearby plant nursery, organic farm, or landscaping company that may take it for free.
Do landfills take horse manure?
Unfortunately, significant quantities of horse manure and bedding are hauled to landfills each year.
What’s the best way to get rid of horse manure?
Often, suburban horse facilities have limited or no acreage for disposal of manure and soiled bedding. Several alternatives for handling manure include land disposal, stockpiling for future handling, removal from stable site, and composting. Some stables have developed markets to distribute or sell the stall waste.
How much does it cost to remove horse manure?
In one situation there is one dumpster for six horses that is picked up and emptied every three weeks. That works out to about $3,000 per year. If you are boarding horses, you have to consider the $250 to $300 a month for manure. That’s a major cost.
Can I spread horse manure on my lawn?
Never use fresh horse manure as fertilizer on your lawn, garden, or any other area. Composted horse manure is dark brown and crumbly and does not resemble manure at all. Mix this manure compost with garden soil for the best results. Manure compost is an ineffective fertilizer when spread on top of your lawn.
How do you break up horse manure in pasture?
Pull a pasture harrow, a piece of chain link fence, or a set of iron bedsprings behind a tractor, truck, or ATV to break up piles of manure in pastures. This makes nutrients more available to plants and reduces parasite loads by exposing larvae to sunlight and air. Drag your fields at least once a year.
Is horse manure good for land?
Environmental Benefits: When managed properly, manure can be a valuable resource on a farm. Manure can be a source of nutrients for crop production and can improve soil quality. The organic matter present in manure can improve both tilth and water holding capacity of the soil.
Where should I store manure?
The storage must be located well outside of any stream, wetland, or floodplain, and should have a slight slope for drainage, but not so steep that runoff can cause problems. It is important to prevent manure from being washed offsite to streams or lakes.
How long does it take horse manure to break down?
Manure that is piled and left alone will decompose slowly. This can take three to four months if conditions are ideal. It can take a year or more if the starting material contains a wide carbon:nitrogen ratio (as is the case when manure contains wood chips).
How do you rot down horse manure?
If you are offered fresh manure, create a separate bin to rot it down or mix it with your own homemade compost. Once rotted down, spread it across the soil in spring, about three weeks before planting. Gently rake the top layer to break down any lumps and mix it with a little topsoil.
How do I sell horse manure?
How to Sell Horse Manure
- Begin by being realistic.
- Pile your manure in a dry, level spot.
- Contact local landscapers and let them know you have compost to sell.
- If you are planning on selling to a landscaper or builder, make sure you have enough to warrant the company sending a dump truck to pick it up.
Is horse manure hazardous waste?
Horse manure is an excellent fertilizer and can improve soil conditions. The Environmental Protection Agency excluded horse manure from solid waste regulation because it contains neither significant amounts of hazardous materials nor exhibits hazardous characteristics.
Does horse manure stink?
Horse manure is not as smelly as cat or dog feces. Most people do not find it overly offensive.
Off-Farm Manure Disposal – Livestock and Poultry Environmental Learning Community
This series of articles on Comparable Parts will look at the similarities and differences between our two skeletons, which will be the subject of the next several articles. Occasionally, I will talk about a single bone, and other times, I will talk about a group of bones. Ultimately, the goal is to assist you in comprehending, recognising, and locating specific boney landmarks on both you and your horse, as well as understanding how the bones affect mobility in each species. This information should be valuable to you in understanding how your horse moves, and we hope you do.
The total number of bones in each species will be the first point of reference.
As we grow older, some of these bones become fused together.
The skull is formed as a result of the fusion of the bones mentioned above.
- A horse’s bone count is usually about 205, whereas humans have an average of 206.
- Horses have muscles that function similarly to collar bones, but unlike humans, there is no structural link of the front leg to the rib cage.
- It is gravity that pulls you down to the surface of the planet.
- Jumping over a large fence would be tedious if it weren’t for gravity.
- Also contributing to the senior rider’s anxiety is gravity.
- Gravity-resistance, protection of internal organs, and the ability to travel on land are all facilitated by bones.
- Moving gently is made possible by the joints.
They appear to be fairly tall, yet their walking motion is quite stiff and unnatural.
It is through joints that we may move fluidly and dexterously.
Try to send an email without bending your fingers for a little period.
Being born with bones and joints is a wonderful thing, but if there is nothing to cushion the points at which the bones come together, it may be rather painful.
Make a point of helping to carve your next roast chicken supper.
Chondrocytes make up this substance.
In addition to being flexible, the tip of your nose is formed of cartilage.
For this reason, it’s critical to check that your noseband is correctly set.
Cartilage provides cushioning for joints, but it does not act as a structural support for the joints themselves.
Ligaments are stiff fibrous connective tissue that connects one bone to another.
Keep in mind the time you tore the chicken leg apart to inspect the cartilage inside?
Due to the fact that ligaments have a limited blood supply, a ligament injury, such as one to the stifle, can be quite dangerous.
Although the ligaments have a very important role to fulfill, their energy requirements are really low.
Occasionally, ligaments are required to maintain a joint’s stability when the bones are so close together that there is little mobility.
The pubis is the point at the front of his pelvis where the two parts of his pelvis connect.
For example, if the horse were to fall on ice and rupture one of these ligaments, he would have severe difficulties standing or walking.
Bones provide support, cartilage provides cushioning, and cartilage cushions the bones.
Those skeletal muscles are in charge of that task!
Tendons, which are connective tissue that runs from the muscle belly to the bone, link the muscles to the bones.
The manner in which they contract affects whether the total length of the muscle rises or decreases.
You will be unable to move the elbow joint if both muscles activate at the same moment.
The skeletal muscles, on the other hand, are remarkably inert.
Rather than contracting, they would wither away or atrophy if the nerves did not provide them impulses to do so.
tendons are fibrous tissues that connect muscles to bones and act as a connective tissue between them.
Brain and nerve system are responsible for controlling muscle contractions.
Without you even realizing it, your nervous system is constantly carrying out these functions for you.
Consider how incredible it is when you think about it.
In addition to reining, Wendy Murdoch has competed in a number of horse sports from childhood, including hunter/jumper and dressage.
Her objective is to make riding more pleasant and fundamentally easy for her pupils by demonstrating to them how to reach the inherent abilities of outstanding riders on their horses. Obtain further information by clicking here:
Hire a Certified Manure Hauler
Some growers may choose to hire a hauler to remove the manure from their fields. The transporter may choose to transport the manure to a centralized composting facility or to scatter the manure on fields, depending on the situation. In certain areas, a manure hauler must be licensed in order to transport manure off the farm and onto public roads and highways. Make certain that your hauler is qualified in order to eliminate the possibility of legal liability in the event of an unintentional leak by the hauler.
The article Storing Manure on Small Farms: Options for Storage provides detailed information on selecting a site and constructing a suitable structure.
Dumpsters
Dumpsters can be used to store manure on small farms until it is collected by a professional. Dumpsters are put near the stable and are removed when they become full and replaced with an empty dumpster. The dumpster should be positioned on a concrete pad or other impermeable surface that will allow for the collection of any liquids that drain out during the disposal process. Dumpsters, despite their high cost, may be a realistic solution when there is insufficient ground for spreading and the conditions do not lend themselves to the use of compost.
Marketing the Manure or Compost
Farmers may also sell or give away their manure, whether composted or uncomposted, for use outside the farm. Composted horse manure is regularly accepted (and even purchased) by gardeners who are in need of it. During certain seasons of the year, crop farmers may be willing to allow you to put manure on their property if you ask nicely. Chris Henry of the University of Nebraska provided the photograph.
Additional Information
- Farmyard management for horses, including: exercise or sacrifice lots for horses, fencing to prevent horses from entering riparian areas, horse manure management, and live broadcasts from National Water Quality Meetings. The management of manure on horse farms, including storage and disposal off-farm, pasture management on horse farms, spreading manure on horse farms, and the production and management of stall waste
Farmyard management for horses, including: exercise or sacrifice lots for horses, fencing to keep horses out of riparian areas, horse manure management, and live broadcasts from National Water Quality Meetings. The storage of manure on horse farms; off-farm manure disposal; pasture management on horse farms; spreading manure on horse farms; stall waste production and management
Looking for More Manure Disposal Options? – The Horse
Considering an alternate, off-site use for manure and stall waste if you are not already using your manure and horse waste on your property or if you have more than you can use. In previous posts, I discussed creative ways to recycle stall garbage. Other environmentally friendly disposal alternatives are listed below.
Landfills
Most landfills will take manure if you are able to transport it to the location in question. It’s important to investigate this alternative first because many landfills charge a tipping fee for animal manure, and some even charge a separate processing fee for this waste type. Horse manure and stall trash are accepted by landfill operators for free in some regions of the country, such as Florida, where it serves as “topsoil” to cover debris and prevent odors from escaping.
The transportation of manure and stall trash to a landfill only for the purpose of monopolizing limited landfill capacity is not a wise use of a renewable resource in other instances. First, consider some of the other environmentally friendly alternatives listed below.
Local Topsoil or Compost Facilities
Look into topsoil or composting facilities in your area. In most cases, these facilities are licensed to receive animal manure. Some establishments may take it for no charge, while others will levy a modest tipping fee.
Area Nurseries, Tree Farms, Crop Farmers, and Other Agricultural Crop Producers
Investigate local nurseries, tree farms, crop farmers, and other agricultural crop producers, particularly those that specialize in speciality crops such as flowers, garlic, or vineyards. It is possible for these agricultural companies to make effective use of manure and stall trash. A number of local agricultural enterprises, such as CSAs (community supported agriculture), may be interested in receiving horse manure for composting and repurposing. In this type of circumstance, a relationship might end in divorce.
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Equine
In their natural state, horses are selective grazers, and if left to their own ways, they may swiftly deplete an otherwise healthy pasture of its grasses, leaving only bare earth and weeds behind. Horses prefer to graze on young, immature plants rather than adult ones, and they will not graze in areas where they defecate. As pasture grass develops around manure piles, “spot” feeding occurs as a result of this. Equine Irrigated Pastures: Establishing and Maintaining According to the USDA, “Healthy pastures with healthy stands of grass have the ability to absorb nutrients from manure or compost more efficiently than overgrazed, weedy, or barren soils.”
Horse Manure Management
Manure management is important for the health of your horses and for the health of the environment around you. When manure is not properly managed, it can result in a variety of issues such as parasites, hoof disease, odors, and pesky insects, among others. Similarly, unmanaged piles of manure can contaminate the watershed by allowing sediment and nutrient-rich runoff to enter nearby streams and creeks, or by allowing high levels of nutrients to leach into the ground water. It is estimated that one horse may create around 45 pounds of manure every day!
When you include bedding, the total volume can reach as much as 2 cubic yards every month when you combine the two.
Clean Up
During rainy weather, it is especially important to clean out stalls and pick up manure in paddocks, pens, and turnout areas on a regular basis as the first step toward correct management.
Options for managing manure:
- During the growing season, stockpile manure and stall waste and spread it to pastures or crop fields at least twice a year. Give away or truck manure off-site so that it can be utilized as fertilizer somewhere else or disposed of appropriately
- Manure and stall waste should be composted on-site and used to feed the animals or in gardens, for example.
Storage:
Almost all of these management techniques will need some amount of storage space.
- It takes roughly 10 cubic yards of storage space to accommodate one horse and six months of uncomposted manure and stall trash (eight feet by eight feet by four feet high).
In order to minimize polluted runoff, manure should be stored on an impermeable surface (concrete pad or plastic sheet) and under cover during rainy weather conditions.
Storage places should be located away from waterways, and trash should never be dumped along the edges of stream channels.
Composting
The advantages of composting – Manure disposal may be quite expensive. Composting is an effective method of managing manure and creates a high-quality soil amendment as a result. It also has the additional benefit of reducing waste volume by as much as 50%, killing parasites and other diseases, and producing a marketable product.
Composting Manure at a Glance
The sort of compost system that will work best for your operation will be determined by the number of horses you have, the amount of accessible area, the equipment you have, the amount of time you have, and the intended goal. There are many different types of compost systems available, ranging from wooden bins stirred with a pitch fork to concrete pads and windrows turned by a tractor.
- Wooden Bin System – This system is ideal for modest facilities with 1–4 horses and 2–3 bins that are 8 feet square by 4 feet high. Pitchforks can be used to turn manure. Windrow
- Concrete Bin System
- Piles on concrete pad
- Construction Instructions
Additional Resources
Cooperative Extension Services for Livestock and Land in the University of California LandSmart – Composting Horse Manure Horse Owners Guide to Water Quality Protection LandSmart – Composting Horse Manure Horse Owners Guide to Water Quality Protection
Illinois Manure Share program benefits all
Urbana-Champaign, Illinois, June 7, 2013 — It is the mission of the University of Illinois Extension Manure Share program to link livestock owners who have extra manure to large-scale composters, therefore benefiting both the environment and the economics of local communities. The Illinois Extension Manure Share website connects individuals wanting for manure with those looking to get rid of extra manure, allowing both parties to benefit. The Illinois Manure Share program can give financial assistance to stables who have an excess of manure.
- Individual horse owners may find this to be prohibitively expensive.
- “Now it’s free.” Stables may save money by participating in the Illinois Manure Share program, which connects them with area gardeners and composters who can use their extra manure instead of dumping it on the ground.
- The Illinois Manure Share program enables livestock owners to remove manure for free, thereby improving water quality by removing excess nutrients from runoff from manure piles and reducing the use of commercial fertilizer by growers, gardeners, and other composters.
- “With nitrogen costs as high as they are right now, manure is a highly important resource,” Phillips explained.
- Although the program was first established to assist land-locked horse stables in Chicago who were having difficulty disposing of manure, it has now expanded to include livestock owners and composters throughout Illinois and the Midwest.
- In this way, individuals might search for manure or those looking for manure who are in close proximity to one another, facilitating a trade.
- In addition to establishing the program, University of Illinois Extensioneducators give seminars for large-scale composters, during which they provide education on how to operate a successful composting operation.
The workshops are open to everyone who has an interest in large-scale composting and is urged to attend. For further information, please see this link. Click here for more information about theIllinois Manure Share Program, or contact your local Extension office for further information.
Horse Manure Removal
If you have horses, you will have manure on your hands. In a single year, an ordinary horse may create more than 8 tons of manure. The manure may become out of hand when you have more than one horse, not to mention that it is unsanitary and ugly. Allow us to assist you with your horse manure cleanup needs before your neighbors start complaining and flies become a problem. Horse manure recycling is far better for the environment than just dumping it in landfills, as is the case now. The majority of the time, horse dung contains weed seeds.
However, when horse dung is composted, a significant percentage of seeds and germs are destroyed.
Horse manure compost is a fantastic soil conditioner and improver.
Let us help you as much or little as you need
It wasn’t long after Anna and Brian Smith of Camden, North Carolina, finished construction on their barn in 2007 that the couple noticed there was an issue. As a result of having four horses in the house, “the manure was really stacking up,” according to Anna. Stacey Nedrow-Wigmore is a model and actress. Keeping horses can drain your bank account, take your time, and deplete your vitality, but one thing you can count on is a constant supply of horse dung in ever-increasing quantities. Each horse generates around 50 pounds of the substance every day, amounting to more than eight tons per year.
What are your plans for all of this?
In this section, with Carrie’s assistance, we’ll go through the most effective methods of eliminating your horse dung mound.
Why It Matters
For many years, horse barns had a pile of manure in the back or occasionally even in the front yard of their facilities. That isn’t something you see very frequently anymore, for a variety of reasons, including:
- Parasites. Strongyles, roundworms, and other intestinal parasites can lay their eggs in manure, which can be harmful to livestock. It is possible for the eggs (or larvae that hatch from them) to pollute pastures, feed, or water, and infect other horses if they are not handled appropriately
- Pests Stable flies, face flies, houseflies, and numerous other varieties of flies breed on manure piles, which makes them ideal breeding habitats. They can also provide as comfortable digging places for rodents.
- The quality of the water. Agricultural waste containing excessive nutrients and other toxins can flow into streams, lakes and ponds when it is not properly handled, disrupting the biological balance and causing environmental harm.
- Regulations. In addition to federal restrictions governing manure management and water quality, Carrie points out that there are also state and municipal regulations in place. “Depending on where you are, these may or may not have an impact on horse operations,” she continues. “The regulating agency differs from state to state as well, but the county Extension agent should be able to clarify the rules specific to the county in question.” Aesthetics is the art of looking good. The presence of a manure pile will have little impact on the value of your home or your relationships with your neighbors, and the stench will have much less impact. As the manure slowly molders inside a conventional pile, it emits foul byproducts like as methane gas, which is harmful to the environment.
A strong manure management program can help you prevent or at the very least reduce the severity of these issues. In addition, because horse dung contains minerals that plants require, it may be an extremely important resource. Horse manure management, on the other hand, may be complicated, and what works for one barn may not work as well for another. Make sure your program is tailored to your specific needs.
Spread It
Manure includes nutrients for plant development and has the potential to enhance the soil’s condition, so why not put it to good use?
If you have a lot of land, a tractor, and a manure spreader, this is a good option. The way it works is as follows: In certain cases, manure may be applied directly to your fields, where it will break down and provide nutrients to the soil over time. Here are some dos and don’ts to keep in mind:
- Spread it out thinly. Based on soil testing, just the amount of fertilizer necessary to develop your property should be applied. Manure should be applied in the spring and summer, not while the ground is frozen or during rainy seasons, when it may simply wash away from the soil. (This will necessitate the storage of stall waste at various intervals.) Spreading fresh manure on fields where horses will be grazing in the near future is not a good idea. In certain cases, parasite eggs may be present, and they can live for several weeks or months depending on the environment. It will, however, have no effect on pastures that are being rested or grazed by other species. (A strong deworming regimen, including fecal egg counts to assess progress, will reduce the likelihood of this occurring.) Spreading in floodplains or other regions where water runs seasonally or after rains is prohibited, as is spreading near wellheads and other groundwater sources, in areas where the water table is high, or on slopes bordering streams and ponds If your fresh stall waste contains sawdust or wood shavings, fertilize with nitrogen to ensure a healthy crop. When wood products decompose, the microbes that break them down take nitrogen from the soil, which can limit plant development. The impact is counteracted with nitrogen fertilizer. Alternatively, to entirely prevent the problem, compost manure before spreading it.
To learn more about soil testing and building a nutrient management plan for your farm, contact your local Cooperative Extension office. A nutrient management plan will explain your farm’s manure production, soil fertility, and suggested manure application rates. It is possible to get assistance from your local soil and water conservation districts or a local chapter of the Natural Resources Conservation Service in identifying seasonal wetlands and other sensitive locations where manure should not be applied.
Compost It
Composting converts stall wastes into a ready-to-use, nutrient-dense soil enhancer that is rich in organic matter. “It’s the most environmentally friendly alternative,” Carrie claims. “As a valuable resource, manure can help to minimize or eliminate the requirement for commercial fertilizer applications on agricultural land. In addition, properly composting your manure will eliminate weed seeds and parasite eggs that have been laid.” Use it directly on your property, and you’ll have no issue giving it away or even selling the extra to gardeners and farmers in your neighborhood if you have a surplus.
- Carrie explains that composting is simply “controlled breakdown.” Using aerobic (oxygen-using) bacteria, you may swiftly break down stall wastes without producing any unpleasant byproducts while also creating heat that kills parasite eggs and weed seeds.
- They will, however, work for you if you give them with the proper supplies and working circumstances.
- Composting is a particularly attractive option if your property is located in an environmentally sensitive location, which was a major concern for Brian and Anna Smith, who live on the coast of North Carolina.
- The way it works is as follows: Compost systems may be customized to fit the needs of any size farm.
- Many small horse ranches find that a three-bin arrangement works effectively for them.
Finally, empty the third bin and begin putting up waste in it while the bacteria in the first bin begin doing their magic, and the waste in the second bin begins to heal. Carrie believes that the way you construct and manage your compost system is critical. The fundamentals are as follows:
- A critical mass has been reached. As a general guideline, the pile’s base width should be twice its height
- For example, a pile 10 feet wide and 5 feet high would be appropriate. If you want to attain active composting temperatures, you need a pile that is at least 4 feet square and 4 feet deep.
- Thermodynamics. Between 110 and 150 degrees Fahrenheit, the microorganisms are most active, and prolonged temperatures of 130 to 150 degrees Fahrenheit in the pile interior can destroy parasite eggs and weed seeds. An increase in temperature that occurs gradually indicates that the germs have completed their task Compost thermometers (available at garden centers or online) should be used to monitor the temperature of the pile. Oxygen. Turning heaps using a pitchfork or a tractor on a weekly basis, or if the interior temperatures dip above or below the active composting range, is an excellent way to introduce air. Alternatively, static piles can be constructed using perforated PVC pipes stretched over the foundation with the ends projecting to pull in air. Despite the fact that static heaps do not require rotating, composting takes longer in this manner. One such possibility is an aerated static-pile system, which is comprised of automated electric blowers that circulate air via perforated pipes beneath the piles of dirt. Although the initial cost of using this approach is higher, it produces compost more quickly and requires less labor than turning piles. Moisture: Compost piles should be approximately as moist as a wrung-out sponge
- They should not be soggy or crumbly, and they should not smell bad. Covering your piles will assist in maintaining regular moisture levels. “People who live in really dry conditions may find that they need to add water to their compost piles,” Carrie explains. Ratio of carbon to nitrogen in the atmosphere: The amount and kind of bedding that ends up in your heaps impacts this ratio, which has an impact on the pace at which your piles decompose. Compost should have a carbon-to-nitrogen ratio of between 20:1 and 40:1 (carbon to nitrogen). Horse manure with no bedding has a 25:1 ratio
- Oat straw has a 48:1 ratio
- And wood products have a 500:1 ratio. If you pile up a lot of wood shavings in your heaps, the activity will be slowed down. Even if you have adequate oxygen and moisture, compost will still be produced
- However, you may speed up the process by using less bedding, switching to a different type of bedding, or adding nitrogen (in the form of urea) to your heaps.
Carrie also points out that if the compost is mixed uniformly, it decomposes more effectively. In the case of static piles, which aren’t rotated, this is very significant. Some farms employ a temporary storage facility to combine materials prior to adding them to the pile of materials. “In really cold regions, composting will take longer over the winter months, and farmers may need to make provisions for larger storage rooms,” she explains. “However, the fundamental fundamentals remain the same.” Tip: State and municipal restrictions might have an impact on the functioning of a composting facility.
Consult your local planning office as well as your state’s departments of agriculture, environmental protection, and natural resources for further information.
Haul It Away
Trucking manure away from the site is the quickest and most convenient alternative, albeit it is not always the most affordable. If you have a large number of horses but do not have a lot of land or time to deal with manure, this is a good option. The way it works is as follows: In the event that you do not have a dump truck, you can put manure and stall waste into a trailer and transport the entire load to a commercial composting facility. Some facilities demand a fee for dropping off the cargo, while others will pick up the load for free.
- In many regions, commercial garbage services will supply a roll-off container for the waste and will transport it away after the container is completely full.
- Containers with capacities of 12, 20, and 30 cubic yards are common.
- The cost of the service varies, but it might cost several hundred dollars per month for containers of that size.
- According to Carrie, “the vast majority of the time, manure that is taken away by commercial companies is composted and utilized.” It doesn’t end up in landfills very often, in my experience.
- They may be able to put you in touch with farms who would accept manure or biomass facilities that will transform organic waste into energy, which is a relatively new but rapidly expanding application for stall waste.
Used shavings and manure are collected by Mid-Michigan Recycling for transportation to the Genesee Power Station in Flint, which converts wood waste into power. (Details may be found on the website.)
What’s Best for You?
It is dependent on the size of your herd and the resources available to you, including your acreage, equipment, and financial resources. According to Carrie, “If you have one acre and two horses, you’re going to be creating more manure than the soil can take.” “The same horses, on four acres, may do well with composting and manure application back to the land, though. (See illustration.) With twenty acres, you could certainly forgo the composting and apply the fertilizer straight to the fields, while rotating the horses among a number of different paddocks.” According to her, the best place to get personalized counsel is through your local Extension office.
- For Brian and Anna Smith, the solution was an aerated three-bin composting system created by O2Compost (), a Snohomish, Washington-based company that also supplied how-to guidance and support.
- The Smiths employ wood-pellet bedding in matting stalls to ensure that their compost has the proper combination of nutrients.
- Several times a day, she chooses paddocks and feeds the manure to the compost bins.
- Once the blower system is operational, Brian checks the temperature of the pile for a period of 30 days while it cooks in the oven.
- The completed compost has a texture similar to that of dirt and an earthy fragrance.
- Manure on their farm is no longer a polluting sight due to recent improvements.
- This story first published in the December 2011 edition of Practical Horseman.
Materials Accepted
| Materials AcceptedRecycling facilities are regulated by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) and follow the regulations as defined in the Texas Administrative Code Title 30 Environmental (Chapter 330 – Municipal Solid Waste, Chapter 328 – Waste Minimization and Recycling, and Chapter 332 – Composting).Nature’s Way Resources is an organic waste recycling facility operating under Municipal Solid Waste(MSW) Authorization47028.Prohibited materials for composting or mulch include: creosote, CCA treated wood, painted wood, glass, metal, plastic, concrete, asphalt, roofing shingles, brick, etc. Violators will be prosecuted and dumping privileges revoked.Materials Accepted General: 30 TAC 332.3 (d)(1)(A) source separated yard trimmings, clean wood material, vegetative material, paper and manure.30 TAC 332.21 Source separated meat, fish, dead animal carcasses, oils, greases, or dairy materials.Possible Feedstock: Each material is looked at on a case-by-case basis, and is accepted based on need, exact material type, and possible contaminants. Dumping (Tipping) fees vary based on the cost of processing and handling and government regulation. Please see our Tipping rate sheet for general fee structure. Nature’s Way Resources reserves the right to reject any material we deem not acceptable. Please call our office for current availability as the following list is not inclusive but just a sample of possible materials that can be recycled by composting.Upon accepting feedstock material, Nature’s Way Resources owns and retains all rights to any revenue of any form generated from the acceptance, processing, and sale of products produced from the waste feedstock material. The waste generator is no longer responsible for the waste as long as it meets all governmental regulations.Livestock and Animal Related: |
- Zoo, rodeo, racetrack, veterinary hospital, stable, and other animal waste
- Cow or horse manure and bedding (wood shavings)
- Manure sludge and sludge cake from animal waste water treatment
- Chicken/turkey litter and bedding
- Molasses and sludge residues from feeding tanks
- Animal mortalities (dead animals such as chickens and other poultry, cows, city and county animal control, and so on)
- Manure sludge and sludge
Agriculture-Related Terms:
- Cotton burr wastes
- Pecan hulls (from shelling operations) and other wastes
- Oysters and shells
- Fish feces and silt from fish farms
- Coconut shells and peanut shells
- Rice hulls
- Cotton burr wastes
- Pecan hull wastes (from shelling operations) and other wastes
- Baggasse (sugarcane waste)
- Sugarcane processing waste
- Grain dust
- Baggasse (sugarcane waste)
Processing of Food:
- Food processing and distribution centers (wax coated cardboard, other)
- Coffee grounds, teas, chocolate wastes, and other dairy by-products (cheese, whey, etc.)
- Bakery wastes (bread, cakes, crackers, oils/grease/lard, butter, etc.)
- Candy manufacturing wastes
- Diatomaceous earth from filters (food processing to water treatment)
- Fruits and vegetables
- Grain and grain dust, mills, elevators, haulers (trucks and barges),
Food waste from grocery stores and restaurants:
- A variety of produce
- Deli (meat and cheese, wax-coated packaging
- Fats
- Trimmings, etc.)
- Bakery items
- And aged goods, among other things. Cardboard that has not been recycled (either wet or wax coated)
- Meat/bone scraps (renderings)
- Floral waste
- Expired food, beer, juice, and so on
Waste generated by industry and government:
- Waste wood pulp from sludge and/or waste water (paper mills)
- Sugar and syrup wastes (liquid and solid)
- Paper from document shredding companies, United States Postal Service (junk and undeliverable mail)
- Grease trap waste (also known as other types of oils (lards, waxes, cooking oil, etc.)
- Wax coated cardboard
- Granite dust from stone carving companies
- New construction only (case by case basis)
- Seaweed from beach cleanups
- Waste drywall (sheetrock) from new
How to Control Horse Manure Piles
If you own a horse, you are well aware that manure is inevitable. During a typical day, the average-sized Dobbin generates roughly 40 pounds of horse dung. Multiply the figure by 30 days to get a monthly total. When you double that figure by 12 months, you get more than 7 tons of garbage every year. If you have more than one horse, you’re talking about tonnage in the double digits. Batman, you’re a wuss! What are you going to do with that pile of, uh, things? Kate Light is a young woman who has a bright future ahead of her.
- We put the question out on the Internet, and a number of other horse manure managers chimed in.
- So put down your pitchfork and continue reading!
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- What You Should Do: Begin a compost pile.
- You may also incorporate yard/garden clippings and food waste from the kitchen, such as vegetable peelings, in your compost pile.
For example, you may reduce the size of your garbage pile by half in a couple of months by composting it. You can utilize the finished product as nutrient-rich topsoil for pastures, lawns, and gardens—or sell it. How to Go About It: Here’s what our horse manure managers have come up with thus far.
- Construct a composting system. An 8-by-8-foot square space encircled by three 5-foot walls will hold the waste of one horse, according to conventional wisdom. (You may need to make adjustments to make room for your horse population.) Although you can start a compost pile on unimproved land, a concrete pad will make it easier to manage the pile with a tractor in the future. This will be discussed in greater detail later.) Construct walls out of concrete, cinder block, or 2-by-10s that have been treated. If you’re short on time and money (and who isn’t these days? ), our manure managers recommend starting a compost pile on bare ground and without the use of container walls. Decomposition, on the other hand, may be delayed. When manure is piled deep enough from end to end, heat can collect and accelerate the decomposition process. This is known as containment. When using a free-standing compost pile, cover it with black plastic to help it absorb more of the sun’s heat. Then begin dumping your horse dung into the composting bin. In order to speed up decomposition, keep your compost pile as moist as a wrung-out sponge at all times. You can control its moisture level by spraying it with a hose from time to time, and/or by covering it with a plastic sheet when required to shield it from heavy rain or drying sunlight
- However, this is not recommended. It should be aerated. You’ll need to “stir” the pile in order to promote quick and even decomposition. When you do this, air interacts with the wet organic stuff, causing it to decompose more quickly. By spreading heat and bacteria around the pile, you’ll also allow sections that are colder and lacking in germs to join in the fun. Manual aeration and passive aeration are both effective methods of achieving aeration. It is possible to physically stir the pile every week or two if you have a tractor equipped with a front-end loader. The more frequently you flip it, the sooner that mound of puckey will be transformed into rich soil. It is possible to achieve the same outcome without a tractor by rotating the pile with a shovel—but it is a lot of labor-intensive effort.
Manual exertion is not required for passive aeration. In lieu of this, lay several 4- to 6-inch diameter PVC pipes (the kind with holes in them, like those used for septic systems) across the base of your compost pile before you begin composting. You may also put many pipes, chimney-style, into the middle of the pile, which will serve as its core. The greater the number of pipes used, the greater the amount of aeration that happens. The upside is that you are converting waste into a soil that is rich in useful products.
- A reader’s Northwestern town reports that compost sells for $8 per cubic yard, undelivered, and $11.50 per cubic yard, delivered, at the local topsoil dealer.
- In addition, the heat destroys weed seeds from hay and bedding, as well as any undigested oats, making the compost an excellent addition to flower and vegetable gardens.
- Downside: Proper composting takes time and effort due to the need to check moisture levels and provide enough aeration.
- The amount of time it takes your compost to “cook” is determined by the weather and the amount of garbage it contains.
- Is it combined with thick wood shavings, which are more difficult to decompose?
- Cost: Depending on the size of your compost retainer and whether you choose a cement slab with cement, cinder-block, or treated-wood walls, your compost retainer can cost anywhere from $500 to $1,000 or more.
- For pipe, passive aeration will cost you no more than $25 or less.
(Tip: Any money you spend on your compost pile can be recouped through the sale of the byproducts produced by it.) Solution 2: Make it widely available.
Spreaders break down and disperse manure and bedding by the use of a belt mechanism.
How to Go About It: Purchase a spreader first.
In order to operate the shred and spread technology, a tractor with a PTO hookup is required to be used.
Ground-driven spreaders disseminate manure by slapping the ground with a beater-driver as the spreader rolls along, then flinging trash out the back end.
Advantage: Because there is no need for composting, your manure pile is lowered every time you hook up the spreader.
(You may also use your spreader to disperse the composted soil that you generated in Solution1.) The disadvantage is that if you don’t have a pasture, you’ll have to find a nearby, acceptable neighbor’s property to use for spreading the horse dung.
Consequently, you’ll most certainly be bringing parasites to grazing areas, so make sure your horses are dewormed on a regular basis.
The presence of equine parasites is not a concern in cattle, hence contamination is not an issue.) You’ll also end up with a carbon-to-nitrogen ratio that’s too high for your soil if you have a high proportion of shavings to manure in your stall waste.
If you have a lot of shavings-rich waste, combine it with an additional source of nitrogen, such as blood meal, bone meal, or direct nitrogen fertilizer, before spreading it.
When it comes to towing (if you don’t have a vehicle or ATV), a basic lawn tractor with 10 horsepower will cost you roughly $2,500.
Used ones in pretty excellent condition may be found for as little as $10,000, depending on the model.
Why It Is Effective: Every time you move him out of a paddock or stall and onto an area that needs fertilization, you’re making a significant contribution to lowering Mount Manure’s altitude.
(Plus, your horse will be happier as a result of this!) How to Do It: Expel him from the building!
(One horse generates around $150 worth of fertilizer in a single calendar year.) As an added plus, your horse will be able to obtain his daily exercise.
In addition, you’ll extend the life of your stall bedding by doing so.
Furthermore, if your horse is one of those that consistently defecate in the same tiny location, you may still need to scatter the heaps on a regular basis.
Cost: If your pasture is tiny and/or your horse usually defecate in the same location, you should rent or purchase a spring-tooth or split-tooth harrow to break up and disseminate dung to make it more evenly distributed.
It is possible to purchase a used harrow for less than $100 at equipment auctions.
Offer it up as a fourth option.
Why It Is Effective: Something that one person considers garbage is someone else’s treasure.
How to Go About It: Advertise in the lawn and garden section of your local newspaper on a regular basis.
Contact orchards and farms in your area to see if they’d be interested in picking up your “fertilizer” on a regular basis.
The good news is that your dung mound will be carried away for free.
Keep in mind that the best place to locate the going pricing for manure or compost in your region is in the lawn and garden section of your local newspaper.
It’s possible that if your plan is effective, you’ll have to rearrange your schedule to accommodate manure searchers.
That means you’ll have to hope for (and deal with) either a large number of people who want a small amount of manure, or a small number of people who are capable of hauling large chunks of your pile away.
Solution number five: bury it.
Why It Is Effective: It’s the polar opposite of a stomping ground!
How to Go About It: In your barnyard’s topography, identify or create a location where manure can be dumped to fill in and augment soil areas, if necessary.
Just keep in mind that you don’t want to fill up or obstruct any naturally helpful drainage regions in the process.
If you have access to a natural ditch area—or the ability to construct an artificial ditch—manure disposal can be a handy and low-maintenance method of managing manure.
This is especially true if there will be horses or people strolling through the area during the day.
The cost of bulldozer or backhoe services varies from location to location, but on average, they cost $65 per hour.
Nobody would want to be wounded if they were to fall into the hole!
You may reduce the quantity of bedding you use by doing the following: Why It Is Effective: In general, the less matter that is mixed with manure, the easier cleanup will be and the smaller the trash pile will be.
Once the mats are in place, you might want to try bedding simply the areas where your horse tends to urinate rather than filling the whole stall with bedding.
These biodegrade at a rate that is ten times faster than shavings.
Additionally, it is free for the hauling!) Advantage: You’ll save money on bedding because you’ll be using it less frequently.
In addition, alternative beddings are frequently less expensive than wood shavings and are typically more absorbent.
The downside is that stall mats may be expensive additions to your barn, despite the fact that they should ultimately save you money on bedding expenditures.
In addition, you will not have a stall with a lot of bedding.
(If you can get your hands on some rubber conveyor belting from your local concrete-making company, it will work almost as well and will be far less expensive.) Look for belting that is at least 36 inches wide in order to provide the most ground coverage.) Alternative bedding is frequently provided at no cost for the transportation.
- What You Should Do: Determine the location of a rubbish removal service.
- It is picked up and hauled away on a regular basis by the service.
- (First, inquire with the service to determine whether such garbage is permitted.) If you have a lot of horses, you might want to consider hiring a dumpster.
- There’s no muss or hassle.
- One disadvantage is that your waste service may refuse to transport manure.
- In addition, you must deal with the practicalities of loading your manure into the receptacle, which might be difficult.
- (Tip: If you board your horses, you may divide the cost of the dumpster rental among the other boarders.) F The editors express their gratitude to Alayne Blickle, program director for the Horses for Clean Water organization, which is financed by the state of Washington.
This essay first published in the May 1999 edition of HorseRidermagazine, and has been updated.
Manure Management: Learn How to Deal with Horse Manure
There’s no getting around it. If you have horses, you will have manure on your hands. The average horse excretes roughly 50 pounds of dung each day, which equates to approximately nine tons of manure per year. Smart horse dung management is essential for effective fly control, as well as for environmental preservation and protection. When it comes to manure management, the most common error horse owners make is not actually managing it, but instead simply allowing dung to accumulate on their property.
It’s possible that it’s even against the law.
Composting
In the words of Blickle, “one of the greatest solutions is to compost manure and organic waste, which is feasible even if you only have one horse.” He also points out that correctly managing manure means less mud in the winter and fewer flies in the summer. Composting the garbage generated by your market booth can cut the volume by nearly half. It is possible to construct or acquire a composting bin in order to retain the manure and garbage in situ. Pesticide-resistant parasite larvae and eggs, weed seeds, and disease-causing bacteria are all killed by the heat created by the composting process.
Consult your local county extension office or conservation office for information on how to properly compost your horse’s manure.
Simply enter your county’s name and the terms “conservation district” or “extension office” into Google to find out more.
Manure Removal Services
To discover horse manure removal services in your region, search for “horse manure removal near me.” You may also inquire with local waste and shavings supply firms, as some of them may provide a fee-based service for picking up and hauling manure. An example of how a manure removal service often operates is that the provider places a huge container near the barn in a convenient location where you may deposit manure and stall debris on a daily basis. The firm comes to collect up the waste on a regular basis, and it is usually taken away to a composting or topsoil business.
Manure Handling Don’ts
Maintaining a large stockpile of manure on your property produces an unappealing, stinking, and bacteria-filled breeding ground for flies. It also has the potential to cause runoff, leaching, and pollution of groundwater and surface water. Flies seek out wet organic material to eat on and deposit their eggs in, and the larvae of these insects use manure as a food source as well. The removal of the dung pile disrupts the fly life cycle, resulting in a reduction in the number of flies. For the reasons stated by Blickle, “we need to conceive of manure as a valuable resource that is truly a secondary advantage of owning animals.” Waste disposal in landfills is prohibited unless it is done in a “sanitary landfill,” which is one that has impermeable liners to prevent toxins from leaching/running out and causing contamination of groundwater and other environmental issues.
As a result of the same reasoning, you should reconsider dragging pastures.
You disseminate infective larvae throughout pastures where horses graze when you pull (harrow) fields to break up dung mounds, which can actually aid parasite proliferation.
In the event that you must drag, do it only during hot or dry weather, and keep horses off the field for at least two weeks, preferably four.
Valuable Resource
Despite the fact that your horse is a dung factory, you may turn that manure to your benefit by adjusting your approach. Blickle points out that we should “see manure as a useful resource that is truly a secondary advantage of owning cattle.” Cleaning your horse’s stall, while we’re on the subject of dung, may actually provide you with valuable information about the health of your horse provided you know what to look for. A difference in the amount of manure produced, as well as its look and consistency, are all indicators that should be noted.
Manure Management Tip1 – Reduce Flies
By eliminating a major breeding location for flies, proper manure management, whether by removal or composting, can help restrict the spread of the insects. It is possible to take further efforts to reduce the fly population by using a feed-thru fly control product such as Farnam’s SimpliFly, which interrupts the fly life cycle by preventing larvae from maturing into adult flies. SimpliFly should be used beginning in early spring and continuing throughout the summer and until winter weather reduces fly activity.
Manure Management Tip2 – Rethink Pasture Dragging
Horses will naturally avoid grazing in places where they defecate, so many horse owners drag their pastures in order to break up and spread out the manure heaps on their property. While this may make the pasture appear more attractive, it can also aid in the proliferation of parasites by spreading infective larvae over regions where horses do graze on a regular basis. It is best to drag the pasture during hot and dry weather and then keep horses away from the field for at least two weeks, ideally four.