Cold composted chicken poop- Is it safe?

[NuggetTheChicken]

Hello everyone! I have a question for all of you compost experts. I have a "cold compost" pile, basically a pile of the dirty, poopy bedding from chicken coop cleanings, mixed with some pine needles and leaves, since it is under a few trees. It has been there for about 4 or 5 months, untouched. Today I mixed it up and to my surprise there was some well composted stuff under there, the top still had shavings, hay, etc. I have mixed it and plan on mixing every week from now on. My question is that when it is fully composted, will it be safe to use on vegetables? My birds have never had any worms or other internal parasites. Can I get salmonella from eating those vegetables? To my knowledge, I don't think it has ever warmed up, there is a chance it might've. Thanks!

 

[gtaus]

Just signing on to your thread to hear responses. It's a good question that I wonder about too.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Well I know my compost bins don't get very hot. I even used to grow veggies inside the chicken run. But I haven't died of salmonella or gotten sick off anything I've grown yet...

I'm a lazy composter though, so curious to hear back from someone more knowledgeable.

 

[Raeganmh02]

I have a compost pile full of chicken poo, cow poo, and old straw and bedding. My dad uses it on our garden every year, and has been doing this for five-six years. Sometimes, in the winter when I clean out my coop, I spread the fresh poo in the garden area. I have never gotten sick or even heard that you can get salmonella from doing this. We grow underground veggies like sweet potatoes, and never had any harm done. I’d say your safe! Just wash veggies off in sink before eating. Chicken poo is a great fertilizer!

 

[TanyaTS]

25chickens - doing the same thing and was wondering too how long to wait before using. I’m still learning but I do know that you can make safe compost in cold , it just takes longer. I’d say 4-5 months is long enough?

 

[Raeganmh02]

It only takes around 60 days to decompose. After that, it is ready to be put on your garden! You can tell when the compost is ready, it will be crumbly and dark in color.

 

[gtaus]

It only takes around 60 days to decompose. After that, it is ready to be put on your garden! You can tell when the compost is ready, it will be crumbly and dark in color.

Well, I am no compost expert, but I will be lucky if my chicken poo here in northern Minnesota will even be thawed out in 60 days, let alone decomposed and ready for the garden. I suspect my compost bin will still be frozen until about mid-April (that's typically our ice out date on the lake).

As to hot compost, I watched some YouTube videos this past week and one of them said that heat itself does not create compost, rather, when the organic material starts to break down and microorganisms are working the material, that is what creates the heat. You could have a dry compost heap and little or no composting action going on even though you are in the middle of summer. Which is why everyone says you need to keep the compost pile moist - like a wrung out sponge. On the Edible Acres YouTube channel, he shows his winter compost piles steaming hot which are full of decomposing food wastes and carbon material. But he appears to constantly turn his piles when they start to cool down and restack them so they heat up again.

Anyway, back to the OP's original question

My question is that when it is fully composted, will it be safe to use on vegetables?

It is my understanding that a proper compost bin will heat up to 140F in the center and stay there for at least a few days and that is enough to kill off all harmful bacteria. But, it probably takes much longer for the organic material to breakdown and be ready for the garden. So I am looking forward to hearing more from some of expert composters on this topic.

 

[NuggetTheChicken]

Thanks everyone!

 

[NuggetTheChicken]

Well, I am no compost expert, but I will be lucky if my chicken poo here in northern Minnesota will even be thawed out in 60 days, let alone decomposed and ready for the garden. I suspect my compost bin will still be frozen until about mid-April (that's typically our ice out date on the lake).

As to hot compost, I watched some YouTube videos this past week and one of them said that heat itself does not create compost, rather, when the organic material starts to break down and microorganisms are working the material, that is what creates the heat. You could have a dry compost heap and little or no composting action going on even though you are in the middle of summer. Which is why everyone says you need to keep the compost pile moist - like a wrung out sponge. On the Edible Acres YouTube channel, he shows his winter compost piles steaming hot which are full of decomposing food wastes and carbon material. But he appears to constantly turn his piles when they start to cool down and restack them so they heat up again.

Anyway, back to the OP's original question


It is my understanding that a proper compost bin will heat up to 140F in the center and stay there for at least a few days and that is enough to kill off all harmful bacteria. But, it probably takes much longer for the organic material to breakdown and be ready for the garden. So I am looking forward to hearing more from some of expert composters on this topic.

We've had an unusual winter this year, lots of rain, but barely no snow, so my compost has been relativity moist since it is in the open, but not soaking wet, since it is under a few trees. Maybe cold composting could work for you in the summer months, and you could store it for later use.

 

[gtaus]

We've had an unusual winter this year, lots of rain, but barely no snow, so my compost has been relativity moist since it is in the open, but not soaking wet, since it is under a few trees. Maybe cold composting could work for you in the summer months, and you could store it for later use.

I am working on some ideas on composting with my chickens. I have the chicken run full of wood chips, grass clippings, and leaves. This past fall, it was almost 18 inches deep. I estimate it is now maybe 12 inches deep, not because it is decomposing, but more likely the snow is packing down the leaves. I will be digging into that chicken run litter this spring to see if anything has been composting. If not, I plan on maybe throwing some of it into pallet compost bins and try to work up the heat. In any case, I will be dumping most of the chicken run litter and chicken coop deep litter on top of the garden in the fall and letting it mellow out over winter.

I have almost an endless supply of wood chips free at a local landfill, more grass clippings than I know what to do with, and in the fall I have more leaves than I can bag. I am currently planning on building a lasagna type compost pile(s) with layers of browns and grass clippings, with added chicken poo from the coop. But, composting effectively is something I have never really experimented with as in the past I just dumped everything in a pallet compost bin and just left it for a year or two. I would like to improve on the turn around time if I can.