Using Chicken poo as nitrogen fertilizer for straw bale gardening???

[Chicken love to infinity]

Hi, fellow chicken lovers & gardeners! I've read in on several websites that straw bale gardening needs nitrogen fertilizer so that plants can flourish. This spring we will be giving straw bale gardening a try, but instead of using nitrogen fertilizer, would it be ok if I coat it with compost that has chicken manure in it? Since it is so high in nitrogen? Thanks!

 

[Chicken love to infinity]

Oh, I forgot to mention- I am slightly uncomfortable using fertilizers as animals will be around the garden ( Cats, chickens, dogs, etc.), and I don't want it to hurt them. I was hoping to garden organically, using compost and chicken manure instead of pesticide and fertilizer. Would it destroy the plants if I don't dilute it? I could mix it with some water, or heavily water the bale afterward. I'm very new to this, as this is my first year gardening Happy gardening!

 

[RubelliteRose]

As long as the manure is well composted, I think it will work. Fresh manure will cause the bale itself to hot compost and will kill any plants you are trying to grow. I haven't tried straw bale gardening myself though.

 

[RubelliteRose]

As long as the manure is well composted, I think it will work. Fresh manure will cause the bale itself to hot compost and will kill any plants you are trying to grow. I haven't tried straw bale gardening myself though.

I was thinking about using straw bales in my garden next year and decided to actually read some of the articles I have pinned
https://joegardener.com/podcast/gardening-in-straw-bales/
I see that you want hot composting at first to start breaking down the bale.
My concern then would be with the bacteria from the manure, so I'm not sure you should plant root crops, but if the bale is cool enough, regular crops should be ok.

 

[Chicken love to infinity]

We've been composting the manure for 2-3 months, and we plan to start our garden in March. Also, If I countinusly add manure to the compost 1 a week, will I have to stop adding it, a couple of weeks prior to starting the garden so the unaged manure doesn't burn the plants? thanks!

 

[Chicken love to infinity]

I would only be planting crops like tomatoes, peppers, cabbages, lettuce, kale, etc. in the straw bales. And crops like garlic, onions, potatoes, radishes, carrots, etc., would be planted in my raised beds. Thank you, and sorry for all the questions!

 

[TooCheep]

You should be fine with it composted first. Composted chicken manure is excellent for organic gardening. I've been using my deep litter for several years this way.

Raw chicken manure is supposed to be too strong to use directly, though I have used it in limited amounts.

 

[Chicken love to infinity]

Raw chicken manure is supposed to be too strong to use directly, though I have used it in limited amounts.

Maybe if you water it down the water will dilute the nitrogen?

 

[RubelliteRose]

We've been composting the manure for 2-3 months, and we plan to start our garden in March. Also, If I countinusly add manure to the compost 1 a week, will I have to stop adding it, a couple of weeks prior to starting the garden so the unaged manure doesn't burn the plants? thanks!

It really depends upon how hot your compost gets while you are composting. We have a large compost pile that I let heat up to 140-150 before turning so it kills the E coli and ages fairly quickly. If you have a smaller pile that cool composts, you will need to let it age longer to make it safe to use.
This article talks about waiting 3-4 months from the last addition of aged manure before harvesting any crops. https://extension.colostate.edu/top...preventing-e-coli-from-garden-to-plate-9-369/

Maybe if you water it down the water will dilute the nitrogen?

I'm not sure if that would work or not

 

[Percheron chick]

Have you sourced straw bales yet? Typically you can pick them up for $1-2 for a small 2 string bale. This year prices are nuts. You might be paying closer to $7+. Quality dirt will be much cheaper. I can get a large pickup load for $50.
Where are you? Do you have an abundance of leaves, yard waste, livestock manures, cardboard...? These items can be piled up and used as an informal raised bed. What's the quality of your native soil? How far along is the compost pile (direct sow into the pile)? The straw will decompose into nice light soil making a great amendment for natural soil but you do need to replace them every year or two.
But to answer your question, I would just make a chicken manure tea (mildly aged poop) and apply it to the bale when you cure it about a month before you sow. This will wash the nitrogen deep into the bale and not leave it sitting on the top. Cover it with black plastic if you want to warm up the straw and speed things up if you have a late spring.