[nuzuki]

I put some fresh horse manure in a 1.5m x 1m x 40cm wooden box in the garden with no lid and have been turning/hoeing it once a week. I got the manure 2 months ago so would it be rotted enough to put on my veg patch?

Thanks

[mattwragg94]

im sorry but im affraid its still too fresh  , it takes around 9 - 12 months for manure to rot down (the longer the better) - if you add it to your bed now the manure will burn your veg roots, so its not worth the risk - but atleast next year you will have plenty of manure for your beds

[Ivor Backache]

I use a lot of horse manure and work on the basis that:
If it touches the produce..6mths  eg potato trench
If it does not touch the produce..3mths  eg bean trench.

You have been turning the manure in the open air, so I would expect it to be dry, and that would stop the decay process.  Despite its colour, manure is a green material (full of nitrogen) so I mix it with plenty of paper/cardboard and keep it covered. It is usable when its stops stinking.

[Kleftiwallah]

Reminds me of an Inter Service gliding competition held at R.A.F. Colerne many many moons ago  There were between 10 and 15 wooden barrels of Waddies 6X all lined up neatly along the back of the bar (in Station Workshops that was).

In we stormed eager to sample the beer,  when poured it looked like watery pumpkin soup!   The youth (young enough not to be allowed in a pub) said is it O.K.?  It was delivered this morning ! ! ! !    Needless to say after giving some audio/aural training,  two days later it was passable - just.

Cheers,    Tony.

[nuzuki]

Thankyou for the replies I shall make use of it next year and shall get a lid on the box

[compostqueen]

You can get away with it on certain plants and I certainly have used it fresh.  I wouldn't use it for sowing seeds in     but I've used it around pumpkins, courgettes, beans and strawbs. If you don't let the fresh stuff come into contact with the stems it's ok. It's best rotted of course but if needs be ...

[andyandyjohnson]

I grow my pumpkins and squashes into fairly fresh ( 6 month old) horse manure. I fill a pallet bin with manure and put a layer of compost on top to let the plants get going.  They root into the manure.

They always do well. As a bonus, I always end up with loads of lovely fine composted manure at the end of the season.

[angelavdavis]

I'm with CQ, I would definitely top off the manure with some compost and plant some squash plants into it to keep it busy over summer!  I have had great results with a similar setup in the past.

[missmoneypenny]

I've gotten away with 4 month old stuff before. Just used some 2 year old stuff today on planting tomatoes. Hhhhhhmmmmm, brown gold.