[webwahm]

I have the chickens on my allotment and have been putting the waste into one of the big compost bins.

But today I got told chicken poo is 'too hot' for plants, and I can't use it for about 2 years 

Any input?

Cheers

[scabs]

It's definitely too hot fresh.

Why not add a layer now and again to your compost heap and with the rest you could start a separate heap that you can start to use as a 'fertiliser' in a year or two?

[daisy1990]

basically any single component to compost is not a good idea, the best compost is a mix of organic material.  If you have poo mixed with straw or similar it will be OK after a year

[compostqueen]

I'm using mine around my courgettes at the moment, not directly near the stem though, so I'll see how they do and let you know

I have also used all my chook bedding (complete with poo) to fill some veg raised beds and have courgettes, squash and brassicas in them, all of which look fine.

I wouldn't have thought it would take two years before you could use it. I'll certainly be using mine in under that. My hens' poo goes in the compost bin with other garden and kitchen waste and I add water if it gets dry.  I think it should cook quite quickly 

[pigeonpie]

I use the chicken pooh and wood shavings from the hen house on my compost heap, using it between layers of grass clippings. 
My grandad used to collect all the pooh when he kept chickens and spread it on a sunny shelf in his shed to dry.  He then used to add handfulls to plants when needed, like you would use pelleted chicken manure or other such dried plant food.

[wildwitchy]

I put some of mine in the compost bin after poo picking which breaks down really quickly with hemcore. Sometimes i add a few lumps to water along with scoops of runny duck poo and the plants luv it. I also water the plants with used duck pond water which is good.

When i recently changed the bark chippings i put some around the tomato plants & veggies with no ill effects other than the geese getting in the greenhouse and eating them!!! 

[webwahm]

Some great tips here - I just started to put everything from the coop into what seemed to be leaf mulch/green waste (?) and then adding kitchen scraps etc, but it's turning into a big pile and there's way more poo than other stuff.  So think will have to start a fresh compost bin, and do it properly, layer up like you guys have been saying.

How do I know if the resulting compost is still 'too hot' - do plants get killed off or just not grow/fruit?

[New shoot]

Once compost has rotted down and become a fairly uniform mass where you can't identify the original stuff, it will be OK to use.

If you layer it up and turn it regularly, your compost should be done in a few months over the warm summer months, but it all slows down over winter, so I would say a heap started now should be OK for use next spring.

[pigeonpie]

We have 3 compost heaps on the go.  1 that we're using as compost for the garden, 1 that we're filling and 1 that is resting.  We do produce a fair bit of compostable waste though.  As we empty one we turn the one that we had been filling in to it so the top becomes the bottom and then leave it as we start to fill the next chamber.  We then start using the one that had been resting as compost.
We find that way it gives each heap a good 9 months or so to rot down.
The easiest way to find out if it's ready to use is compost should not smell, other than just like good earth.  It should be moist and break up easily if you crumble it between your fingers.  It shouldn't be dry, clumpy or slimey and it definitely shouldn't smell.

[compostqueen]

my hens poo and bedding sat in the compost bin over winter doing nothing (it doesn't cook if it can't heat up) so I turned it all out into a big builders rubble sack, complete with all the rest of the kitchen waste etc and used it for planting veg in. I'm already picking the courgettes and the plants look absolutely fine.  In another one I've got brassicas and one courgette and some French marigolds, all of which look in fine fettle, so appears not to burn the plants. 

I think the two years thing is being over cautious

[Ma Lowe]

I use hemcore in the coupe and have always got rid of it by burning or bining. I didn't think it would be any good in the compost bin. Should I now put it inton to the compost bin with the garden waste and chicken poo and are there any other uses for it please.

[compostqueen]

I'm composting it now Ma. The dalek bins heat up rapidly in summer so the Hemcore should start to rot down fast, with the poo in it even better    I water mine to keep it damp to aid composting.  All the kitchen waste is going in there too. Grass mowings in thin layers aid decomposition and heating of the bin as well

I've also tried mulching with it just to see if it deters slugs. Not a fair test at the moment as it's been so dry.  I know folks will say it burns but I think it should be ok around established shrubs and fruit trees.  I'm trying it on your behalfs 

[Ma Lowe]

Thanks Compostqueen I have told hubby so we will now empty it in the compost bin  :happy:

[compostqueen]

Make sure the bin is in full sun and give it a stir occasionally and keep it damp, oh and the lid tightly on.  If you add a thin layer of grass mowings now and again and your kitchen peely stuff it should cook nicely 

[Ma Lowe]

We have sun on the bins all day but we don't have any grass mowings anymore coz we dug it all up for the veg garden and the chickens keep the rest short. We also have 2 redundant lawn mowers lol.

I don't go anywhere near the bins and certainly don't lift the lid urgh!!! all those flies and crawlies .. no wayyyy... hubby does that  :happy: :happy: