Is Manure Happening to You? Part 2 of 2
by Alayne Blickle, Horses for Clean Water
Stockpiling manure behind the barn eats up a lot of valuable space, plus it is annoying and unsightly. You and your neighbors probably don’t appreciate the odors, insects, and runoff it causes. In addition, in many parts of the country there are laws that prohibit an uncovered manure pile from accumulating for too long. Last month, we began with two alternatives to simply stacking stall waste and the pros and cons of each. This month, we finish off with three more.
Remember that all manure management options begin with cleaning stalls and picking up the manure in paddocks, pens, and turnout areas on a regular basis, at least every 3 days (to help break the parasite reinfestation cycle). Also, you need to cover your manure pile or bin with a tarp, plastic sheet, or a roof. Covering prevents the valuable nutrients you're saving for the pasture from being washed away.
Give Away All the Manure Produced on Your Property
Advantages: If you advertise well and your pile is in a good location, you may be able to attract enough people to take all your manure. This is a useful option for small horse places without pasture or enough land to utilize the manure produced. This works particularly well in urban areas where neighbors are avid gardeners or natural landscapers.
Disadvantages: Manure can be harder to get rid of than compost, and it can take time and effort to attract enough people to your site to get rid of it all. If your manure pile isn’t easily accessed, it can be a nuisance to meet and help people interested in taking it. This is not as feasible an option for commercial facilities that regularly generate large volumes of material.
Costs: Advertising is the primary expense, although there are many creative ways you can advertise for free, such as on the Internet, in flower and garden clubs, or at local nurseries. If you will be generating larger quantities of material, you may want to give it away in large amounts. In that case a tractor with a front loader makes your product more “attractive” for the small gardener with a pickup.
Give Away or Sell Your Compost
Advantages: Compost can be a lot easier to give away or even sell than manure. If you’ve got nice compost, you probably won’t have to work too hard to get people to come and take what you produce. If you’re able to deliver it to landscapers, tree farms, or topsoil companies, you may be able to charge for it and actually make money on your compost.
Disadvantages: Composting requires an initial investment and ongoing labor, the amount of both dependant on the size of your operation. You’ll have to put some time into researching companies that will pay for compost, and you most likely will have to haul it to their site.
Costs: The costs of getting a good composting system started vary, but you may be able to make a profit on your investment. If you’re hauling your compost off-site, you’ll need equipment for loading and transport.
Haul Manure (Or Have it Hauled) Off Your Premises on a Regular Basis
Advantages: May require less energy and time on your part than the options above. Paying to dispose of manure off-site may be the easiest way to go if you have a mountain of manure, lack storage space, or don’t have time to research or implement other options.
Disadvantages: If you have to hire out for this it can be more expensive than other options, and it requires an initial time investment to research potential sites.
Costs: If you have the equipment to do your own hauling, you can haul your stall waste to a composting facility or topsoil company. Some compost or topsoil facilities rent drop boxes they will deliver and empty. They usually charge pick-up, rental, and disposal fees. Check with your local garbage hauler or shavings supplier, as they may be able to pick up and haul away stall waste as well. (Note: In this situation, be sure that stall waste hauled off your property is going to a renewable use and not to the landfill. Stall waste is a valuable, renewable resource and should not end up taking up space in a landfill.)
Having a manure management system on your horse property is part of responsible horse ownership; diligence about manure management is just as important as properly fitting tack, a sound nutrition program, trailering safety, and the many other aspects of owning horses. The benefits are many: proper manure management will reduce the parasite load for your horse; cut down on mud, flies, odors and runoff; improve pastures and reduce costs for fertilizers; improve the neighborhood esthetics; and make the environment a lot healthier, too. And with an effective manure management plan in place, you will know just what to do when manure happens!
Happy Horsekeeping!
~Alayne
Did you miss part 1 of this series? Find it in our old archives.
Stockpiling manure behind the barn eats up a lot of valuable space, plus it is annoying and unsightly. You and your neighbors probably don’t appreciate the odors, insects, and runoff it causes. In addition, in many parts of the country there are laws that prohibit an uncovered manure pile from accumulating for too long. Last month, we began with two alternatives to simply stacking stall waste and the pros and cons of each. This month, we finish off with three more.
Remember that all manure management options begin with cleaning stalls and picking up the manure in paddocks, pens, and turnout areas on a regular basis, at least every 3 days (to help break the parasite reinfestation cycle). Also, you need to cover your manure pile or bin with a tarp, plastic sheet, or a roof. Covering prevents the valuable nutrients you're saving for the pasture from being washed away.
Give Away All the Manure Produced on Your Property
Advantages: If you advertise well and your pile is in a good location, you may be able to attract enough people to take all your manure. This is a useful option for small horse places without pasture or enough land to utilize the manure produced. This works particularly well in urban areas where neighbors are avid gardeners or natural landscapers.
Disadvantages: Manure can be harder to get rid of than compost, and it can take time and effort to attract enough people to your site to get rid of it all. If your manure pile isn’t easily accessed, it can be a nuisance to meet and help people interested in taking it. This is not as feasible an option for commercial facilities that regularly generate large volumes of material.
Costs: Advertising is the primary expense, although there are many creative ways you can advertise for free, such as on the Internet, in flower and garden clubs, or at local nurseries. If you will be generating larger quantities of material, you may want to give it away in large amounts. In that case a tractor with a front loader makes your product more “attractive” for the small gardener with a pickup.
Give Away or Sell Your Compost
Advantages: Compost can be a lot easier to give away or even sell than manure. If you’ve got nice compost, you probably won’t have to work too hard to get people to come and take what you produce. If you’re able to deliver it to landscapers, tree farms, or topsoil companies, you may be able to charge for it and actually make money on your compost.
Disadvantages: Composting requires an initial investment and ongoing labor, the amount of both dependant on the size of your operation. You’ll have to put some time into researching companies that will pay for compost, and you most likely will have to haul it to their site.
Costs: The costs of getting a good composting system started vary, but you may be able to make a profit on your investment. If you’re hauling your compost off-site, you’ll need equipment for loading and transport.
Haul Manure (Or Have it Hauled) Off Your Premises on a Regular Basis
Advantages: May require less energy and time on your part than the options above. Paying to dispose of manure off-site may be the easiest way to go if you have a mountain of manure, lack storage space, or don’t have time to research or implement other options.
Disadvantages: If you have to hire out for this it can be more expensive than other options, and it requires an initial time investment to research potential sites.
Costs: If you have the equipment to do your own hauling, you can haul your stall waste to a composting facility or topsoil company. Some compost or topsoil facilities rent drop boxes they will deliver and empty. They usually charge pick-up, rental, and disposal fees. Check with your local garbage hauler or shavings supplier, as they may be able to pick up and haul away stall waste as well. (Note: In this situation, be sure that stall waste hauled off your property is going to a renewable use and not to the landfill. Stall waste is a valuable, renewable resource and should not end up taking up space in a landfill.)
Having a manure management system on your horse property is part of responsible horse ownership; diligence about manure management is just as important as properly fitting tack, a sound nutrition program, trailering safety, and the many other aspects of owning horses. The benefits are many: proper manure management will reduce the parasite load for your horse; cut down on mud, flies, odors and runoff; improve pastures and reduce costs for fertilizers; improve the neighborhood esthetics; and make the environment a lot healthier, too. And with an effective manure management plan in place, you will know just what to do when manure happens!
Happy Horsekeeping!
~Alayne
Did you miss part 1 of this series? Find it in our old archives.
Labels: alayne blickle, Horse Farm Management, January 2008
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