Geir Harris Hedemark wrote:

Rob Halgren writes:


Messy, a bit. Unsanitary? I strongly doubt that horse manure is
a vector of human disease.



It is. Tetanus and other nasty germs thrive in more or less all kinds
of soil and manure.


Tetanus is anaerobic, I believe. Not likely to pick it up from
simple skin contact. But I think the point is "is it any more
unsanitary than garden dirt"? I don't know of any diseases that are
passed from horse to human via a fecal route. Other animals, sure. I
could be wrong, of course (say it ain't so!!). If you know of a
specific human pathogen in horse manure, then by all means let me know
so I know to take appropriate precautions. E. coli might be a danger,
but the only hazardous strains of that that I have seen are from
bovines. Of course there all sorts of microorganisms in any biological
sample, including what comes out of the back of a large grazing
animal... But it isn't biohazardous waste, requiring orange bags,
gloves, and a ventilator. I might use a shovel or pitchfork, and some
of those kitchen gloves if I was feeling particularly squeemish. Immune
compromised individuals should probably run screaming the other way, of
course. I've gotten far more diseases from my daughter's day-care
center than I have ever gotten working outside in the garden.


But I thought the trick of growing in horse manure involved using
....medium... fresh off the horse, so to speak. Anyway, I think that as
long as you don't eat it, grind it up and inject it under your skin (or
poke yourself with sharp objects in its presence), or snort it, you
shouldn't be able to harm yourself with fresh horse dung. You would
really have to go out of your way. It has a bit of a fragrance, but not
terribly offensive. It certainly doesn't smell like human waste. Wash
your hands after repotting. You should do that anyway, regardless of
what you pot in.


Once manure (of any kind) has been properly composted, it is safe,
however. Proper composting involves getting the pile to pretty warm
temperatures for a considerable time, which kills any remaining
pathogens. At that point it is as safe or safer than dirt. And smells
better, too. I wouldn't use other than barnyard manures on food crops.
Some 'organic' regulations (if you want to be certified as an organic
grower) require that no manures be applied to food crops within a few
weeks of harvest. Whatever. Some people compost dog or cat waste (not
I), or even human waste (again not I), but I think the general
recommendation there is that even if it has been well composted it is
best to use these manures on non-edible crops. It is quite easy to pass
human disease through human waste, so don't be stupid.


I partially compost my 'horsey gold' before putting it on the
garden. That means that when my neighbor drops it off (in big piles in
my yard), it usually takes a few days or a week or so before I can move
it. By then it has cooked a little bit. For a gardener, living next to
a horse farm is like finding diamonds in your soup.

Rob

--
Rob's Rules: http://www.msu.edu/~halgren
1) There is always room for one more orchid
2) There is always room for two more orchids
2a. See rule 1
3) When one has insufficient credit to purchase
more orchids, obtain more credit