Ed ex@directory wrote in
et:

First time allotment holder, seeking advice...


The local riding stables have left a whole big load of horse
manure outside of our allotment site for folk to use. It is
pretty fresh (great strong pong from it) and it contains only a
moderate amount of straw.

Notwithstanding the warnings I have seen on this list and
elsewhere regarding contamination with weed killers and the like,
how can I beneficially use this stuff?

Can I use this manure straight away on the beds in my plot as a
top mulch and dig it in next spring? Or should I just add it to
my compost bins and let it mature there for, say, a year and then
use it?

Also which plants would benefit from an application of manure? I
seem to recall that root crops don't like recently manured beds?

Ed

Fresh manure can be used as a top mulch, but IME it's very important
to make sure the manure does not directly touch any plants, as it
will cause problems (burning, stunting) otherwise. Top mulching of
the manure allows rain water to seep through it and down to the roots
of the plants, effectively giving them 'manure tea', while the
wormies go to work incorporating it into the soil. It may be that by
next spring there will be nothing left to turn under into the soil,
as the worms will have done it for you. That has been my experience,
anyway.

Dee