On 16/10/2012 16:49, Sacha wrote:
On 2012-10-16 09:18:56 +0100, Jeff Layman said:

On 15/10/2012 14:47, Sacha wrote:

She went back a few hours later to find he'd
thrown it straight onto the flower beds and there were her plants,
waving helplessly at her from several inches of manure. They thrived.
They didn't burn and they didn't wilt.

Is this another "Old Gardening Chestnut" successfully debunked? There
must be a bookful for someone to write listing all the garbage which
has accumulated over the years!

The exception that proves the rules is supposed to be chicken manure,
which really can do some damage. That's best diluted in a bucket of
water and the water used as a fertiliser. I've also heard that cow
manure can be too strong to apply directly but as I've never tried that,
I don't know if it's the case. Why it should be when cows and horses
eat grass, hay and feed nuts, I don't know. Unless it's something to do
with the way they digest, because cow manure is certainly smellier and
you wouldn't want to sit in your garden having just spread that around,
imo! But someone may know and have direct experience of it. But horse
manure is one of those things that people used to scoop up from the road
and shovel straight onto their roses! And of course, at this time of
year, it's ideal.

Well I have never seen grass dying around the edge of cow pats in fields
and you can't get it any fresher than that.
David @ the damp end of Swansea Bay