Chicken manure - the low-down?

[supersprout]

Several peeps on the forum have mentioned chicken manure as an organic fertiliser.
Are there any plants that it's good for, and when should they be fed with it?
Any plants it shouldn't go near?
Any advantages or disadvantages?
Is it a dig-in or a sprinkle?
Sorry for such a basic question, can't search the forum at the mo :( :)

[supersprout]

[Tee Gee]

Dried poultry manure is high in nitrogen and potash.

There is some more information here;

http://www.thegardenersalmanac.co.uk/Misc.Data/Fertilisers.htm

[ACE]

They sell it in b&q in pelleted form, tried it out for the first time this year on some pots  of heuchera, you could see the ones I missed. Better colour in the foliage and a much bigger plant.

[Georgie]

I started using pelleted chicken manure a couple of years ago when I discovered to my horror that blood fish and bone is not organic.  I use it in pots and in the border just once a year in spring and I find it very good.  I just sprinkle it around - I never dig! ;D

G x

[OliveOil]

I've got some fresh stuff if you want it ;D

[kippers garden]

is blood fish & bone not organic?  I didn't know that.

[jennym]

There's organic, and organic.
The way I look at it, the word organic can be used just to mean something that's originated from a living thing.
It also is used in this country as a term to mean that food has been produced to a standard set by a certifying body, such as the Organic farmers and Growers Ltd, or  Soil Association Certification Limited. I believe there are 10 such organisations.
This covers the farming methods as well as the restricted use of artificial fertilisers or other artificial substances.
I don't know if organic certification officially applies to animal manures such as chicken pellets or fish blood and bone, but it would be fair to assume manures can come from either animals raised to standards set by certifying bodies, or raised with the use of artificial aids. And therefore I suppose that some fish blood and bone could originate from "organic" sources, in the same way that some chicken pellets could originate from battery hens.

[Georgie]

It came as a bit of a surprise to me too.  But I contacted Vitex (my supplier) and they were very open and admitted that they couldn't claim to be organic.  That said, there may be other products on the market that are...

G x

[djbrenton]

There's a chicken manure called Rooster which is approved, I think, probably from free range organic hens. Standard chicken manure is a by-product of battery hens.
I have no idea how the Soil Association determine what's OK and what isn't. The composted green waste from Derby City Council is Soil Association approved, even though they've no idea what people put in the wheely bins.

[caroline7758]

I've read about making a liquid feed by dissolvong pelleted chicken manure in water. Anybody know how much poo to how much water, please?

[Merry Tiller]

A handfull in a bucket works fine.

[caroline7758]

Thanks- that's about what I did yesterday!

[Rain]

There's a chicken manure called Rooster which is approved, I think, probably from free range organic hens.

For anyone interested, Rooster is the only Soil Association Certified fertiliser of its type.