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When I clean out the chickens I always put the muck on the compost heap.  However, I have been wondering if, when I clean them out this week, I could put the fresh manure directly onto the places where I am going to grow squash, courgettes and runner beans in the summer.  The garden isn't dug yet but I could dig small trenches and then cover them with some soil.  Would this rot down enough for planting in 4 months time?  Your help, as always, is very much appreciated.

Done it myself once for runners, I did not find it detrimental. So I mentioned it to someone else a few years later and his runners were very poor. I lined the trench with newspapers for moisture retention so that might have watered it down a bit.

Hi, why not try composting on it's own under a polythene sheet and see how it goes on in a few  months. It should get very hot that way and be OK for when you want it.

i wouldnt, i think its like most manure, it needs to be weel rotted which needs lots of heta and can take upto a year. putting it directly in the soil could mean that you end up with dead plants!

You risk burning the plants if you use it fresh. Recommended storage time is 2 years. If you have the space I suppose you could do a test on half the row?

I class Chicken manure  as a hot manure it is  very high in nitrogen .It needs to be well composted or well weathered ..If You use it fresh  I think You will stand a good chance of burning  Your plants ...When weathered well it is good stuff for your garden... I compost it as a layer of chicken manure then a good layer of strawy stable manure building up the heap in layers .Topping off with  stable manure .  A sprinkling of lime on top.. Then I cover it and let it stand ...But see what others think ...Cheers ..Jim  ..

Quote from: Larkspur on January 22, 2006, 12:53:19
Hi, why not try composting on it's own under a polythene sheet and see how it goes on in a few  months. It should get very hot that way and be OK for when you want it.

Would it work if I put it in a black dustbin liner bag or does it need to have air?

Hi, I think it would need some air circulation. Poke a few small holes on the bag. The only time I tried to compost something in sealed plastic bags (on someones advice) the contents were still sitting there unaltered two years later ???