Allotments 4 All

A forum called 'The Basics'? Think I may have found a new home  :)

Myself and a few friends took on a plot last autumn. We're all very enthusiastic but have very little knowledge between us.
What should we do about manure? Obvioulsy it's not wise to use unrotted... can you buy rotted manure? Or is there something else we can use? The soil is quite good, albeit a little dusty. I'm guessing it could do with some organic material dug in before we plant.
Anyone got any advice?

Hi Steev and friends welcome - yes you could not have found a better forum as there is loads of people only too happy to help and give advise.

I am also new to allotments and got mine 2 weeks before Christmas and cannot wait to get started

there are more experts out there to give you advise
but most have the same frame of mind as my self 'Cheap is good but FREE is BETTER !!

We get our horse manure from a local stables who deliver for us just have to stack up and wait for it to breakdown

Hi Blue Bird

'Cheap is good but FREE is BETTER' is exactly how we feel too!

We took our plot on in late Septmeber. It was quite overgrown so it has took us a while to clear it (which we've nearly completed now).
There was a small pile of rotted manure left by the previous owner... well not actually the previous owners, I presume it came from a horse!  ;D We dug that into the first 3 small beds we've created but now have nothing left for the rest of the plot.
How long does it take to breakdown? I'm guessing it won't be ready for the spring?

Hi Steev!  I'm a newbie too, got my plot at the end of October & I was thinking about manure...how sad am I !!
Anyway I now know you have to leave horese manure for 6months to rot down b4 putting on your beds.  Something about the heat it generates will kill seedlings.
So as I missed out on my allotments annual delivery, I have bought a bag of organic fertilizer.  A fiver from my allotment shop.  A handful a square meter I have been told.  Ask the experienced plot holdes for advice, I did and they loved helping.  Also, check your allotment committe, they may have group delivery or have an on site store where they sell stuff at a reduced cost to raise funds.
Best of luck
Mrs T

Hi Steve and and welcome to the forum. If you ring around your local riding stables you should find that most will let you collect as much as you want for FREE, if your really lucky and find one that has not been visited by others for awhile then you may get hold of some well rotted manure, look to take the manure from either the back of the heap or right at the bottom, the stables should be able to tell you how long it has been there and where the oldest manure is in the heap. Any fresh manure obtained now will rot down nicely if mixed with some grass clippings and should be ready to use next Winter. A good alternative worth trying if you have not got any well rotted  for this season is to use Chicken Manure pellets which you can usually get quite cheaply and will both fertilise and improve your soil, best of luck with your new season regards Steve.

http://www.myallotments.com

QuoteWarning - while you were typing a new reply has been posted. You may wish to review your post

That's quite a cool feature! I've used forums before and have never seen that... I usually end up posting an obselete reply or repeating what someone else had said!

Quote from: Mrs T on February 06, 2007, 17:46:47
Anyway I now know you have to leave horese manure for 6months to rot down b4 putting on your beds.  Something about the heat it generates will kill seedlings.

Yeah. I think it depletes nitrogen too. I've also heard that unrotted may also contain chemicals used to worm horses.

Cheers Steve... that makes sense.  :)

Hi Steve & chums don't forget you don't need to manure the whole plot I only manure my spud patch and my bean trench, don't plant roots in the manured beds, others will have their own way but this is the way I do it . Get your manure cover it and save it, if you feel you need more I just bagged up some lovely rotted poo that was in the corner away from all the fresh.   ;D ;D ;D

Well i had a surprise tonight up the lotty - the bullshit had finally been delivered!

When i looked round though, the guy had dumped nearly double the amount on my plot, got a hell of a lot of digging to do now!  It been rotting for over a year so is just purrrrrrrfect! Not bad for £12