DIY fertilizer is nothing like or even close to being compost. Compost – Garden, Yard and Household Waste [A Crash Course] You may also like {Link Updated, 3/26/2013} Compost, United States EPA website. Your Tax Dollars are paying for this website, so please use it as a good reference site.
Remember, compost is a soil amendment not fertilizer.
You can use green, raw, fresh manure, but it is hard to handle, spread evenly in your pots and will attract unwanted insects like fly’s.
Even when well dried, manure does have a slight manure smell and is not recommended for indoor house plants.
Before insects (fly’s) become active, collect the manure that you will use in one growing season in your making homemade fertilizer. Store your collected ‘dry’ manure in insect proof containers. Poultry droppings, cow, donkey, or horse dry manure. The drier the better.
First let me caution you. Un-composted a small amount of manure goes a long way. I make and use my homemade fertilizer only on my contained growing plants. At 2 to 4 week intervals I add a small amount to my pots and mix well in the top 1/2 inch or so of potting soil before watering.
Using a hammer, knife or other instrument of your choice. Reduce your collected treasure into small bits and pieces. I use a ruff 8x16x2 inch concrete tile placing the bits of manure on the tile, then I use a common building brick to reduce those bits into a fine powder by rubbing the brick back and forth over the dry manure that is your ‘homemade’ fertilizer. Store in water proof zip lock type bags.
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Thanks Po. I always learn something new from you.
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Thank you for this information. Do you have any other tips for creating good soil for raised beds? I will need a lot of soil and I would like to spend as little as possible. There is a horse farm up the road, anything that I can get there if they are willing to let it go?
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Re: youngoutdoorsman35 – Thanks for visiting my tiny blog. Depending on space you have for a compost pile, Take all the horse manure and old hay you can get. Pile it up, the taller the pile the better. Keep this pile Damp, not wet, In a very short time it will compost down being an excellent sorce of soil for your raised bed. Remember that huge pile after composting will be reduced by 1/2 or more in volume. Keep it damp, in the bright hot sun shine if you can. Composting Helpful Hints
Happy gardening..
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Have you ever tried mixing the manure with water and just watering with it?
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Re Reviewer Rose Thanks for your comments.
Yes I have used manure tea with good success. I just find working with a dry manure easier for me than making and using manure tea.
Happy Gardening
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Sounds like fun!
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