What could appeal more to us at this time of year than acquiring a great big pile of stable manure.
Now I know some of you will react in a less than positive way at this, and judging by twitter comments, there appears to be a great divide between those who 'get it' (i.e. understand the value of manure) and those that don't (i.e. those that see it as a big pile of poop).
For those that don't understand the value of this rich fertile and amazing raw ingredient for the garden, that's fine; hopefully with enough time, patience and understanding, others will teach you.
For the rest of us, can you imagine my delight to find out there was a stable of horses not too far from where we live. So I contacted them on Monday asking if I can get my hands on some. They were agreeable if I called mid-week, although they said they tend not to encourage gardeners as it can be a bit inconvenient for them.
So I called by yesterday with a trailer and, for a small fee, it was loaded up by a lad who used the back loader of his JCB. He did dig into the pile a bit, and you should have seen the steam that came from the centre of it!
Even as I unloaded it at home, steam continued. This heat is so very important as it helps to kill the weed seeds within the material. There is a bit more to do with managing the manure, and I'll cover this in later posts.
For now, it is unloaded in the garden, covered to let the decomposing continue and soon enough will be dug into beds and borders.
Happy me!
Now I know some of you will react in a less than positive way at this, and judging by twitter comments, there appears to be a great divide between those who 'get it' (i.e. understand the value of manure) and those that don't (i.e. those that see it as a big pile of poop).
For those that don't understand the value of this rich fertile and amazing raw ingredient for the garden, that's fine; hopefully with enough time, patience and understanding, others will teach you.
For the rest of us, can you imagine my delight to find out there was a stable of horses not too far from where we live. So I contacted them on Monday asking if I can get my hands on some. They were agreeable if I called mid-week, although they said they tend not to encourage gardeners as it can be a bit inconvenient for them.
So I called by yesterday with a trailer and, for a small fee, it was loaded up by a lad who used the back loader of his JCB. He did dig into the pile a bit, and you should have seen the steam that came from the centre of it!
Even as I unloaded it at home, steam continued. This heat is so very important as it helps to kill the weed seeds within the material. There is a bit more to do with managing the manure, and I'll cover this in later posts.
For now, it is unloaded in the garden, covered to let the decomposing continue and soon enough will be dug into beds and borders.
Happy me!
Woohoo for poo!!!!! Congrats on your steaming pile of garden goodness.
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