Bananas.org - View Single Post - I have 1 cu yd of composted horse manure(60%), what to do??

jbclem · 08-23-2010, 09:23 PM

I just took an hour drive to a soils company(Newhall, Calif.) to buy some compost, but to save time I went to their commercial yard and when I asked for the regular compost they pointed me to a large pile and then filled up my little pickup truck. As I was paying for it I discovered it wasn't the compost mentioned on their website Foothillsoils.com) but some commercial mix of 40% wood shavings and 60% composted horse manure, used by many landscape companies. The manure is cooked for 3 months at 145F, and the mix looks pretty good and is fairly light.

It was closing time and since it only cost $24 plus tax, I decided I was stuck with it and remembering that bananas liked horse manure, I thought there might be a silver lining somewhere in the pile. My truck is a long bed, so I probably have at least 1 1/2 cu yd of the stuff.

So what to do with this s........t! Should I use it in the new banana box I just build(4x4' x 18" deep), mix it 50/50 with the silt/clay soil I have. And I also have a large pile of finely chipped and shredded tree(birch??) that's been sitting for over 6 months. Would it be useful to mix the fine tree bits into the manure compost?

I'd like to ask for suggestions, especially if the composted manure is good or bad for plants (bananas et al), and at what ratios I should mix it.

I can also return to the soils company, their retail yard, and get anything else I need. It's a long drive so I'd prefer to use what I have right now.

08-23-2010, 09:23 PM	#1 (permalink)
jbclem Junior Member jbclem's Photo Gallery Location: Topanga Canyon, Ca. (Zone 9b) Find me on the map! Zone: 9b Join Date: Apr 2007 Posts: 57 BananaBucks : 48,674 Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Thanks" 0 Times Was Thanked 22 Times in 17 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 0 Times	I have 1 cu yd of composted horse manure(60%), what to do?? I just took an hour drive to a soils company(Newhall, Calif.) to buy some compost, but to save time I went to their commercial yard and when I asked for the regular compost they pointed me to a large pile and then filled up my little pickup truck. As I was paying for it I discovered it wasn't the compost mentioned on their website Foothillsoils.com) but some commercial mix of 40% wood shavings and 60% composted horse manure, used by many landscape companies. The manure is cooked for 3 months at 145F, and the mix looks pretty good and is fairly light. It was closing time and since it only cost $24 plus tax, I decided I was stuck with it and remembering that bananas liked horse manure, I thought there might be a silver lining somewhere in the pile. My truck is a long bed, so I probably have at least 1 1/2 cu yd of the stuff. So what to do with this s........t! Should I use it in the new banana box I just build(4x4' x 18" deep), mix it 50/50 with the silt/clay soil I have. And I also have a large pile of finely chipped and shredded tree(birch??) that's been sitting for over 6 months. Would it be useful to mix the fine tree bits into the manure compost? I'd like to ask for suggestions, especially if the composted manure is good or bad for plants (bananas et al), and at what ratios I should mix it. I can also return to the soils company, their retail yard, and get anything else I need. It's a long drive so I'd prefer to use what I have right now.