Dirty Thoughts—Manure and Compost Management in Doomsday

We preparedness-minded folks planning for the socialist utopia promised by the powers that be have got gardens, fruit trees and berry bushes, seeds, and hopefully some canning lids or a dehydrator.  And we’ve probably got chickens or other livestock for fertilizing. 

But what if Plan A for fertilization fails?  What’s Plan B or Plan C?  Before coming up with alternate plans, it’s important to understand the animal manure options.  And before that, we’ve got to cover what is meant by hot and cold manure.

In general, hot manures are low in moisture and high in nutrients and release those nutrients quickly, which may result in burning the plants.  On the other hand, cold manures are usually higher in moisture and lower in nutrients and less likely to burn plants.  However, the definitions can get a little blurry.  Some proclaim hot manures to be cold and vice versa due to whether they can safely be directly applied to plants without killing them.  And using these parameters, rabbit, sheep, and even goat manure are sometimes considered cold manures because they are pelleted and can be sprinkled about. 

Safer Manure Options

Alpaca, cold

Chicken (and other barnyard fowl), hot

Cow, cold (the manure from dairy cows is preferable to steer manure as the former is much lower in salt content)

Goat, hot but can be sprinkled directly on soil

Horse, hot

Rabbit, hot but can be sprinkled directly on soil

Sheep, hot but can be sprinkled directly on soil

Unfortunately, what a lot of those who advocate just sprinkling manures on top forget is that it’s not all about whether the plants will be burned by fresh manure.  There is also the issue of pathogens—fresh poop teeming with bacteria, some of which are dying to kill you. 

And that means that all manures, both hot and cold, should be composted before use.  And besides, that helps kill weed seeds as well.  Ideally, we have 6-12 months to compost livestock waste and kitchen scraps before using it in the garden.  We’re able to turn it occasionally and build the pile well so that it reaches an internal temperature of 140-160°F to kill pathogens.

Unfortunately, we may not be living in an ideal world.  We might find ourselves in HIAH (Hell in a Handbasket) world.  Are you going to be able to monitor the compost pile temperature?  Is that temperature going to be consistent?  Maybe some stuff on the outside won’t reach the requisite temperature.  How will you know?  What can you do? 

And then there are all the other fertilization and composting issues of HIAH world.  What if Plan A of using your chosen livestock manure doesn’t work out or is insufficient?  And what if you really have to raise more vegetables and fruits?  Would you consider using manure from the generally forbidden 3 P’s?  Pigs, pets, and people?  Now we’re getting sketchy, but that’s what HIAH world is.  So let’s consider, if not for yourself, for knowledge you can share with others who might need it.

First off, why is manure from the 3 P’s generally considered off-limits?  For starters, pigs and people are too genetically similar.  (I’ve never quite understood that—we don’t look that much alike.  However, before bio-identical human insulin was available in the 1980s, beef and pork insulin were what diabetics most frequently used.)  Secondly, meat-eaters, including dogs and cats, carry more diseases that can afflict us.  In addition, pigs often carry roundworms and other parasites which are not killed in their digestive tract or by composting.  And finally, there are so many pathogens that can develop and breed among those living in close proximity, like people living with other people and pets. 

Sketchier Manure Options, all of which are best avoided when possible

Pigs, really hot 

Cats

Dogs

People

Pig manure should be really well composted, for at least a year to allow it to mellow enough and kill pathogens.  

Realistically, the issue of using cat and dog manure may not even arise except for those few who have stored a lot of food for their pets.  Surviving cats will likely be outdoors, hunting rodents and birds to earn their keep.  Dogs may be doing the same.  If, however, they’re still alive, they will be pooping. 

These points beg the question, can pet and human manure be safely used?

The answer is a qualified (by me) yes.  Joseph Jenkins, author of The Humanure Handbook, asserts that using humanure is more than safe, and a totally responsible practice.  Steve Solomon, former owner of Territorial Seed Company and author of Gardening When It Counts, is married to a woman who was raised in the 1940s in the South Pacific using humanure on her family’s garden.  He and his wife will resume the practice, if the time comes that they have no other options.  I’ve not used humanure and I’m not going to practice with it.  Like Mr. Solomon, I will use it if I have to.  It one of those things I want to have armchair knowledge about, not personal experience.  It’s up there with using maggots to clean wounds. 

So I asked Becky, our resident crop and soil science expert, what the deal is with using manure from the 3 P’s.  1.  Is the danger from pathogens coming into contact with the food and then being ingested?  2.  Or is there also risk of bacteria, viruses, or parasites migrating from the soil and into and through the plants so that they are actually in the food? 

And the answers are:  The pathogens have to come into direct contact with the food.  They cannot migrate from the soil and grow into the food.  The same goes for the pet manure.  So that led to a follow-up question.  If the manure from the 3 P’s is buried deep, say 12 inches, is there any risk to the food?  And the answer is, generally, no.  Those manures can be safely used in theory.  However, there is always the chance for contamination.  If at all possible, 3P manure should be reserved for fruit trees and flowers.

I love the smell of vegetable gardens and good compost.  It makes me feel productive and happy to be growing my family’s food, not relying solely on trucks and just-in-time delivery.  But it’s a dirty job.  And the soil is full of bacteria and perhaps some poop that didn’t compost thoroughly.  They’re out to kill me and my family or make me merely wish I was dead.  Just like the spiders that hide out under the bed planning their attack.  I know they are.

Look, I’m not afraid of a little dirt.  Heaven knows I spend most of the spring and summer in jeans dirty from working in the garden.  I just want the garden soil, and especially the bacteria, to stay in the garden as much as possible.  So what I do, and what I recommend, and what Becky approves, is the following.  It’s a little work, but not that much.  It loosens the soil well every spring, and produces a fantastic volume of vegetables every year.  This method works best for those with boxed beds, but really, anyone can do it.  The first year is the hardest; after that, it’s really quite easy.

The solution is to bury the compost underneath 4-6 inches of soil.  Dig down about 12 inches and set that soil aside.  Add 4-6 inches of compost, and then cover with the soil you removed.  Of course, I don’t just dig one hole at a time; I usually do rows about 18 inches wide and several feet long.  Then next year, this year’s compost will be on top, fully decomposed and hopefully with far fewer pathogens.  It grows beautiful vegetables for me every year. 

It is best to do this in the fall for root crops, lettuce and spinach, and strawberries—really anything that grows in or right on top of the soil.  It allows extra time for the compost to decompose (especially if it wasn’t quite ready) and for pathogens to die.  If necessary, not-quite-ready compost can be buried under 4-6 inches of garden soil for growing corn, beans, and tomatoes.  It actually works really well.

 

Even with allowing 18" for the height of the bed, these tomato plants are over 6 feet tall.

This picture is from a few years back, but basically, the tomatoes look the same every year—six feet tall and loaded with tomatoes. 

 07.06.23