Managing Manure

 Managing horse manure can seem like a burden especially in the winter months. But, that manure is a valuable resource for your farm. You can use it as a supplemental fertilizer for your pastures and hay fields and cut costs on buying commercial fertilizers. The key to being able to use this resource is managing it correctly. 

• Never store manure in a low lying or wet areas because the moisture will cause nutrients to leach out out of the manure and you will be losing valuable resources for your fields. Also, leaching can be harmful for the ground around the manure pile and water downhill or down stream. 
• If possible try to store your manure a good distance away from your barn to reduce fly and pests for your animals.
• It is a good idea to turn your pile or mix it every once in a while to distribute the heat in your pile and turn those fly larvae that are hatching into the heated center and kill them before they become adults. 
• Always take a soil sample on your fields routinely, about every 1-2 years, because most of the time horse manure contains a lot of bedding, sawdust or straw, and those materials take time and nutrients to break down. Some of your soil Nitrogen could be fixed or unavailable to plants while breaking down those stemy and woody materials. Also, adding lime to your manure pile or spreading lime on your fields after soil testing will help break down materials faster because your soil pH will be more stable. 

Scooping manure and mucking stalls is never a fun job, but since it is a necessity when keeping horses why not make the manure work for you in return.  

Managing Horse Manure

Did you know that one 1,000 lb. horse can produce about 10 tons of manure each year?  With that much manure being produced by each horse it is important to have a manure management plan.  Manure is an excellent nutrient resource for soils and considered valuable to farmers and garden owners.  Each pound of fresh manure contains about 0.2 lbs. of nitrogen, 0.03 pounds of phosphorous, 0.06 pounds of potassium.  If stored and handled properly, horse manure can easily be used as fertilizer on pastures, gardens, lawns, etc.

PC: eXtension.org

A comprehensive horse manure management plan includes the following:

·         Estimated yearly animal manure production

·         Estimated yearly nutrient production

·         Plans for collecting, handling, and storing

·         Emergency action plan that deals with accidental manure spills or other environmental emergencies

·         If you plan to apply manure to land, please also include the following:

o   Estimated yearly crop nutrient use potential

o   Rotating crops

o   Available land for application throughout the year

Manure storage is a critical piece of a manure management plan.  The type of storage facility will vary depending on the number of horses, manure end use, and available equipment.    Barns with less than 15 horses or that often pasture horses may want to consider small, temporary bins or wire continuous bins.  Barns with 15 or more horses will want to consider a larger, more permanent facility that you can access with larger equipment.  Prior to construction, contact your local Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD) or USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) office to assist you with designing and building a storage site or facility.

Wooden bins for holding manure.

PC: UMN Extension

For more information please click here: https://extension.umn.edu/horse-care-and-management/managing-and-composting-horse-manure