When owning a farm one of the first questions to be asked must be "What to do with the manure and waste?" I read a few articles and did some online research. Basically I concluded that the whole process would not be too difficult and I could manage it. Ha!! Little did I know.
Sam built me a 3 bin compost about 15' long and 5' wide, clearly big enough to hold all the refuse. I did not plan on the horses being home and did not calculate how many wheel barrows full of yuck would be removed from the barn. Three full bins later and two windrows on either side of the structure I am still struggling with managing it. I even attended a seminar offered by MSU and had someone come by and counsel me on how better manage my piles. It all sounded so easy!
Noah and I struggled with pitchforks taking the waste out. Then we layered the compost with urea and put everything back into the bin. The piles were hot and seemed to be working. But then I forgot to turn it. So it went cold. Sam brought the tractor over and we attempted to turn the piles that way. This was a cumbersome process. I had ordered a thermometer designed to test the temps of compost piles and I began to think I knew what I was doing. I began recording the temperatures and turning the piles, yes with my pitchfork. So here I am no farther than I was a few days ago. But hopeful that the piles will continue to stay hot and eventually decompose. I would really like to move this stuff out so I have room to dump more poop in its place!
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