Difference in Nutritional Value Between Horse Manure & Garden Compost?

Lots of plants need Iron.

 

Back in the olden days, when Sandy Ground was still a rock and hadn't been eroded by the weather, horse manure used to be put into a kind of metal dustbin type thing and covered with water. The resulting "tea" was then diluted with more water before being fed to the plants. That did to an extent eliminate the weed problem.

 

Known as 'liquid manure' and good stuff it is too but inevitably messy. I used to make it from cow manure but I gave long ago as I seemed to get covered in it every time I used it.

 

Back in early spring a couple of us at the allotment received a huge delivery of cow poo, it did have a large proportion of straw in it. It has sat since then covered up and at this time of year it's time to get busy with it.

I also make my own liquid feeds (Nettle and Comfrey) and have a huge amount on the compost pile from this years production on the plot.

Over the next few weeks the liquid feeds will be drained and bottled ready for next spring, the leftover sludge, compost pile, 8 month old cow poo and bedding, and shredded newspaper collected from neighbours will all be moved into one area and mixed, then covered to hopefully be ready for next spring use.

I have no idea of it's nutritional value but I do know it will do my plants good when I dig it in. At planting time I also boost the mix by using blood fish and bone (organic), then when the plants start growing I use nettle tea for the nitrogen, switching to comfrey tea when they start to bear fruit.

My point for writing all this rather than answering directly the question asked is because I think all compost and manures vary from heap to heap and farm to farm, even season to season so I do my level best to combine the best of all things, cover all bases then if something is lacking in one or more of my crops hopefully I can see that and make up for it by liquid feeding.

My grandfather was a career gardener and I watched him tend his compost pile when I was a child. Veg peeling for example where wrapped in newspaper, these little bundles where neatly stacked on the heap, when a layer was complete a layer or grass clipping, then manure was added, then the bundles would start a new layer. I use the same principles as that but definitely not in such a neat way.

So my answer to you Shiney is that I don't have a clue as the content would have to be analysed with every delivery you get, but the best thing would be to mix your own compost heap and delivered manure, cover it and let it sit and heat.

Steve...

 

You could get the poo and the compost tested then you can see which one is best

Found this on the net
http://www.eurofins.co.uk/agriculture-testing/agricultural-testing.aspx