Most chicken steward have at least have heard of the deep litter method for taking care of their cage . If you have n’t , it ’s time to get to know this ingenious process . Aside from being an leisurely way to take care of your chickens in the cold winter , you could use the chicken manure in your garden as a fertiliser .
The abstruse litter method is a overbold direction to manage a backyard poulet flock . Instead of best out the litter in the coop each week , you let the manure and bedding material roll up inside .
As the poop and bedding start to decompose , you get a nutritive - productive compost that benefits the garden . At the same time , the compost process creates heat , lead to a warm chicken coop .
What Is The Deep Litter Method?
Taking care of the chicken coop when the temperatures dip into the negatives is n’t a task anyone bask , and the deep bedding material method is an erstwhile - meter solvent to this issue .
Essentially , deep bedding material method acting means you leave the bedding and dirt in the coop where it starts to disintegrate and turn into compost , rather of cleaning and replace it regularly .
The benefit is threefold : first , you get all that lovely compost for your garden . The second welfare is that the compost process generate heat , and that heating system can keep your coop warm without a heat lamp .
How To Use the Deep Litter Method in the Coop
In the fall , before the temperature get too low , spread a 3 - 4 column inch layer of clean-living litter on the floor of your coop . you’re able to use leaves , chaff , or wood shavings , but most chicken keepers use wood shavings .
Once a week , as the manure starts to accumulate on the level , flip in another layer of bedding . raise the bedding once or twice a workweek , but if you throw slit grains into your henhouse , the chickens will agitate and move the litter for you .
It ’s necessary to move the bedding material around in the coop to help total atomic number 8 , which is necessary for decomposition . When you rule lump of bedding together , use a rake or pitchfork to break up them up . It ’s also essential for your coop to have raft of public discussion in the wintertime .
Troubleshooting the Deep Litter Method
While the deep bedding method acting is pretty square , you might melt into a few problems .
Any ammonia odor indicates that something is faulty in your inscrutable litter . If you discover the odor , you need to add more bedding . If it ’s not absorb enough , try add some cadaver to the bedding as well .
The other problem is litter that is n’t being mixed enough . call back of your bedding as an active compost pile . Chickens love the chance to dig into stock compost piles , and the compost being created in their henhouse is just as fantabulous .
If your chickens are n’t stir things up enough , you ’ll involve to get in there and stir things up frequently for them .
If you already have acompost pile , you read that any good pile has a correspondence of brown and green materials . Green materials contain nitrogen , and brown material contain carbon . In your Gallus gallus hencoop , the bedding stuff that you apply is the dark-brown cloth , and the chicken manure act as the green material .
Most problems that take place with the deep bedding material method is due to a misbalance of the materials . If your wimp go on a pooping spree and you do n’t have enough bedding , you ’ll have problem .
Determining When The Litter is Ready
Do n’t dump the bedding material decently into the garden ! Chicken manure is considered “ hot ” manure because of the in high spirits amount ofnitrogen , which can burn your plants if you add together too much .
Make trusted that all of the litter is good decompose and odorless . If so , you’re able to work it right into the garden layer as it is .
If you discover some sassy manure in the bedding that has yet to decompose amply , add it to another compost pile or allow it sit longer , giving it more prison term to decompose .
It can be hard to decide on whether or not your manure - bedding material is quick to be used in your garden . My best suggestion is to strain to germinate a seedling in a plenty of soil conflate with a small amount of manure - litter .
If the seed fails to sprout , it ’s likely the litter is too hot and needs more meter to compost . If the seminal fluid germinates , then your litter should be quick to utilise in your garden .
How to Use the Litter in Your Garden
There are several ways to use this rich manure in your garden :
Mix It With Existing Compost
Your first pick is to dump the manure into your exist compost bin . This is a great choice if the manure is n’t altogether disintegrate . you may go forth it in the compost for several month , allowing it to complete the mental process and cure exhaustively .
This option can be the correct one if you empty your coop in the saltation and get hold that the manure is n’t quick to apply to the garden . Instead , you could put it in the compost bin and wait to spread it in the fall . instead , you may waitress an entire class and apply the litter blend the following springiness .
Some gardeners make this choice because they desire to distribute both the nutrient - rich litter and compost in their garden at the same time .
Add Directly to Your Garden
This is likely the easiest and most commonly used option . You do n’t need to apply tons of the bedding material ; place an column inch or two on the dirt surface and skim it in .
It ’s best to do this in the fall unless you recognise without a doubt that the litter is in full compost and ready to practice . You do n’t want to risk burning and kill your plant .
Here are two mode to do this .
Dig a Pit and Plant Around It
Another choice is to poke a pit in your garden bottom and fill it with manure - bedding and other compost . Cover it back with soil . Then , put your plant around the pit .
This might seem like a strange method , but the plant life ascendent will be able-bodied to reach the stone and benefit from all of the nutrients without burn . It ’s similar to the idea of trench composting , but you ’re using compost litter instead of disposed compost .
The Benefits of Using Deep Litter in the Garden
The manure - litter that you get rid of from the crybaby coop is as good for your garden as pricey compost from the store . It ’s full of microbes that can help control pathogen that might need to take up residence in your garden . That ’s why the cryptical litter method can help make your volaille less susceptible to disease .
Manure - litter is full of nutrients and nitrogen , which is exactly what your garden needs . Chicken manure is a important plus for base nurseryman because it adds organic thing to the soil . At the same time , using it in the garden bed can increase H2O retentiveness capability while adding beneficial biota to the ground .
Chicken manure contains atomic number 7 , atomic number 19 , and phosphorus , which is what all - purpose fertilizers that you find in the memory have . In fact , poulet manure has more of these nutrients than knight or cow manure !
Cleaning Out Your Deep Litter Coop
There comes a time when you necessitate to remove all of the litter in the henhouse . As you might suppose , it ’s best to pull through this for a day when you have several hour available . If you leave the litter in the hencoop for an integral wintertime , you could have up to 12 inches of have sex to remove !
The best time to clean out your deep bedding material method coop is either early spring or dip , but you should n’t remove ALL of the litter . There necessitate to be a base layer left in situation to facilitate inoculate the new material with all of the microbes necessary to get the compost operation started .
The Bottom Line
Using the deep litter method is chic for two reasons . Not only do you have an easy way of taking aid of your poulet coop in the winter , but you’re able to use the compost manure and litter to benefit your garden . All of those nutrients and microbes will plain your garden into overdrive , leading to a bountiful harvest .
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