Yeeee-Haaaa, look what I had delivered.

[Ricard with an H]

The farmer did promise but I don't like to keep asking, he finally dumped two buckets of cow-poo over the fence. I have to figure how to stop my dog from eating it now.

[oldherbaceous]

Looks as if you will be busy, Richard. And it looks to be well rotted as well.

Not sure what to say about your dog eating it.

[Ricard with an H]

It is well-rotted and mixed with soil from the cattle hoofs. When they were using the barns for wintering the cattle the cattle would be let out on selected days then bought back in at night so they bought mud from the field back into the barns.

Eventually they have to muck-out and my pile is part of stuff that was created over five years ago, some longer.

It's mostly dry and crumbly but there is the occasional patch of sticky slimy stuff, I mix the sticky stuff with water to make a slurry.

All my much-spreading has been done six weeks ago, dug in and chopped in with my new Chillington tools.

Fantastic.

[Beryl]

Wow looks great. That will keep you busy and warm in this cold snap.

Mine (horse poo) due over Christmas.

Beryl.

[Ricard with an H]

I had an offer of as much horse-muck as I want but I need to shovel it into a trailer, tow it home then shovel it all out. I've been saving lot's of plastic bags for the event but to be honest I don't have the back for the work.

It's a lot of work Beryl.

Since Alan posted the NPK values of different manures I figure i'll manage when I add nettle and comfrey. I have a massive nettle farm at the top of the paddock, i'm going cut all the dead growth down so I can pick the new growth in the spring.

My claggy soil is already responding, I tried an idea for loosening up that has worked. Lots of grass cuttings were laid along a test bed, as the cuttings dried I turned them to stop the grass going sticky and-so the dried grass has amalgamated with the top six inches of soil and rotted down nicely loosening the soil a lot. So nicely that I just planted some bulbs into the test bed.

From early spring this year it's been very hard for me, i'm hoping it's all downhill from here unless I start opening up more places to plant stuff.

This forum has been such a help, I never seem to learn much from reading books and magazines but I can sit here and browse all the stuff thats been gone over before.

I see from the weather forecast that you're 7 degrees colder in Hampshire than here by the sea in Pembrokeshire, but it's been very cold today.

[Primrose]

Wow! You can forget the diamonds and jewellery. That's my idea of an ideal Christmas present !! Well, it would be if it came with a person to do all the shovelling and removal to where I wanted it to be !

[Beryl]

I ageree shoveling manure into bags is a lot of work, it does need 2 of you to do it really, one to hold the bag and one to fill. When my husband was alive we did used to do, 30 bags at a time into 2 cars but now I have a trailer load dropped off but I still have to get it into my compost bins. But whatever you can get it's all good stuff. I had goats poo in my last lot and that rotted beautifully.

Best of luck.
Beryl.

[Ricard with an H]

Best of luck.
Beryl.

Thank you Beryl, and 'Primrose', you made me smile because my partner finds me far to practical when it come to buying gifts.

I got so tired of getting-it-wrong I once bought her a box of rubber gloves in her size rather than managing with the ones I use.

I just called her on the phone to share the excitement of a cow-poo delivery, I don't suppose you would understand that she wonder about my state of mind when I get excited over trivia like a Chillington hoe or a pile of poo.

Getting back to the soil, this part of North Pembrokeshire is well-know for it's stony and claggy soil. Most of the land is used for grazing and silage, the few local hectares that were used for barley are now up for sale and to be honest the only reason they kept up the annual routine of plowing, harrowing and sowing was because of the subsidies on set-aside. Our set-aside hosts lots of skylark and some other birds I haven't managed to identify which are also decreasing at an alarming rate.

[Monika]

You lucky devil, Ricard with a H! We are still waiting for our delivery. In years past when we had our old trusted Landrover Defender, we just popped up to the farm, filled the back with the gold stuff and hosed the back out after delivering it. At the moment, the farmer still can't get down the field because it's too wet.
A pile like that would be my best Christmas present!

[Westi]

So jealous!! Big mouth me told other lottie holders about my supply of well old muck & now it is all gone. (Go on feel free to say it)

Westi

[oldherbaceous]

Dear Westi, i'm willing to share mine, but you will have to collect it with your barrow.

[Parsons Jack]

We're very lucky around here. We have regular deliveries of horse muck delivered to the site, and their are quite a few places around that leave bags of muck outside the stables to help yourself

I can't imagine how I got the nickname "Dungbeetle"

[Ricard with an H]

You lucky devil, Ricard with a H!

It's Richard to you.

On a daily basis I remind myself how lucky I am living where I live, it's not for everyone. Little photo for you out of my bedroom window yesterday morning.

If I had enough use for the produce I have plenty of space for all sorts of growing, lots of sheep poo available but you have to collect it and on that score I had though about buying a quad to tow a trailer but I already have a ride-on mower to deal with the grass.

What I figured on the basis of the NPK values is that I can get a good balance with the cow-poo or horse muck and some 6X chicken manure that can be delivered at a reasonable cost if you plan for a few years and have storage. My problem is that whilst i'm enjoying this new venture there are only the two of us and I eat alone five days a week plus I don't have family that is local.

To be honest, it's more economical for me to buy my veg but you people have got me hooked.

[vegpatchmum]

On a daily basis I remind myself how lucky I am living where I live, it's not for everyone. Little photo for you out of my bedroom window yesterday morning.

You can go off people you know

To be honest, it's more economical for me to buy my veg but you people have got me hooked.

...... and once you (or your dog ) have tasted freshly dug carrots, beans straight from the plant, sweetcorn direct from the husk etc. etc. etc. you're a goner and it's almost impossible, once your homegrown supplies have run out, to go back to bland, tasteless and characterless (thinking about the carrots you grew at this point ) supermarket produce without the merciless comparison of taste etc which is guaranteed to drive your friends and loved ones insane .......

Welcome to the world of veg growers

VPM
x

[Ricard with an H]

You can go off people you know

Sorry, when i'm happy I like to share.

Even though i'm being negative about growing my own you can see that i'm committed and i'll get better organised with my crops and cropping. Not many, if any, people round here grow their own. My good friend, helper and mentor was the one local who encouraged me with comments like, "Supermarket carrots are for donkeys" and he helped load all the top-soil into my beds last spring but he hasn't grown anything this year and admitted to giving up because it's too time consuming and he buys from a county-wide organic box-delivery.

In the new year i'm having a lot of 6X delivered, some will be used on the domestic grass where I pick-up and the remainder to mic with the cow-poo. If I buy enough it gets to half the price. Shame we don't have more kitchen gardeners round here.

I had thought about offering part of my land for free allotment use though after making a list of possible problems I gave up on the idea.

Keep up the good work, you've encouraged me.