Horse Manure Removal

Getting the manure out of a horse stall or corral is simple enough: Get a shovel, dig out the manure and put it in a wheelbarrow or truck bed for transport elsewhere. The real challenge is what to do with it afterward to prevent it becoming a growth medium for flies, E. coli bacteria and air pollutants, such as ammonia. When removed and treated correctly, horse manure is not only benign, but also has beneficial uses.

  1. Spread It Out

    • Digestive bacteria thrive in wet manure, but not in dry. Flies lay their eggs in wet manure. Wet manure, when piled thickly, ferments and releases ammonia compounds and in some instances, can produce enough heat to start a fire. Dry manure offers no such threats. If you own a large property, handling this problem is as simple as spreading it out in an open area away from the stable and house. The sun and air will do the rest. It will dry out, fall apart, and decompose into the soil. If you have limited space, and can't find someone to haul it off for their own use, you have more of a challenge.

    Topdress Landscaping

    • As with most animal manures, fresh horse manure is too "hot" to use near plant roots, so you wouldn't want to till it into garden soil until it has been thoroughly aged. However, you can turn partially aged manure to your advantage by laying it on top of soil in landscape and vegetable garden areas. This is called "topdressing." The manure will temporarily slow or prevent weed seeds from sprouting, while providing a slow release fertilizer that washes gradually into the soil when the gardens are watered. This approach also helps keep soil shaded and damp in hot climates. Don't pile it up directly against the base of the plants.

    Make Compost

    • Horse manure is a good candidate for composting--a process that breaks down complex organic materials into compounds needed by plants. Manure can be composted̵1;aged̵1;with other ingredients like household scraps, or it can be aged by itself. In the former, simply add it to the compost barrel or bin and treat it like any other biodegradable material. If you have too much for household compost, you can keep a manure pile elsewhere on your property. This should be turned often to expose it to plenty of air and sun so that it won't grow bacteria and flies. Depending on temperature and moisture conditions, the manure can be ready in a few weeks to a few months to be tilled into garden soil or sprinkled on the lawn or pasture as organic fertilizer.

    Be Responsible

    • Never dump manure in or near a watercourse, even a dry one. The manure will grow bacteria and release nitrates and phosphorus that will then wash into the watershed. Bacteria and nitrates can pollute wells and surface water. Nitrogen will encourage rapid growth of algae, which is the culprit in massive fish kills because it ties up oxygen and causes the fish to asphyxiate.