Manure testing is beneficial

Source: Frank Sikora, director of laboratories and soils program

Livestock and poultry producers use manure to provide nutrients to the soil. Once in the soil, the nutrients are converted into a useable form for plants. Plants then take up the nutrients and use them to grow and be productive.

This practice is used for two main reasons, to dispose of a byproduct from livestock and poultry farms in an environmentally beneficial way and to help producers lower input costs by using less commercial fertilize to grow their crops. Testing the manure as well as testing the soil will provide needed information on selecting the right amount of manure to apply for the upcoming crop to be grown.

When you properly use manure as a fertilizer, it is both economically and environmentally beneficial.

Because the nutrients in manure vary widely, it is important to have your manure tested before application. Testing allows for accuracy in nutrient management specific to your crop needs and it minimizes water contamination caused by nutrient run-off or leaching.

To have your manure tested, you will need to gather samples and take them to your local Cooperative Extension office. The cost is $25 plus shipping and handling. Make sure you have filled out the appropriate paper work at the extension office and include the county identification number. They will then send the sample to the University of Kentucky College of Agriculture’s Division of Regulatory Services Soil Test Laboratory.

Results are typically available in about a week. Upon return, your local extension agent for agriculture and natural resources can help you interpret the analysis results and determine application rates.

You need to send samples within 60 days of the date you plan to apply the manure since manure nutrients can change with time. If you cannot deliver the sample to your extension office on the day of collection, refrigerate or freeze the samples until you are able to deliver them.

Below are suggestions for collecting manure samples and preferred transport methods.

You should gather manure samples from poultry litter before you clean out the poultry house. Collect at least 12 samples from different areas of the poultry house and put them all in one clean bucket. Mix the samples together and place the combined sample in a double Ziploc bag for shipping. Manure samples from cattle are gathered, combined and transported in the same manner.

It’s best to collect liquid manure from dairy or swine held in a lagoon several feet into the lagoon, not from the edge. You can also gather it as the lagoon is being emptied. You should only send liquid samples in the plastic bottles provided by your local county Cooperative Extension Office. It is very important to not fill these plastic bottles completely full as the manure produces gases that can cause the bottle to explode.

For maximum nutrient efficiency, it is important to apply the manure close to when the crop is planted. If you must use the manure in the fall, make sure you plant a cover crop to decrease the loss of nitrogen.

Further information about using manure as a nutrient source is available at http://www.ca.uky.edu/agc/pubs/agr/agr146/agr146.htm

For more information about manure testing contact the Clinton County Cooperative Extension Service.

Educational programs of the Cooperative Extension Service serve all people regardless of race, color, sex, religion, disability or national origin.