Cleaned out the barn today, boy am I pooped. So question ,what do people do with all the shavings or straw that comes out of the barns ?? I do a deep cleaning a few times a year and a small cleaning once a month. The area were I've been putting my shavings is getting smaller. And come this winter might not be feasible to use. Any thoughts ?
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I have used up most of what I cleaned up out of the barn. (loose hay, then loose goat pellets, and then the matted down bottom layer of composted hay mixed with very old goat manure).
The loose hay went down quick and after just a month or two or so of the loose goat pellets laying in a pile in the garden, I placed some at the bases of the vegetable plants in our Fall/Winter Garden (we planted in Sept.).
The old matted down composted hay in the bottom most layer sat a while and really loosened up. It kind of sorted itself into loose hay on top and the old manure and dirt on the bottom. I also used this recently to place around the bases of other vegetable plants in the garden.
I was a little concerned because there were some "fresh" goat manure pellets too and wasn't sure it was going to be too strong for the plants, but it all seems OK and very beneficial. The garden plants are taking off.
And just a week or so after cleaning out the whole barn, there is so much loose hay again ! Guess it's time to clean the barn again and lay it down in the garden. At least it's light and quick work.
I posted a video of the garden on our website. Piling the goat manure/dirt around the bases also helps keep the weeds away from around the plants. (easy way to weed - just pile on the fertilizer and cover up the weeds)
And don't forget....always wear your dust mask !! It is so dusty in the barn !!
I am using hay for the goat shelter and that is what I am spreading on the garden beds currently, the hay I placed on the herb garden this past spring has decomposed and broken down nicely already... I do however use shavings in my chicken coop which goes into the compost bin so the chicken poop can age before it goes into the garden.
Hi Kelsie, Do you use straw or shavings for bedding?
Kelsie Aman said:
I am currently using mine to create a layer over the unused veggie garden beds...I will then cover with a layer of composted cow manure and repeat a couple of time....It will be tilled in Feb for the spring garden....the rest will be set in a pile to compost to be used later in the yr and in the flower beds.
Forgot to mention one more thing: I wear a "dust mask" when I'm cleaning out the barn. I remember watching the kids clean up in the tent after the fair was over and the 4H co-leader didn't want the kids to work on removing the hay too long (need to do it in shifts) because it wasn't good for them to breathe in all the dust generated from cleaning up hay.
Just wanted to mention that suggestion.
I should be cleaning out more of the barn (I need more hay in the garden pathways to keep the new weeds from growing up) since it's rainy and overcast (cooler weather). But they so much seem to love a nice cushy pile of hay to lay on, especially under the feeders.
I think cooler weather is coming later this week anyways, so I'm putting off more barn cleaning until then.
I actually cleaned out my barn recently too. I used all the "loose" hay on top for the pathways in my garden. The next layer, just loose pellets, I put in a pile in the corner of the garden to "age". The last bottom layer of matted down hay and pellets, I had to use a shovel to scrape down to the dirt and that went into another pile to compost. I plan on using the old loose pellets in the garden as fertilizer when the plants have flowers on them.
I'm wondering if I should have waited until after winter to clean the barn. They seem to prefer the nice, cushy layer of hay that falls out of the feeders. They like to sleep on there.
After the barn is cleaned, the thin layer of hay over the dirt floor seems so thin.
I still have a little more to clean out (half of one pen) and some of the other pen (there are only 3 pens in the barn).
It is a lot of hard work !! I'm waiting for another cooler day to work on cleaning out the barn some more. I'm needing more hay in the garden !
Hej from Sweden,
Great idea!!!
KSweden
Rachel Whetzel said:
Hej from Sweden,
I know the amount of straw that can build up over time in the barn/stable. My husband fills his tractor scoop and dumps it out on one of our field and when the weather is good, no wind, he will set fire to it. Sometimes depending on the crop being grown in one of the fields, he may just scatter the straw on the field. We have grown in our herd size so we are now using 7 of our 8 boxes. the remaining box is for our indoor stockpile of hay, straw and grains. So we have a lot to clean out, and it has to go somewhere. I will be curious to see other suggestions from others on this forum.
Good luck
KSweden
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