How to Use Fresh Manure in a Vegetable Garden

Composted manure makes healthy gardens.

Manure is a highly nutritive additive for a garden. People have been adding manure to their vegetable gardens for centuries, but it is not as simple as just laying on fresh manure. There are cautions and precautions for using manure in a garden, especially around leafy plants such as lettuce and spinach. The only type of manure that is suitable for garden use is from plant-eating animals and that is because of the risk of dangerous bacteria infecting the fresh vegetables.

Things You'll Need

• Tiller
• Shovel
• Rake

Instructions

1. Spread the fresh manure over the surface of the garden in the fall after all the summer crops have been harvested, using a shovel to spread it and a rake to smooth it out.

2. Till the manure into the garden so that it is worked down into the top 6 inches of topsoil and so that the microbes in the soil will decompose the manure into organic compounds that will be available for plant uptake in the spring.

3. Turn the soil one more time in the spring with a tiller to work the richness of the composted manure into the lower layers of the garden, depleted from the previous season's growth.

Tips & Warnings

• Never use raw compost directly in the garden unless you wait at least 6 months before planting.

References

• Cornell University: Using Organic Matter in the Garden
• Colorado State University Extension: Food Garden Fresh Manure and Food Gardens Don't Mix