Sawdust / grass question

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MadHatter
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Re: Sawdust / grass question

Post by MadHatter »

terrabamboo wrote:thanks for the tip, Steve :)

I am going to call that place tomorrow!

What do you think about having him dump a 1" layer of chicken manure in between my rows of bamboo (I will need roughly 15 loads to cover my terrain!), spraying those microbes MadHatter was talking about after the manure is dumped and then running a big spikey aerator in those rows to "mix" it into the soil some. is there anything else I can mix in with the chicken manure ? maybe I should get 15 loads of wood chips from the power company dumped after the manure?

ultimately I would like to create a thick, dark rich compost area in between the rows before the bamboo "fills in" the area. and this is scaleable! (I am in discussion with a 1,000 acre land owner who wants to get into bamboo :)

just need to figure out the correct mix to get me that nice thick nutrient rich surface area.
Something to keep in mind that is over the course of three years you will find that the plants require less and less fertilizer due to the food web you will create in your soil by using the things I referred to. Everything will be used more efficiently and recycled back into the soil more productively. A lot of people think this is just a hippy form of thought with no real benefit, But I assure you it will make a very big difference in whatever you grow. As long as you keep chemicals out of the mix even mineral salt fertilizers will harm the soil food web. I only using these types of fertilizers in my hydroponic systems everything else grows off of natural products. Chicken manure is high in nitrogen but if it is not aged properly can burn your plants it is "hot" stuff.
Eric Troxell
MadKat Farms LLC.
Hydroponic Greenhouse Crop Production
And Field Production Using Organic Practices
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terrabamboo
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Re: Sawdust / grass question

Post by terrabamboo »

MadHatter wrote: Chicken manure is high in nitrogen but if it is not aged properly can burn your plants it is "hot" stuff.
I agree. But this will be spread let's say in Jan, and between my crop rows where only grass is now. The idea would be to mix it with some carbon (woodchips) and your microbe brew for several months before any possibility of growth would emerge (april/may) to give it time to bind. Thoughts?
Terra Bamboo
300 acre Bamboo Plantation Project
Focusing on Henon, Moso, Robert Young, Rubro, Vivax and Fargesia
MadHatter
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Re: Sawdust / grass question

Post by MadHatter »

I agree. But this will be spread let's say in Jan, and between my crop rows where only grass is now. The idea would be to mix it with some carbon (woodchips) and your microbe brew for several months before any possibility of growth would emerge (april/may) to give it time to bind. Thoughts?[/quote]

Here is a link for nutrient value of organic materials. http://www.gardening.cornell.edu/factsh ... utval.html

Here is a link with a section explaining the use of manures in horticulture, do's and don'ts if you will.
http://www.gardening.cornell.edu/factsheets/orgmatter/

I don't think your idea would pose any issues as long as the application rate is not too heavy. Although I personally would place all that chicken poo in a pile and let it cook of for a while to kill off the pathogens that may be present and allow it to break down into a more usable form/less caustic and apply it when it is needed. But your circumstances and time requirements will dictate what is best for you.
Eric Troxell
MadKat Farms LLC.
Hydroponic Greenhouse Crop Production
And Field Production Using Organic Practices
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terrabamboo
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Re: Sawdust / grass question

Post by terrabamboo »

FYI/to those interested:

I took delivery of 52 tons of chicken litter last week with the intention of using a large PTO driven spreader to throw it 30 feet on each side at the bamboo.

Well, that worked in my head, but in reality, it is just too damn wet. On to plan B.....

I literally took bucket fulls of chicken manure to each mother-plant, got out of the tractor, and did about 20 shovelings to create a large circle around each plant. Over, and over again. Took me days and days (finally finished at 4am today), but I was concerned that the chicken litter mounded up as it was, was losing its nitrogen content daily (heating up) and also I was concerned if I waited until early April to spread, the litter would be too hot and I would risk doing damage to the new shoots as they emerged.

Only time will tell now. Six weeks and counting!!
Terra Bamboo
300 acre Bamboo Plantation Project
Focusing on Henon, Moso, Robert Young, Rubro, Vivax and Fargesia
stevelau1911
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Re: Sawdust / grass question

Post by stevelau1911 »

I think in the areas where you can expect shoots to emerge, those shoot roots should take in a lot of the nitrogen from this application through the summer. Given that your plants are still relatively young, I really don't think 52 yards is necessary this early on, but at least having it all mulched can allow it to break down over time and at least improve your soil even if most of the nitrogen gets wasted into the air. I think it would make sense to go heavy on the year you expect the groves to really produce tons of culms so they can get the full benefit of the feeding. 30ft on each side should help the rhizomes run a bit faster eh.

This year, I'm still going pretty heavy just on my bicolor as I've gotten 100lbs of rat/rabbit manure mixed with bedding for $10.00 which will be applied all throughout the rhizome zone so that the new shoots that emerge can turn a nice dark green for maximum photosynthesis. Of course I'll be hanging some mushroom bags on my greenhouse roof top for added CO2 for the time being since the greenhouse temperatures is now averaging 36F in the past 5 days. Once it pops above 40F, photosynthesis should become significant.

I may fertilize the prominens too as it's looking better than the shanghai III in terms of hardiness.
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terrabamboo
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Re: Sawdust / grass question

Post by terrabamboo »

You're totally correct, Steve. I would say 80% of the fertilizer will go to simply more hay production for my crop sharer's cows this winter.
Terra Bamboo
300 acre Bamboo Plantation Project
Focusing on Henon, Moso, Robert Young, Rubro, Vivax and Fargesia
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