Poultry is not only a source of healthy proteins and a key ingredient in any healthy diet – the poultry industry is among fastest growing and most important agro-based industries today, a segment that produces food not only for us, but for our land as well. With the increased interest towards safe, sustainable and efficient fertilization practices, more and more farms and agricultural companies engaged in working the land use poultry manure as organic fertilizer – here are a few of the qualities of the material that make it such a great fertility booster for plants.
A Nutrient-Rich Solution
Plants need lots of minerals to thrive and poultry waste contains most of them in high quantities. One of the key ingredients that make poultry manure such an efficient fertilizer is nitrogen, the element needed by all plants to be able to grow. The other elements contained in high amount in poultry litter include iron, copper, zinc, phosphorous, manganese and potassium, all essential for plant growth.
An Easy-to-Use Solution
Poultry waste starts releasing its nutrient content right away when it is added to the soil. The process of adding it is easy and straightforward – it needs to be spread on the surface of the soil. For some cultures, poultry manure contains too much nitrogen, but that does not mean that the solution cannot be used – composting the manure (the process of keeping the manure in a composting bin for several months, turning it regularly) mellows the waste and makes it suitable for plants that may suffer in the presence of too much nitrogen.
A Cheap and Easily Available Solution
Besides being a naturally rich fertilizer, poultry manure is also cheaper than most synthetic fertilizers. Most poultry producers struggle with having to store or to neutralize the litter produced by their animals and they offer the by-product of the activity for prices that are much lower than the price of artificial fertilizers.
Other Financial Benefits for Farms
There are many studies to prove that poultry litter generate much higher yields in many different cultures, including cotton, corn and many others.
The Benefits for Small Gardens
Poultry waste can be efficiently used not only by farms, but by garden owners as well – if you have poultry in your backyard, you can use them not only for getting eggs and meat, but you can also use their by-products to make the plants in your garden stronger, greener and happier. If you are concerned about the high nitrogen content, you can easily compost the manure with the method described above – the composting process takes a while to complete, so you will have to wait for a few months for your nutrient-rich fertilizer, but making it will not cost you anything and the results will be really spectacular. As an additional benefit, using poultry waste to make your soil more fertile is a completely safe, green way to increase your yield – the all-natural material will not add any harmful chemicals to your flowers, leafy greens, fruits and vegetables.