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Poultry manure

Poultry manure is an organic fertilizer, the most concentrated and fastest among other organic fertilizers. It refers to the local fertilizer, containing 30-50% in non-littered form, in littered form – about 10% of ammonia nitrogen from the total amount of nitrogen.

Chemical composition of poultry manure

The nutrient content of poultry manure depends on the composition and quality of the feed and, to a lesser extent, on housing methods.

Table. Chemical composition of poultry manure, %[1]Agrochemistry. Textbook / V.G. Mineev, V.G. Sychev, G.P. Gamzikov et al; ed. by V.G. Mineev. - M.: Publishing house of the All-Russian Scientific Research Institute named after D.N. Pryanishnikov, … Continue reading

Poultry manure
H2O
N
P2O5
K2O
CaO
MgO
SO3
Chicken
56
1,6
1,5
0,8
2,4
0,7
0,4
Duck
70
0,7
0,9
0,6
1,1
0,2
0,3
Goose
76
0,5
0,5
0,9
0,8
0,2
0,1

Poultry manure contains trace elements: 100 g of dry matter contains 15-38 mg of manganese, 12-39 mg of zinc, 1-1.2 mg of cobalt, 1-2.5 mg of copper, 300-400 mg of iron. Most of the nutrients in poultry manure are in water-soluble form.

Poultry manure production

Chicken manure surpasses manure in its fertilizing qualities and is not inferior to mineral fertilizers in speed of action. Geese (goose) and duck droppings contain more moisture and are close to manure in terms of nutrient content. During the year, from 100 hens collect 600-800 kg of manure, from ducks – 700-900 kg, from geese 1000-1200 kg.

Drying of poultry manure after 8 hours of cage housing is 10-12%, after 12 hours – 13-16%, after one day – 27-32%. Floor housing produces litter manure that dries faster and reaches 50% in 12 hours and 35% under ducks and geese.

Litter chicken manure

Litter chicken manure has sufficient bulkiness, low moisture content. It is used as litter manure in doses calculated by nitrogen. With a moisture content of 56%, it contains on average 1.6% N, 1.5% P2O5 and 0.9% K2O. Peat, chopped straw, and sawdust of deciduous trees laid in a layer of 30-40 cm as litter is used; the upper layer is mixed with the lower one as it gets soiled. Litter is removed when livestock changes 2-3 times a year. Another option is to use litter: peat is placed in a 5-10 cm layer, which is added 15-20 grams per 1 head when polluted. When the height of litter reaches 0.5-1.0 m, it is removed.

The moisture content of peat should be no more than 50%, other types of litter – 30%. Litter promotes preservation of litter nutrients and reduces their loss. Deep litter application in poultry houses is the most reliable method for preserving nitrogen, improving physical properties of litter, reducing labor costs and increasing productivity. The best material for deep litter is dry shredded sphagnum peat with the addition of shredded straw. Dry peat crumbs of lowland peat, straw, chaff, and sawdust can also be used for litter. 

Moisture content of poultry litter manure varies from 30 to 50%. The best quality is poultry manure fertilizer based on peat and straw.

Table. Composition of different types of poultry litter manure at 40th moisture content (% on crude matter)[2]Agrochemistry. Textbook / V.G. Mineev, V.G. Sychev, G.P. Gamzikov et al; ed. by V.G. Mineev. - M.: Publishing house of the All-Russian Scientific Research Institute named after D.N. Pryanishnikov, … Continue reading

Type of litter
N
P2O5
K2O
Peat
2,22
2,00
0,78
Sawdust
1,60
1,40
0,62
Peat and straw
2,15
1,65
0,68
Straw
2,10
1,60
0,85

Nitrogen losses from poultry manure can be reduced by adding superphosphate in an amount of 6-10% of the weight of raw manure. Superphosphate is added after removing it from the poultry house. Concentrated fertilizer thus obtained is applied under row crops and vegetable crops at 4-5 t/ha, under cereals – 2-2.5 t/ha.

Litter-free chicken manure

Litter-free chicken manure is a sticky, smeary mass of stinky odor with a higher nutrient content than litter chicken manure. It also contains weed seeds, helminth eggs and larvae, flies, and microorganisms, many of which are pathogens.

All nutrients in poultry manure are contained in plant-available forms. Nitrogen of uric and hippuric acids undergoes ammonification, which is accompanied by its losses during improper storage, which can reach 50% of total content in 6 months. To reduce nitrogen losses during accumulation and storage of litter-free chicken manure, 20-40% of the weight of peat crumbs or composted with peat, in the absence of peat – up to 30% of soil is added to it.

At poultry farms for decontamination, deodorization, preservation of nutrients, improvement of physical and mechanical properties of litter-free manure use rapid thermal drying at 600-800 °C. One ton of raw manure yields 300-350 kg of granulated or powdered concentrated organic fertilizer with 15-20% moisture content; nitrogen loss does not exceed 5%; the concentration of nutrients increases by 3 times: 4-6% N, 3-4% P2O5 and 1.5-2.0% K2O, CaO – 4.5, MgO – 1.6%.

Thermally dried chicken manure is decontaminated and biologically inactive material suitable for long-term storage. Drying manure is associated with high energy costs and is used only at poultry farms located near cities or recreation areas, where it is impossible to dispose of manure by other means.

Dry poultry manure

Dry poultry manure – loose organic fertilizer, more transportable, can be stored in a dry place, for 6 months of storage in bags or open stacks loses 4-11% organic matter and 3-8% nitrogen.

Composting poultry manure

There are no volatile forms of nitrogen in fresh chicken manure, but during storage in piles it heats up a lot and nitrogen is lost due to the conversion of uric acid into ammonia compounds. Losses during such storage in 1.5-2 months can reach 30-60% of the total content. Losses are eliminated by composting fresh poultry manure with peat, humus, straw, sawdust, turf or topsoil.

Composting is a method of manure utilization, increases the yield of fertilizer, and is more environmentally friendly. Peat-manure composts are the most common. To obtain high quality compost balanced in terms of nutrients, reducing nitrogen losses, increasing biological activity, it is recommended to add 10-20 kg of powdered superphosphate, 20-30 kg of phosphate meal or 5-10% of the compost mass of phosphogypsum per 1 ton of compost mass. The addition of 1.5-2% potassium chloride protects the piles from freezing in winter.

For fast and optimal processes in the compost mixture should have a moisture content of 65-70%, the ratio of C:N of 20:1 to 30:1, acidity pH 6-8. Stacking is done when the temperature drops to 30-35°C. Compost is considered mature when the temperature in the stack does not increase after turning. The composting process takes 1-2 months. Since manure is primarily a nitrogen-phosphorus fertilizer, its use necessitates an additional application of potash fertilizer.

Applications

Poultry manure is characterized by high stickiness, which makes it difficult to apply to the soil with existing machinery. The suspended solids contained in the manure runoff prevent its application by sprinkler systems as well. For economic reasons, the transportation radius of liquid manure is limited to 5 km, so it is advisable to use litter poultry manure, composted manure, and in some cases dry manure as fertilizer.

Poultry manure fertilizers are applied first to row crops, then to winter crops and grasses as the main fertilizer and top dressing. In areas with sufficient moisture, manure and its compost are embedded with disc-shaped tools and cultivators; plowing of compost is more effective on sandy and sandy loam soils. Embedding of organic fertilizers, including poultry manure compost, is carried out by tiered plows such as ПЯ-3-35 with a single fertilizer application for a number of years of crop rotation.

Poultry manure is used before sowing crops and during the growing season as an additional fertilizer. When applying poultry manure before sowing, depending on the type, productivity of crops and state of soil cultivation, it is applied in doses: litter-free – 5-10 t/ha, littered – 10-20 t/ha, heat-dried – 2-4 t/ha. When feeding by solid method the doses of litter-free manure are 0.8-1 t/ha, when applied locally in furrows and holes – 400-500 kg/ha, doses of litter manure are increased by 20-30%, dry manure – reduced by 3 times.

Poultry manure composts are comparable with litter manure in efficiency and in some cases surpass it.

All types of poultry manure when applied in doses equivalent to mineral fertilizers are not inferior in effect and aftereffect on the yield of crops. Under crops sensitive to increased concentration of soil solution and responding positively to improved air carbon dioxide nutrition are superior to mineral fertilizers.

Table. Approximate rates for the application of litter poultry fertilizers for agricultural crops on black soils and gray forest soils of the forest-steppe zone (according to research institutions, t/ha)

Crop
Poultry manure
Compost
dry
natural moisture
litter
liquid
Cereals
2-5
5-7
6-8
20-25
10-15
Potatoes
2-4
7-12
10-15
-
20-25
Corn for grain and silage
6-10
7-12
10-15
60-80
20-25
Sugar beet
5-8
7-12
10-15
50-60
20-25
Forage root crops
5-8
7-12
10-15
50-60
20-25
Technical crop
5-8
10-12
12-15
-
20-25
Vegetables
5-8
10-12
10-15
30-40
30-40
Annual grasses for green fodder
-
5-8
8-10
23-25
10-15
Perennial grasses for green fodder and hay
-
-
-
15-20
-
Meadows and pastures
-
-
-
20-30
-
Bare fallow
-
5-8
7-10
30-40
15-20

Table. Approximate rates of poultry manure fertilizers for crops on sod-podzolic soils of the Non-Black Soil zone (according to research institutions, t/ha)

Crop
Poultry manure
Компост
dry
natural moisture
litter
liquid
Winter cereals
3-4
13-15
10-15
45-50
20-25
Spring cereals
3
8-10
10-15
20-25
20-25
Potatoes
4-5
15-20
20-25
60-70
40-50
Corn for silage
4-5
15-20
15-20
60-70
40-60
Forage root crops
4-5
15-20
15-20
60-70
30-50
Forage cabbage
4-5
15-20
15-20
60-70
40-60
Vegetables
6-8
20-25
20-25
60-70
40-60
Annual grasses
-
-
13-15
50
20-30
Perennial grasses
5-8
10-15
-
30
-
Hayfields and pastures
-
15-20
-
30-40
-

Sources

Yagodin B.A., Zhukov Y.P., Kobzarenko V.I. Agrochemistry/Under ed. B.A. Yagodin. – M.: Kolos, 2002. – 584 p.: ill.

Agrochemistry. Textbook / V.G. Mineev, V.G. Sychev, G.P. Gamzikov et al. – M.: Publishing house of the All-Russian Scientific Research Institute named after D.N. Pryanishnikov, 2017. – 854 с.