Free Poo!

I had to purchase compost for my MM because I am a newbie gardener. I was so frustrated because it seemed like the same small limited selection at every garden store I went to (cow & mushroom). I did manage to find some hen manure (got very excited)! So I decided to start composting.

My compost bin is a truly ugly thing that is wonderfully serving it's purpose, but I need more mass to get things going. It suddenly occurred to me when we took the kids swimming at my husband's aunt's house.....free poo!

The aunt and uncle live on a lot of property about an hour north of us, and they have a donkey and several goats. I'm pretty sure that is safe to use, herbivores, right? I am welcome to any and all I can shovel and haul away.....

My question is, what is the best way to do this? Just shovel into some heavy duty trash bags, throw it into the back of the SUV and spritz the car with air freshener? It seems like such a pain and a lot of work, but so much free compostable material....I can't resist....

I appreciate any advice! (I am a stay at home mom, so I'd probably be doing this with 4 yr old daughter in tow).

Great score! Now you're thinking like a real SFGer! Other members have reported doing exactly what you're planning on. Their advice: secure the container tops to keep said stuff in the container; apparently it gets messy to clean up if you don't!

How about 5-gallon buckets? The lids on these lock fairly securely, and you can store the compost in them if you need to. They are fairly inexpensive to buy, but you may be able to get some for free from local restaurants. There is a Firehouse Subs restaurant near us that will give you a pickle bucket for a $2 donation to the Fireman's Fund. Good luck collecting your free poo!

You just had to mention Firehouse Subs didn't you. I love me some Firehouse subs!!!

Don't bother with buckets from Lowe's the lids do not seal right, or tight. Home Depot or Sherwin Williams are an option, and restaraunts would be even better. Look for restaraunts that have pickles on the menu-they go through so many sliced dill pickles on the burgers most of them just give the buckets away. It is hard to get the smell out, but if all you are using them for is poo, than no worries, but I would not use them to store bulk food items, like sugar and flour in them.

LOL! I tried new Firehouse Subs near me for the first time last week. Yum!! Walked out with a bucket for my compost, too!

Firehouse Subs, who knew?? I have a lot of 5 gal. buckets left in my shed from the previous owners of this house, but no lids to them. However, my hubby works in a Mexican restaurant on the weekends, I'm sure they have some buckets that will work for poo. A container with a lid is a much better way to go than some trash bags!

I have read (and re-read) Mel's book cover to cover and I am really trying to be creative and inventive with all of this. I spent $ on my box and the MM, and built a smaller box and the compost bin from free materials in the garage and shed. I am hoping to impress my husband enough with the harvest to get a bigger gardening budget!

Sarah - I agree on the 5-gallon bucket idea. That's what I used last week when I collected some from goats & chickens. The lids kept everything from spilling and also did a great job of holding in the odors. Congrats on the score!!

just a couple of hints..........We have new rules for hauling manure at our house.

UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES should you just use trash bags. They break and spilled poo in the back of the SUV is a definite NO-NO, even if it did smell way worse when you bought it used then after you spilled the poo in it.

Five gal. buckets are great but make sure the lids are on VERY tight. Use a hammer to smack them down. When you put the buckets in the SUV, make sure you put something around them to keep them from tipping over should you have to slam on the brakes, take a curve too fast or get rear-ended.

At our house we now haul all poo in a trailer.

Gwynn

Free poo is a good thing.

Just have to say I received a bit of a jolt upon reading "swimming in the pool" and "free poo"... Oh, the images that jumped to my mind...

Old Hippie -


Jazzymaddy, me too! When I first read it, I thought - Swimming pool + free poo + .

But, how great to have family with animals with desireable droppings.

And now I am quite sad that we have no Firehouse Subs here.

sarah in the garden wrote:It suddenly occurred to me when we took the kids swimming at my husband's aunt's house.....free poo!

Now everyone knows how my mind works...the kids are swimming in the pool and it makes me think of poo! I guess I just assumed everyone else would follow the impossible leaps and bounds my mind makes.

I was sitting on the back deck of Aunt & Uncle's house, watching the kids swim. The first half of the yard has a pool, swing for the grandson, and a pretty rose garden. There is a fence dividing the property in two, in the back half of the giant yard is a small lake with a dock where the donkey and goats just hang out. I was staring at the goats sitting by the lake when I thought of the poo.

The buckets are a fantastic idea! They will think I'm crazy, but I'm sure they'll let me haul away all I can shovel.