With a relatively simple process, the manure from your horses can be a very valuable fertilizer for your meadows. This can be done by making Compost or Bokashi from your horse manure.
In both cases you are processing animal manure and you must adhere to the rules of the Fertilizer Act and municipal regulations for storing manure. You will learn all about this in the Legislation and Regulations Workshop . Because compost with manure is still manure under Dutch legislation and regulations and there are strict requirements for both storage and use of animal manure.
Composting
You can dispose of or dispose of horse manure in different ways. A more natural and sustainable way is to make your own compost heap from horse manure, straw, vegetable, fruit and garden waste. Below you will find a commonly used step-by-step plan for making your own compost heap from horse manure:
Provide a place where you have sufficient space, check whether this place must comply with certain rules such as a liquid-tight bottom or roof. Usually used with 3 compartments. One compartment is filled with fresh manure and organic waste, one compartment is filled with compost and is at rest and a final compartment is used to periodically turn the compost for extra aeration and acceleration of the composting process.
Build up layers about 10 centimeters thick. You make a somewhat 'wet' layer containing, among other things, horse manure and vegetable and fruit waste and then a 'dry' layer of, for example, leaves, branches and straw. Alternate the layers and build your own compost lasagna.
Depending on the weather, your compost pile will start to shrink at a significant rate. At Equihabitat Hulder 10 we do not turn the compost heap in between, but we do regularly aerate the heap by shaking it with a fork. We have noticed that the process is faster when it is warm, but whether or not you stir has made little difference to us, so we prefer to save that time. After about 6 to 12 months the compost is ready for use. It then smells like forest soil and really has a sandy structure.
While using the compost, we simply leave insufficiently composted parts in the compost bin or in the new compost heap. But that is usually only the material that has been lying for a shorter period of time or along the sides of the compost heap.
For optimal composting it is important to find the right ratio between wet and dry layers. A ratio of 1/5 horse manure, 2/5 kitchen scraps and 2/5 brown material such as dry leaves, hay, straw, finely chopped wood and reduced hedge clippings is a nice combination that, according to many advisors, will undoubtedly produce good compost. We have approximately a ratio of 50% horse manure and 50% hay, straw, leaves and twigs and this also composts well, but does need a little more time. Our compost sits for about 10 to 12 months. The nutritional value is of course very different. If you want to know the nutritional value of your compost, you can have it tested at the lab.
Bokashi
Bokashi is a Japanese term for “well fermented organic matter”. It is a low-oxygen process that converts organic waste into a high-quality fertilizer. It is important when making Bokashi that you cover the whole, preferably airtight. Below you will find a commonly used step-by-step plan for making your own Bokashi from horse manure:
Collect a lot of fairly fresh horse manure and mix it with 12 kg of seashell lime, 12 kg of clay minerals and 2 liters of EM Microferm. The seashell lime ensures that the bokashi does not become too sour. The clay minerals bind the whole. EM Microferm is a mixture of effective micro-organisms that accelerate fermentation.
Press the pile well and cover it airtight with a plastic sheet. Leave the heap alone and tightly closed for 8-10 weeks to ferment until Bokashi.
Good luck making your own compost or bokashi pile! 🌱
In our knowledge document about compost and Bokashi we share our experience and calculation tools that you can use to calculate, for example, how much compost or Bokashi your herd can produce. But also how much Compost or Bokashi you need to produce to provide your own plot with homemade high-quality fertilizer. You then know how much you are short of and need to supply or have left over and need to remove. And we have included a handy planner so that you can plan your production and not in the winter, when you cannot use it with finished products and miss out in the spring and autumn.
