Chicken manure or Lime only.

[lovemylegacy]

Most of the feed stores have it and will spread it for you.. probably around 35bucks a ton spread. we keep upping the quantity but dont have to do those plots but every three years.

I will need mine in 50lb bags. My plot is very secluded

[cashcropper]

So back to the original questiono you still need to add lime to your plot to correct soil PH or will adding a bunch of chicken manure overcome low soil PH? All Ive ever heard is that if the soil PH is too low then fertilizer is a waste of money. Please clarify.

[BrandonA]

Most of the feed stores have it and will spread it for you.. probably around 35bucks a ton spread. we keep upping the quantity but dont have to do those plots but every three years.

At the rate of 8000lb per acre I would need 80,000 lbs. Thats a lot of chicken ****!!!! May give feed store a call.

[GarGuy]

At the rate of 8000lb per acre I would need 80,000 lbs. Thats a lot of chicken ****!!!! May give feed store a call.

You dont have to put it that heavy but it sure wont hurt. Thats just four loads and you wont have to hit it again for three years. Of course i will probably hit mine again in two.

if you go half that heavy., you dont really need to turn it under. i personally think it works better if you cut it under.

[lovemylegacy]

So back to the original questiono you still need to add lime to your plot to correct soil PH or will adding a bunch of chicken manure overcome low soil PH? All Ive ever heard is that if the soil PH is too low then fertilizer is a waste of money. Please clarify.

This^^^^Will I still need to add lime or is the chicken poop good enough?

[BrandonA]

You dont have to put it that heavy but it sure wont hurt. Thats just four loads and you wont have to hit it again for three years. Of course i will probably hit mine again in two.

if you go half that heavy., you dont really need to turn it under. i personally think it works better if you cut it under.

Gotcha. thanks for the information.

[Drycreek3189]

This^^^^Will I still need to add lime or is the chicken poop good enough?

You can buy regular lime in bags also, it's just a pain to put out. I have put it out in plots like you described when either a truck couldn't maneuver or the spot was too small to warrant a truck. Be aware that pelletized lime works quicker, but the effects don't last as long. I have put it out, but the expense is not worth it IMO. Go regular lime, use a three pont spreader, and you can get it done in small plots. You can go online to Whitetail Institute and buy soil testing kits for $15 each. They include everything you need (except a shovel) to get the soil and mail it back to them. Get samples from various spots in the plot, mix the dirt up, then get your dirt to sample. Once they recieve the soil, you'll have your results and their lime and fertilizer recommendations within 3/4 days by email. They even suggest fertilizer for specific crops. I've used them for years. Your local soil conservation office will do it also, but they may be geared more toward grass than food plots. Good luck !

[lovemylegacy]

Hmmmm

[lovemylegacy]

Never did get my question answered. Try it one more time.

[elgato]

Sorry for the very delinquent response. The season just ended for me last week and its been a blur catching up .

First I would get a soil sample done. Very cheap and easy and will tell you your lime requirements. As stated above lime many times is the most important thing. You can spread palletized lime with a broadcast spreader behind a 4 wheeler if necessary. It acts faster though doesn't act as long.I'd do it as soon as practical.

I'm jealous of gar guy adding 8ooo /acre. I added between 1-3 tons litter/acre. Definitely saw much better results at 3 tons/acre. The litter will increase ph slightly but I would still go with lime first. Both products take some time to start working for different reasons so I would add whenever practical. The good news is you shouldn't have to repeat every year.

Something I'm watching to learn about is how often the litter has to be reapplied. I don't harvest anything so most of the crop residue stays in the field. So??? if the crops are utilizing the nutrients, then excepting the small amnt. removed by deer for the most part left in the field what does that mean? At the same time I'm building organic matter which also helps. All cool stuff.

Hope this helps.

[lovemylegacy]

Yes it does. We have a biologist, he suggested a ton per acre for the lime. I was gonna try and cut a corner with the chicken litter, but it appears I may need to lime anyway. I planted soybeans last year, they did pretty good and the deer loved them, but they always had a light green color, not the dark green that is common with soybeans.

As you, I leave all the crop residue in the field. Im gonna put 500-1000lbs of chicken litter before I plant

Thanx elgato