How to Use Chicken Manure as a Garden Fertilizer

Gardening is a hobby that millions of people around the world call their own. There is something intensely satisfying about growing your own lettuce, tomatoes, carrots and vegetables for fresh, organic salads. The idea of having your own fruit tree for delicious, organic apple pies or summer-licious fruit smoothies is exciting. And there's nothing greater than cutting a bouquet of fresh flowers for Valentine's Day or to brighten your living room all day and every day of the year!

Sometimes, a true "green thumb" requires, well, a "brown thumb." I'm talking about fertilizer. In this day and age, the soil in your backyard just isn't what it used to be. After decades of development, chemical sprays, lawn, pavement, and God-knows what else, much of the soil that we have to use for our gardening is rather dead and devoid of nutrients. That's why fertilizer is so important. Fertilizer helps add organic elements back to the ground, giving it a boost of nutrients and making it more plant-friendly.

Think of fertilizer as soil's own multivitamin. The best thing is that fertilizer comes in many different forms and it doesn't have to be that caustic chemical fertilizer that you buy in giant plastic bags at Costco. In fact, many people make their own fertilizer using compost and animal manure!

One of the best animal manures for fertilizer is chicken manure. Whether you're raising your own chickens, or buying chicken manure from a local farmer (who often gives it away because he has so much of it), chicken manure is a great addition to your garden for bigger vegetables, lusher plants and brighter, more vibrant plants.

According to chicken expert website poultryone.com, the average percentages (per total weight) of chicken manure is as follows: 1.8 nitrogen, 1.5 phosphate, and 0.8 for potash.