Good manure management involves: 1) Avoiding losses of manure through rapid removal from housing to storage, covering stored solids, and immediate soil incorporation after field application. 2) Storing manure solids tightly packed and covered to restrict rain and wind impact. 3) Potentially mixing manure with high carbon materials to reduce nitrogen losses during storage. 4) Applying manure to fields shortly before or during crop growth and immediately incorporating it into the soil to avoid nitrogen losses.

1. Manure management
4. Good manure management
• Avoiding losses of manure mass (liquids
and solids) from the boma, the storage
system and the field.
• Limiting exposure of excreta to the air
through: (1) rapid and complete removal
of faeces and urine from the floor of the
building to the storage facilities; (2)
covering solids with a plastic sheet; and
(3) immediate incorporation into the soil
of the manure after field application.
• Store manure solids tightly compacted on
a heap or in a pit, and covered with
plastic sheet to restrict the impact of rain
and wind.
• Mix the manure with materials with a
high C/N ratio may reduce N losses during
storage.
• Manure should be applied to the field
shortly before or during active crop
growth and immediately incorporated
into the soil to avoid N losses.
Pictures
Farmers’ workshop: 5th -10th
February 2018.
Nandi and Bomet counties
1. Why manure?
• Animal manures contain important plant nutrients such as nitrogen,
phosphorus, potassium and other trace elements.
• Animal manure addition to soil increases the biological activity of the
soil. Increased soil biological activity results in an increased nutrient
availability.
• Animal manure provides organic matter for the soil, which is very
important for soil fertility. As manure decomposes, crop nutrients are
supplied to the plant gradually over time.
• Animal manures provide nutrients for immediate crop growth and also
for future yields.
• Correct use of animal manure subsidises the use of inorganic fertiliser
and mitigates climate change.
Fill biodigester regularly
CookingLightFarm
Nandi County
Bomet County
2. Manure availability
3. Manure and biodigesters
5. Take home message
I. Collect as frequent as possible, as
fresh as possible and put in the soil
as fast as possible
II. Always cover your manure
heaps/pits
III. Use manure in fodder as well as in
cash crops
I II III
Light
Jesse Owino, International Livestock Research Institute
Jesse Owino
Mazingira Centre, International Livestock Research Institute,
P.O. Box 30709-00100 Nairobi, Kenya.
This project was funded by International Fund for Agricultural Development.
This document is licensed for use under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Licence. July 2018
ILRI thanks all donors and organizations which globally support its work through their contributions to the CGIAR Trust Fund