The Bovine Bugle

What's hot, when the weather is not

A few weeks ago the temperature was about 15 below zero, but despite the subzero conditions the compost material in the barnyard was steaming away. On warm days, and we've had a lot of them lately, I can't put the manure and hay from the barn into the compost windrow. It's just too soupy. So, I pile the hay and manure from the barnyard on one side of the barnyard instead of mixing it with the manure in the barn. At some point I move the pile from the barnyard to the compost windrow.

I had noticed the pile in the barnyard steaming the other day, so this morning I grabbed the two-foot long thermometer on my way out of the barn. I put the thermometer in the pile and let it do its thing while I scraped the barn. When I checked it 15 minutes later it was registering a temperature of almost 130 degrees! It always amazes me to see how a mixture of hay, manure, and a little moisture can created so much heat, even in the middle of winter. Of course the cows looked at me as if to say, "What are you doing climbing around on the top of that pile? Get down here and feed us some hay". They weren't bothered in the least by the cold temperatures. With plenty of good feed, their shaggy, warm winter coats, and the barn for a windbreak they do fine all winter.

I put my thermometer away, fed the cows, and emptied the dump trailer down at the compost windrow. Once the tractor was parked, I headed into the farmhouse to warm up by the brightly burning woodstove.

--Jonathan (left), Howmars Farm
Franklin, Vermont

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Posted by Blogger Chris at February 24, 2006 02:23 PM