Cow manure delivery-how long do I store it

[Rose willow]

I am getting a bulk delivery of cow manure this week. Man tells me it’s ‘aged’ but this could mean anything. From 2 days to 2 years. If it’s still in obvious lumps I am guessing I should just cover it over and leave it for a while? Or could I just spread it on part of my plot I am designating as no dig and cover it up with plastic for a couple of months. I am reading that I should leave it to get hot to kill off any seeds or nasty bugs so again I am guessing in a big heap would be better but it would be good to know before it arrives as I will no doubt do the wrong thing left to my own devices

[Chestnut]

I have had a few deliveries of manure to our allotment (mostly cow manure with odd bits from the handful of poultry he keeps for eggs).
The stuff we get is generally too fresh to put straight on the plot (recognisable cowpats and spade sized lumps of bedding straw), so I leave it all in a big heap for 9-12 months to rot down. If it’s an autumn delivery I pop pumpkins in it the following summer and they thrive on it!
It generally reduces to about half the volume over that first year, so there’s a lot less barrowing to do 12 months later.
After 9-12 months there are still a few small bits of straw , at 18 months it’s pretty similar to shop bought compost.

hope this helps!

[ameno]

You should be able to tell by the temperature and the smell how usable it is yet.
If it's still giving off heat or still smells of faeces, ammonia, or any other rank smell then it's not ready yet, and needs more time.
If it's fairly cool and mostly just smells earthy then it should be good enough to spread now, even if it's still a bit lumpy (just break the lumps down).

[quanglewangle]

Warning - it is worth checking with your manure supplier that they do not use aminopyralid selective weed killer on their grass. It binds tightly to grass and passes through the animal and remains present in manure.

Bad for crops if used as mulch but breaks down in time if manure mixed well with soil.

See RHS Weedkiller in manure https://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profile?pid=477 for full skinny

[Nicos]

Always good advice QW for any new source of manure.

[nickdub]

One final thing to mention is that in any sort of manure like this almost all the plant nutrients in it are water-soluble. That means that if it is left exposed to rain than most of the goodness will be washed out of it before its put in its final place. Obviously this matters less on a farm scale when muck heaps can be 12 or 15' high and so will shed most of the rain that falls on them, but a couple of tons of manure left exposed for a year will only add humus to the soil.

Either cover heaps with a tarpaulin, stack them up inside a shed or as a last resort put the pile on a piece of ground you intend to grow things on later in the year - waste not, want not.

[Rose willow]

Thank you all for the advice.