Growing potatoes in fresh-ish muck

[chasingmytail]

Sorry I havent introduced myself but Im currently growing an organic kitchen garden. My beds are full and loads of spuds to plant. Squeezed for time.

I am interested in the straw bale growing however we have run out of organic straw and cant locate any. The option is to use muck from the cow sheds that has straw broken down in it however the muck is layered top is about 1 month old and bottom layers around 5 months or so.

Can I use the lower layers of muck and will this work?

If not what are my other options without spending vast amounts?

[snakeshack]

First off welcome to the vine, the lower muck may be ok , it will depend on how broken down it is. As a general rule if its friable and doesn't smell like 5h1t anymore its probably OK but will be very rich in nutrients. Other opinions will soon be available

[ESBkevin]

With Cow muck it's very well digested and no seeds survive, however it is very rich. I would advocate using the older stuff and laying it on top of the soil/plants as a mulch (not touching the leaves at first) and let the worms and weather feed it into the soil over the coming months at a rate that will be beneficial and unlikely to harm the roots. Because the new is stacked on the old the liquids may have trickled down leaving the older stuff still likely to burn. Cow muck is very good stuff and having access to a lot is a blessing, keep some aside for next winters digging or spring mulching.