# Does sheep manure have weed seeds in it?



## soarwitheagles (Nov 8, 2016)

Hi again!

I would like to use sheep manure as fertilizer.  Not so sure that would be ok in my particular situation.  Please permit me to explain.

I am preparing to plant my very first attempt at a perennial pasture.  Here is what I have done so far:

1. Let the sheep eat down the annual rye and clover to absolutely nothing [during the summer months].
2. Plowed 10-12 inches deep [my neighbors tell me this field hasn't been plowed in over 60 years].
3. Broke up the dirt clods by repeated runs with the discs.
4. Leveled the field.
5. Dragged a cyclone fence repeatedly over the field.
6. Waited 2 weeks for new weeds to sprout.
7. Tomorrow I will apply glyphosate mixed with the ammonium sulfate to this field even though almost no weeds came up.
8. Then, I will wait 3-7 days, and plant the new GP1 perennial pasture seed mix.

I read that I should also fertilize.  I was thinking of placing a somewhat large flock of sheep on this field for night times only, for "natural fertilizing."

And now, the million dollar question:

*Does sheep manure have weed seeds in it?*

*PS added a pic of the field*


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## Bossroo (Nov 8, 2016)

If the pasture and hay that you feed contain weed seeds , and chances are that the feed does.  Then yes.


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## Baymule (Nov 16, 2016)

If the weed seeds come from the sheep manure, then obviously the sheep like eating them. If the sheep eat the weeds that they inadvertently plant, then what's the problem? Different plants offer different nutrition and your sheep know that. Not picking on you, just wondering why.


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## greybeard (Nov 16, 2016)

soarwitheagles said:


> View attachment 24049 Hi again!
> 
> I would like to use sheep manure as fertilizer.  Not so sure that would be ok in my particular situation.  Please permit me to explain.
> 
> ...


I cannot speak of sheep feces as fertilizer or it's weed content but I would question the use of glyphosate (with or without AS) on virtually barren ground. Glyphosate alone (no other active ingredients) is a non-selective herbicide with no soil activity or residual soil activity. It is strictly a foliage and stem absorbed chemical and has no pre-emergence capability.  
If you do have enough weeds up that justify spraying the whole area, then do so, but it will not prevent the existing seed bank that is naturally there from sprouting up next spring, unless you use one of the glyphosate mixtures that have an additional chem in the mix, and to be honest, I do not use them on anything except fence lines--their activity can last up to 1 yr where the additional chemical (usually Imazpyr) can't distinguish between a weed sprout and a good grass sprout.
Don't get me wrong--I'm a big proponent of herbicide use and probably use more per year than anyone at BYH, (1400 gal this year)  but spraying this time of year, when the growing season is all but over and not much is above ground seems to be a bit futile--especially if the few weeds you have are annuals. Take my word for it--next spring, you WILL have weeds--that seed bank is down there and now that the soil has been disturbed, they are going to show themselves no matter how deep you turned it over.


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## soarwitheagles (Nov 16, 2016)

Baymule said:


> If the weed seeds come from the sheep manure, then obviously the sheep like eating them. If the sheep eat the weeds that they inadvertently plant, then what's the problem? Different plants offer different nutrition and your sheep know that. Not picking on you, just wondering why.



Baymule, thank you for replying.  I suppose we are doing our best to create as "pure" of pasture as possible, eliminating most if not all weed competition.

The UC Davis extension people were quite adamant about killing everything before planting a new pasture.  They also were surprisingly strong with their advice to NOT plant any annuals nor permit any annuals with the new perennial seeds.  This seemed kind of strange to me because the large majority of perennial pasture mixes here include annual grasses too.  I think they are concerned that the annuals may crowd out the new perennial seeds/sprouts and then when the annuals die, the perennial grass is much weaker and much more sparse.

Anyway, they directed me to a seed company that sells general pasture mix without any annuals, and I just planted an entire field tonight.

Baymule, last year I read somewhere that sheep and goat manure have much less weed seed sprout rate than horses.  My wife and I made the terrible mistake two years ago to use our neighbor's horse manure in one part of our garden..., what an utter disaster.  We had million of weeds seeds sprout [I think it was hay seeds] and it took us nearly an entire year to eliminate those seeds and weeds.



greybeard said:


> I cannot speak of sheep feces as fertilizer or it's weed content but I would question the use of glyphosate (with or without AS) on virtually barren ground. Glyphosate alone (no other active ingredients) is a non-selective herbicide with no soil activity or residual soil activity. It is strictly a foliage and stem absorbed chemical and has no pre-emergence capability.
> If you do have enough weeds up that justify spraying the whole area, then do so, but it will not prevent the existing seed bank that is naturally there from sprouting up next spring, unless you use one of the glyphosate mixtures that have an additional chem in the mix, and to be honest, I do not use them on anything except fence lines--their activity can last up to 1 yr where the additional chemical (usually Imazpyr) can't distinguish between a weed sprout and a good grass sprout.
> Don't get me wrong--I'm a big proponent of herbicide use and probably use more per year than anyone at BYH, (1400 gal this year)  but spraying this time of year, when the growing season is all but over and not much is above ground seems to be a bit futile--especially if the few weeds you have are annuals. Take my word for it--next spring, you WILL have weeds--that seed bank is down there and now that the soil has been disturbed, they are going to show themselves no matter how deep you turned it over.



Greybeard, thank you again for sharing your wisdom and knowledge.

Yes, that field looks as if there is nothing growing in it.  But in all reality, millions of tiny sprouts began to appear the third week after plowing and discing and that is why I applied the glyphosate.  I wish we had more time, because then I would have done things a little differently.  A really nice old timer who worked at TS, told us how he successfully prepared fields:

1. He plowed and disc-ed. 
2. Watered and waited 4-6 weeks.
3. Applied glyco.
4. Repeat steps 1-3 three or four times!
5. Plant the new seeds in the field.

Unfortunately, we did not have 4-5 months to be so thorough in prepping these fields.  My goal is to have each of the perennial fields planted by December.  If we get too much rain in the next couple of weeks, then I will not even be able to go out into the fields with our tractor.   So I am trying the quick method, hoping it will work.  I suppose I am hoping these new seeds will suppress the seed bank you are speaking of.

My biggest concern and experiment is planting massive clover seeds in the forest area.  Eucalyptus trees are well known for their allelopathic effects on soil which tends to reduce biomass production and plant diversity.  I saw massive numbers of forbs and wild oats coming up everywhere.  I just hope our clover seeds will come up too!  We will know if the next couple of weeks if this will work.


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## Baymule (Nov 16, 2016)

Horse manure is the worst for seeds! You have to compost it to death to eliminate the weeds. My thought and it is just my thoughts, is that since sheep ruminate, chew their cud and thoroughly digest their food, that maybe they over process the seeds. I am sure that weed seeds make it through the intestinal tract, but I bet it is a WHOLE lot LESS than horse manure!


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## greybeard (Nov 16, 2016)

> But in all reality, millions of tiny sprouts began to appear the third week after plowing and discing and that is why I applied the glyphosate.


And there are undoubtedly many millions more seeds still waiting for the right circumstances to make them germinate. 
You are not thru fighting weeds--you are just beginning a very long battle against them--counted in years, not months. It's easy to take land from a forest, but much much harder to keep it--the forest wants it back, and if something happens to prevent you from managing it, it will reclaim it in one single growing season--2 at the very most. 

One of the best things you can do to prevent this, is to keep the soil pH correct for the forage you want. I don't know what you planted or even which hemisphere you are in so I can't recommend a pH for you, but neutral or a bit high is generally much  better than a low pH.


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## Baymule (Nov 17, 2016)

our sheep will eat a LOT of the weeds. Mine go for the weeds FIRST. But they leave standing the weeds they don't like. So my suggestion is after you move your sheep out of a field and there are standing weeds, just knock 'em down with a bush hog. Over time you'll get the pasture you want.


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## soarwitheagles (Nov 18, 2016)

Baymule said:


> Horse manure is the worst for seeds! You have to compost it to death to eliminate the weeds. My thought and it is just my thoughts, is that since sheep ruminate, chew their cud and thoroughly digest their food, that maybe they over process the seeds. I am sure that weed seeds make it through the intestinal tract, but I bet it is a WHOLE lot LESS than horse manure!



You sure are right!  We learned the hard way!  Now the sheep manure was a completely different story.  I collected over 20 yards of it, layered and sprayed it with the water, let it compost, and we used it this fall with absolutely phenomenal results.  Side feeding our tomato plants and presently the tomato plants are over 8 feet tall, 4-6 feet in width.

All kales and swiss chards larger and more healthier than anything I have ever seen. Sugar snap peas showing an incredibly difference too.  I have another 20 yards ready and I was so tempted to lay down a .5 inch cover on the new field.  But I am saving this 20 yards for the spring planting of veggies.



greybeard said:


> And there are undoubtedly many millions more seeds still waiting for the right circumstances to make them germinate.
> You are not thru fighting weeds--you are just beginning a very long battle against them--counted in years, not months. It's easy to take land from a forest, but much much harder to keep it--the forest wants it back, and if something happens to prevent you from managing it, it will reclaim it in one single growing season--2 at the very most.
> 
> One of the best things you can do to prevent this, is to keep the soil pH correct for the forage you want. I don't know what you planted or even which hemisphere you are in so I can't recommend a pH for you, but neutral or a bit high is generally much  better than a low pH.



Thanks again Greybeard!  We are located about half way between Sacramento and Stockton.  Optimal pH for clover is 6.0 or higher.  Remember, we have two types of areas we are planting:

1. Open field that was plowed this month for the first time in over 60 years.
2. Forest areas 100+ years old that have massive [12-18 inches deep] of Eucalyptus forest droppings/compost.

We did not test the pH in the open field because the UC Davis Ext. people know the soil here and were convinced the soil is great for creating a pasture.  One thing I found strange was the UC extension's response to trying clover in the forest floor.  They stated that the naturally occurring annual plant species growing in the grove seem to be doing fine and perhaps it would be best to simply let them continue to grow.  BTW, our sheep love the naturally occurring annual plant species growing in the grove.

But I do not know the protein levels of the natural grasses and forbs, so that is why I am attempting to introduce a percentage of clover to the forest.

Good news is today, I went out, and for the first time, I am beginning to see clover sprout up all over the place [I planted clover 10-15 days ago].  So this might work after all!



Baymule said:


> our sheep will eat a LOT of the weeds. Mine go for the weeds FIRST. But they leave standing the weeds they don't like. So my suggestion is after you move your sheep out of a field and there are standing weeds, just knock 'em down with a bush hog. Over time you'll get the pasture you want.



Yes.  This afternoon I again quietly sneaked up on the sheep as they were browsing and grazing.  They are eating the forbs, the new green wild oats, the old wild oats, fresh eucalyptus leaves, and all the weeds they can.  Apparently nothing is poisonous because this is now the 3rd week they are eating from the forest floor and I let them out every morning at 6 am and bring them in every evening around 5 pm.


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