Like putting you head up a cow's bottom...

[Muddypause]

You know that advice about putting a bunch of stinging nettles in a bucket of water for a week or so to make plant food...?

And you know how people say that it starts to get a bit smelly...?

Well I did this in a bucket behind the shed.

And forgot about it.

About 6 weeks ago.

Boy, does that stuff STINK. If the tomatoes don't pull their own roots up and die I shall be surprised. Still, it'll probably make excellent paint stripper.

[ina]

Can't say I've tried that one yet - I mean the one that involves a cow...

Head's too big for one thing.

[greenbean]

I did this last year for the first time, I was amazed at how stinky it was for vegetation, I'm sure my neighbours must have thought I had a sheeps head in it! Good for the crops mind.

[Wombat]

G'DAy Muddy,

While I can't claim personal experience with the cow, there seems to be a direct relationship between nutrient level and odour. I was doing some stuff with organic hydroponics and while is wasn't necessary to have your olfactory lobe removed, it would have made the job more pleasant!

Nev

[Millymollymandy]

So now you know what it's like to have a septic tank.

[Hillbilly]

So now you know what it's like to have a septic tank.

Actually, y'know that what it smells like! I have a bucket of the stuff sitting next to compost heap and was saying to Shirlz today that it was stinking. She said it smelt like cows poo but yes, thats it! Eau de Overflowing septic tank in summer!!!!!!!

[Muddypause]

<Jilly Goulden> Mmm, I'm getting a wonderful nose of cow poo, and there's a hint of pig shed in there too, with just a little smidgen of septic tank. And then it whooshes around your palate with rotting fish, and a tiny, tiny shade of 10 day old corpse.</JG>

I've just used some of this mixture (very diluted) on the tomatoes and courgettes. The garden is a no-go area for a while, and I'm expecting a visit from the Environmental Health people at any moment.

[FluffyMuppet]

I tried it with comfrey last year, and for several days I thought the wind had changed and was coming straight from the local sewage farm. Then I worked out what the stench was! I don't think any of the neighbours worked it out though, because they didn't come round to complain.

[wulf]

If you have the (mis)fortune to live near a sewage farm, you've probably got a good cover. You could always keep the bucket covered, which should greatly reduce the leakage of the smell (at least until you start spreading it around).

Also, if you expect it is going to rain, that is probably a good time to spread the stuff - the smell should largely wash out of the air and the goodness wash into the soil.

Wulf