Comparing the combination of goose manure and leaves when composting.
Why is composting good for Wingra Watershed
Ratio of goose manure versus mulched leaves
How does composting help the Wingra Watershed? If you have ever taken a walk through Vilas Park, you may be aware of the growing goose population during certain months. Our research group tried to find an alternative way to use this goose population towards our advantage by using the manure for composting. Composting can be beneficial in many ways. It can help prevent pollution in our lakes, animal and plant diseases, and can help control erosion.
What ratio of goose manure and mulched leaves works best when composting?
We gathered a moderate amount of goose poop from Vilas Park and combined with mulched leaves. We then divided our combinations into three compost bins. (See bin combinations below).
We found the best combination of goose manure and leaves was a high amount of leaves (100 lbs) and a moderate amount of goose manure (9 lbs). Bin #5 reached the highest temperature (50.11°C) and had the highest average temperature (23.30°C). Graphs
Using goose manure for composting is a possible way to take advantage of the growing goose population. A moderate amount of goose manure will compost well with a high amount of mulched leaves.
Where to go for more information?
http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/extension/compost.html
~Friends of Lake Wingra and Aggie Horticulture
~University of Wisconsin-Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences
http://compost.css.cornell.edu/Composting_homepage.html
~Cornell University
http://www.epa.gov/epaoswer/non-hw/compost/
~U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
http://www.howstuffworks.com/composting.htm/printable
~How Stuff Works
By Carrie Beitlich, Sarah Price, Courtney Lauer, Nicole Andresen. Edgewood college.