My Garden

Contaminated Manure

Last post 30-09-2009 3:01 PM by red yead. 116 replies.

• 22/06/2009 01:09 PM	In reply to
  Lloyd Location: Sandy Joined on: 08 Mar 2008 Posts: 61	Reply | Contact As this thread is getting a bit long, I'll repeat a link to a site that I mentioned last year.  This site has lots of information, and experiences of affected gardeners last year and this.  There are also updates on how ground that was affected last year (2008) is now, and a map showing locations of known problem sites. http://www.glallotments.btik.com/p_Contaminated_Manure.ikml

• 30/06/2009 11:32 PM

  In reply to

  Digger Location: Northern UK Joined on: 18 Jul 2005 Posts: 4,743

  Reply | Contact NO ONE should be using aminopyralid at the present time, i'm not sure what you mean I hate to say i told you so ?? anyway since the fiasco became common knowledge to end users of manure or industrial waste each holding number was contacted and given a briefing about the problem with the weedkillers being residual, now someone has recently got manure from a stables, the stables should've been aware of the weedkiller issue they will have a number, the person took the manure not kowing anything about the weedkiller, then the secretary of the allotment club tells the victim ooooh yes that manure is full of aminopyralid, this tells us that 1) the secretary knew of the contaminant and said nothing 2) the stables knew of the contaminant and told maybe the secretary. I don't re call you telling anyone that this situtaion was going to occur at all? the point is here, clearly that someone knew the manure given away was contaminated, that information was only passed onto the allotment club secretary, who should've warned all his members of the danger from that particular stables, also it goes without saying that the stable owner is well out of order giving away manure with the knowledge that it is contaminated, by now every number on the books has been made aware of the weed killer so there is no excuse to give it away or sell it without advising takers of the contents, what is slightly disturbing is the secretaries non disclosure of the truth until it was too late, as well as the stable owners non disclosure. In fact it is so common knowledge now that many suppliers are seeking out herbicide free hayledge and hay, I can't see the weedkiller being in straw though as it's from a cereal crop and I don't think they spray the cereals with weedkillers? as far as I know they don't digger

• 01/07/2009 07:30 PM

  In reply to

  Nova Location: London Joined on: 03 Jun 2009 Posts: 3

  Reply | Contact In fairness to the secretary, I don't believe he knew about the contamination until it was too late (and his plot is also affected).  The manure is piled up by the city farm and allotment holders take what they want, so I suppose the farm can claim that it wasn't their responsibility to warn anyone.  I believe there is a rather fractious history between the farm and the allotments, but I assume/hope this manure issue is negligence rather than some dastardly conspiracy!  I am somewhat puzzled that others I've spoken to on the allotment seem quite blase about the whole thing, claiming the plants will be ok in the end!  Some of my crops are pretty badly hit, though the tomatoes are valiantly setting fruit despite their horrible curled leaves. The peas and beans are very distorted, but other peoples', planted a few weeks earlier, seem to have made a bit of a recovery...so maybe all isn't lost.

• 01/07/2009 10:18 PM

  In reply to

  Digger Location: Northern UK Joined on: 18 Jul 2005 Posts: 4,743

  Reply | Contact I do hope that your plants can muster some sort of recovery Nova my friend, I can totally understand that you would have no knowledge about the dodgy manure but I can say with 100% confidence that the so called "farm" outfit would have known about residual herbicides and perhaps they were not bothered if their feedstuff conatined the herbicide or not, people do come to me and my OH for manure and many of them do ask what's in it, but some don't ask we do have to buy in hayledge and some hay at certain times to stock for wintertime but we know our source and we know it's herbicide free. The down side for us is that you are in London and I am in Lancashire so my manure heap is not much good to you myfriend. But the manure should be free from nasties after a year of being the soil, maybe some of your plants will recover, perhaps other plot holders are a little blase because they have no other source of manure and they've decided to live with it.Good luck my friend. digger

• 03/07/2009 03:13 PM	In reply to
  headfullofbees Location: Cheadle Hulme Joined on: 13 Feb 2006 Posts: 114	Reply | Contact The quickest way for this mess to be sorted out, is for prosecutions to be raised against offenders.

• 13/07/2009 08:01 PM

  In reply to

  realfood Location: Glasgow Joined on: 17 Aug 2008 Posts: 21

  Reply | Contact In view of fact that there are plans by the Advisory Committee on Pesticides to re-license Aminopyralid, I have written to my MP requesting that this be opposed. I came across a useful website which gives the name and contact details of all elected Representatives. You just input your post code and up comes the information. You can then write within the same website and your letter is sent directly to your MP. The site is www.writetothem.com The more people that write to their MP opposing the re-licensing of Aminopyralid, the more likely it is to be effective.

• 14/07/2009 04:07 PM

  In reply to

  headfullofbees Location: Cheadle Hulme Joined on: 13 Feb 2006 Posts: 114

  Reply | Contact My letter: Dear Mark Hunter, I am writing to you in the hope that you can help with an issue I have; namely the herbicide "Aminopyralid" and it's relatives. You may well be aware of the damage this hormone-based herbicide has caused to garden and allotment crops on a country-wide basis, despite the manufacturer's advice on the label. Having read up on the supposed benefits of this chemical, it became apparent that, for many fodder and bedding providers, there is only marked advantage in using this product if the manufacturer's advice, re. informing users of fodder/bedding treated with this herbicide, and subsequent domestic users of the resultant manure, is ignored. The manufacturers of Aminopyralid (one suspects under pressure) voluntarily withdrew this product from sale amid last year's furore, but, it seems, intends to reintroduce it in the near future. It is my considered opinion that Dow must be aware of the lack of advantage of lawful use of this product, and thus should be forbidden from reintroducing it.

• 17/07/2009 10:46 AM

  In reply to

  glallotments Location: West Yorkshire Joined on: 17 Jul 2009 Posts: 3

  Reply | Contact I've followed this thread with interest as my website has been mentioned several times. Lloyd is doing a great job in keeping everyone up to date. The reason for making a posting now is just to point out that there ARE STILL lots of people who are unaware of this problem both in the amateur and professional gardening field and also amongst suppliers of manure etc. How do I know this? A contact recently was manning a stand relating to the problem at an agriculture show and spoke to many people who were unaware of the problem. I am getting emails to my website from people affected who also have no knowledge of the problem. I spoke to a seed potato company last week and he seemed unaware of the problem. People only seem to find out that they need to be careful when obtaining manure AFTER they have become affected. I am also aware that radio phone-ins to gardening experts also seem to be poorly informed and passing on inaccurate information. I am told by CRD that garden centres have been sent leaflets about the problem http://www.pesticides.gov.uk/garden.asp?id=2541 - has anyone seen any at garden centres. I was sent some which I gave out so if you are a member of a gardening organisation please send for some and distribute them. We can argue about the rights and wrongs of the situation all day but let's also try and prevent gardeners and allotment holders falling foul of the problem due to lack of publicity and ignorance of the potential problems when acquiring manure by spreading the news rather than the manure!

• 18/07/2009 12:16 PM

  In reply to

  Digger Location: Northern UK Joined on: 18 Jul 2005 Posts: 4,743

  Reply | Contact At the time of writing this we have about ten tonnes of horse manure in stock, this morning someone has appraoched OH and arranged to purchase all the manure and any future manure each week, this of course means we will no longer have a manure heap, but someone has obviously found a market for this aminopyralid free manure which is why they want all of it from now and in future. I'll just have to make sure that I have enough manure for my own needs. As I predicted some time ago there is going to be a shortage of aminopyralid free manure available to gardeners, and this has of course forced up the value of the scarce resource,which all in all has worked out in favour of certain manure producers,I wonder how long it will be before the government realises that a farmer might be about to break even,or God forbid make a tiny profit? anyway the deals done the money's gone etc... digger

• 18/07/2009 02:43 PM	In reply to
  headfullofbees Location: Cheadle Hulme Joined on: 13 Feb 2006 Posts: 114	Reply | Contact There will be the same amount of manure produced, it's just that the aminopyralid laced manure will be untouched. Some advantage.

• 18/07/2009 04:10 PM	In reply to
  Digger Location: Northern UK Joined on: 18 Jul 2005 Posts: 4,743	Reply | Contact  I don't re call using the word advantage,the situation is that the unadultereated manure is in demand whilst the dodgy stuff isn't, my point is that as my manure is not adulterated there is a large demand for it,the demand now is greater than the supply this means that people who really really want manure are willing to exchange manure for cash. digger

• 19/07/2009 11:08 AM

  In reply to

  headfullofbees Location: Cheadle Hulme Joined on: 13 Feb 2006 Posts: 114

  Reply | Contact That's precisely what I meant, Digger. Perhaps I didn't make myself clear. I was mocking the supposed advantage gained in using aminopyralid. The manure tainted by this herbicide is unwanted, and will have to be processed by farmers and livestock owners, meaning a huge amount of extra work and cost for them. I'd be surprised if they touch any fodder or bedding from fields treated with it again.

• 19/07/2009 11:43 AM

  In reply to

  Digger Location: Northern UK Joined on: 18 Jul 2005 Posts: 4,743

  Reply | Contact Right I'm with you now, the manure that is contaminated will either have to be stored for many years, which is either inconveinient or not possible or as you say disposed of as waste, this will be seriously expensive, I think if the aminopyralid is allowed back onto the market, it would be lunacy and problem will continue. People who have given/sold manure with the poison in it might never be trusted again and will have to pay to dispose of their manure. At the moment, your own manure can be spread on your own land as fertiliser, that is unadulterated manure the dodgy stuff is having to be disposed of, feed suppliers here are now having to guarantee that hay/hayledge is free of herbicides, believe it or not the price of baled hay has dropped! probably because people are seeking out alternatives feeds and suppliers get stuck with old  bales they can't shift. digger

• 20/07/2009 11:56 AM	In reply to
  headfullofbees Location: Cheadle Hulme Joined on: 13 Feb 2006 Posts: 114	Reply | Contact Precisely. I'm surprised that anyone (including Dow) thought that anything else would be the case.

• 20/07/2009 04:16 PM	In reply to
  Digger Location: Northern UK Joined on: 18 Jul 2005 Posts: 4,743	Reply | Contact Even more surprising is their expectation that the chemical should be re introduced as it is with out changes to it's make up, and without regulation about it's use.? digger