Organic fertilizer alternatives: Composted chicken litter promotes sustainable agro-ecosystems with minimal nutrient leeching

The idea of nutrient loss is a common but troublesome problem that plagues all kinds of soils. Efforts have been made by a number of institutions to combat this issue, to varying degrees of success. Yet, as a team of researchers has demonstrated, the answer could very well lie in a tool widely used by poultry farmers: broiler litter.

For their study, the researchers followed an undisturbed soil column model using two types of soil. The first type was agricultural soil that had Bermuda grass planted onto it in 2014. The second type was reclaimed coal mine soil that had Bermuda grass as well but planted in 2016. As for the broiler litter, fresh and composted broiler litter were utilized. Some of the broiler litter had been amended with flue gas desulfurization (FGD) gypsum, a synthetic product derived from electrical power plant FGD systems.