Are we talking about fresh manures or aged/well composted manures?

My entire garden set-up gets amended with manure compost 2x a year early spring and again in late fall to over-winter. So yes, the tomatoes benefit from it. And the rows sometimes get a side dressing with more of it now and then, depending on how much I have. But it is always at least 4-6 months old before it goes into the garden and usually more like a year old. And it has been composted with many other ingredients.

Fresh manure doesn't belong in a food garden IMO and that of most of the AG universities. They recommend nothing more fresh than 90-120 days. Not because of the nitrogen as much as because of the pathogens and/or medications it contains.

Dave

The amount of nitrogen in well composted manure is very mild and it is not released all at once
like liquid in fertilizers.

All plants, including tomatoes, need good dose of nitrogen.
As a gardener, you shoul look at your plants as a mirror reflecting
the nutients in the soil they are in. I, personally, go easy with fertilizers,
of any kind, but more often and steadily.

cyrus

Dave... I can always count on you for a prompt response. Thanks for that! When you talk about composted manure, is this something that you do to your manure or can manure be purchased that way. I live in Los Angeles so I have to buy all my amendments at garden centers. I always buy organic, but is manure sold aged and/or composted? Also, can you add this to plants that are already pretty well developed?

Ladon, after hearing a lot about mushroom compost last year, I switched to it. It's sold in bags at Home Depot, Lowes, etc. It's worked really well and doesn't quite smell as much as the manure compost.

Like you, I count on Dave and a couple of other people who've been on this forum for a long time, so I'd like to hear their opinions on this.

That's something else you might want to do, go all the way back to page 67 on this forum and start reading your way backwards thru the threads. There's a lot of great info to be had.

Beth

If it's sold at a garden centre, it's almost certainly composted. It will say on the bag.

I use primarily composted sheep manure, but I like to mix in other amendments -- leaf mold, homemade compost, mushroom compost. I top dress at the beginning of the season and then again mid season and that's about it - no additional fertilizers.

ladon, we had a discussion on manure in the following link that might be helpful. I use horse manure because I have access to tons and tons of it. If i had a choice I would use composted cow manure.

http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/load/tomato/msg051802002126.html?16

Here's a helpful link I posted in our discussion.
http://www.plantea.com/manure.htm

Digdirt/Dave is very knowledgeable and very helpful. Whatever he posts you can take to the bank.

Dave, I was looking through your pics but didn't BM the URL.
Great pics. Could you post it here? I remember seeing an old Ford tractor with a basket behind you with what I assume was your buddy in it? That basket looked familiar.

Digdirt/Dave is very knowledgeable and very helpful. Whatever he posts you can take to the bank.

Does this mean you have a mutual account?

Thanks for the input everyone. Mom's Helper...thanks for the link to the manure discussion. My quandary about using manure is that one of the guys who supplies my heirloom tomato plants has been very insistent that manure provides way too much nitrogen for tomato plants to generate fruit. His family has been passing down their line of heirloom tomatoes for over 100 years (goose creek) and his business is developing urban gardens. I know all plants, including tomatoes need nitrogen, but too much nitrogen can result in healthy plants with little fruit. How much is too much?...Particularly, now that my plants are already in, developed and...hurrah...starting to bear fruit.
Don (in LA)

has been very insistent that manure provides way too much nitrogen for tomato plants to generate fruit.

Perhaps he is referring to the use of fresh manures? It used to be a fairly common practice and some still insist on it today. But aged and composted manure contains much less nitrogen than does fresh.

If I understand correctly that your plants are already well established then it is kind of a moot point for this year, right? But if you have access to it why not plan to incorporates it in the garden this fall, after harvesting. Compare your production notes next year with those from this year. And, should you find a plant or 2 that seem to be suffering from nitrogen overdose, keep in mind that nitrogen isn't long-lived in the soil so it is usually a passing condition and the plant will adjust to it in time.

Good luck with your plants and happy gardening!

Dave

PS: Does this mean you have a mutual account?

Taz - Not that I am aware of. Not sure where moms helper 2008 lives but it isn't in my house. You seem to have a real burr under your saddle lately when posting here on several threads. You might want to get it removed before it gets infected. ;)

moms helper - yeah it's an old 1945 8N Ford with a milk crate attached for Max to ride in. Had to retire it this year so Max and I are hoofing it right now. Drop me an email and I'll send you the album link. Thanks for the kind words. :)