THE IKRIGATION AGE. 



CONCRETE MANURE PITS. 



Every farmer knows the great value of barnyard 

 manure as compared with other fertilizers and he also 

 knows, or should know, that a vast deal of it is 

 wasted when piled in the open or stored in sheds or 

 pens. The purpose of this brief article is to tell him 

 how to preserve its full value at minimum cost. 



When left in the open manure deteriorates in 

 fertilizing- properties and is washed away by rain. 



Fig. 1. Sectional Drawing of Shallow Concrete Manure Pit. 



Stored in sheds or pens, heating or "firing" takes 

 place through lack of moisture. The remedy for these 

 conditions has come with the advent of the concrete 

 manure pit. 



The concrete pit when properly made is water- 

 proof, thus insuring the proper degree of moisture 

 and also the preservation of liquid manure that for- 

 merly ran to waste. 



Will a concrete pit pay? The answer is that 

 from 30 to 40 per cent of the strength of manure is 

 wasted under the extravagant practices described 

 above. Government experts have estimated that one 

 load of manure stored in a concrete pit is worth from 

 \ l /2 to 2 loads of manure cared for 

 in the ordinary way. This is a 

 large percentage in favor of the con- 

 crete pit. 



It is comparatively easy to handle 

 manure from the pit and especially so 

 when liquid manure is needed for the 

 garden or truck patch. It can be 

 pumped .from a sump hole made at 

 one end of the pit for that purpose. 



In a majority of cases farmers 

 will probably find the shallow manure 

 pit the most convenient and practical. 

 The sectional drawing (Fig. 1) shows 

 the type of construction. These pits 

 are especially convenient when man- 

 ure is hauled to the fields frequently. 

 They should be constructed as fol- 

 lows : 



The walls and floor are 5 inches 

 thick. The clear dimensions of the 

 pit are : Depth, 3 feet : width, 6 feet ; 

 length, 12 feet. Dig the trench 3 feet 

 5 inches by 6 feet 10 inches by 12 feet 10 inches. J'y 

 keeping the sides vertical only an inside form will be 

 needed. Frame the sides and ends separately. For 

 the sides cut the 1-inch siding 12 feet long and nail it 

 to four 2 by 4 inch uprights 3 feet long and equally 

 spaced. The end uprights for the sides are 2 by 4 

 inches nailed flat to the siding ; the others are also 2 by 

 4 but are nailed on edge. It is not necessary to cut 

 these uprights to exact lengths ; they may be allowed 

 to extend above the siding. Make the siding for the 



end sections of the form 5 feet 2 inches long and at 

 the ends nail it to the edge of two 2 by 4 inch up- 

 rights. Place a single 2 by 4 upright between each 

 end pair. Cut four cross braces, 5 to 10 inches long, 

 from 2 by 4 inch timbers. Have enough sections of 

 woven-wire fencing, 7 l / 2 feet long, to cover the bottom 

 of the pit. 



The concrete should be a mixture consisting 

 of 1 bag of Portland cement to 4 cubic feet of pit 

 gravel or 1 bag of Portland cement, 2 

 cubic feet of sand and 4 cubic feet of 

 crushed stone. Crosswise tamp in 

 a section of concrete (not too wet) 2 

 inches thick and a little wider than the 

 strip of woven-wire fencing used as re- 

 inforcing. Lay the wire with an even 

 division of the extra length, so that it 

 may project upward into the side walls. 

 Tamp in the remaining 3 inches of con- 

 crete. Work rapidly and complete the 

 floor. Xo facing mortar is needed. 



Immediately set up the forms on the finished floor 

 so as to allow a 5-inch wall on all sides. Join them 

 by nailing together the 2 by 4's at the corners of the 

 sides and ends. Do not drive the nails home. Cross- 

 brace with 3 by 4's and with 1-inch boards from each 

 central end upright to the second side upright. 



Quickly begin filling the forms with concrete al- 

 most wet enough to pour, and keep it practically the 

 same height on all sides. Puddle the concrete by 

 running a long paddle up and down next to the form. 

 Do not punch the earthen wall. Dirt in the concrete 



Fig. 2.L 



arge Type of Concrete Manure Pit. Pump Shows at Left 

 Hand Side of Pit. 



may make a poor wall. If the top of the earthen 

 wall tends to crumble, hold it back with 1-inch boards 

 braced against the forms. To keep out flood water, 

 the pit may be extended 6 inches above the ground 

 by using the lower half of a 1-foot board to hold back 

 the dirt, by allowing the remainder to project above 

 the ground level, and by adding 6 inches to the height 

 of the inside form. Remove the forms after the con- 

 crete has set four days by first drawing the nails in 

 the corner 2 by 4's. The pit may be used after 10 days. 



