Animal manure is a natural fertilizer because it is rich in nitrogen. However, it can’t be used fresh because it contains materials harmful for growing plants. The composting process removes the harmful material from the manure. Animal manure compost is best used to grow the type of plants the animal is fed on. Pig manure is good for root crops such as leeks and potatoes.
Composting requires a ratio of carbon organic matter to nitrogen (C:N) measured in pounds. The ratio for pig manure is 6:1 or 6 pounds of organic matter to 1 pound of manure. Creating a compost pile using pig manure requires physical labor but is worth it for harvesting healthy crops.