Runner Up Essay: Ashton, Gettysburg

Posted: 4/24/2015

“How Do Farmers Turn Waste Into Something Useful?”

            There are many ways in which farmers turn waste into something useful. One way is to use manure as fertilizer in fields. Many farmers have a lot of cow manure available. The manure is piled up and mixed with leftover straw and feed in the cattle lots. It is allowed to dry, sometimes for many years. The farmers then load up the dry manure into a manure spreader, and spread it on their fields. The manure contains many nutrients such as nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, which fertilize the soil to grow stronger crops.

            Using manure as fertilizer can save farmers money by reducing the need of expensive commercial fertilizers. This is a practice my family is familiar with because when we used to have cattle this is how we fertilized some of our fields, turning waste into something useful. We were able to use the manure for years, even after we sold all of our cattle. My grandpa says it was a very resourceful method.