If you are interested in acquiring manure from the stables, you are required to provide your own muck buckets. The round ones, 2'4" wide by 1'6" deep approximately seem to be preferable since they are easy to carry by one human. The typical 30 gallon plastic trash barrels that are a little heavier are also popular for that purpose since they do not leak either. Drop them off at the barn and Helene will fill them for you and they will be ready for pick up in front of the stables, right by the delivery sign. The manure that is not picked up right away is remaining in plastic barrels and muck buckets away from the rain, inside the shed and hundreds of feet away from any surrounded dwelling.

The horses at Hélène's are not stabled at night. They are turned out to pasture 24 hours a day all year round. They get fed their hay out in the fields during the winter time. The manure collected only comes from the indoor arena since the horses usually have access to it. Therefore, what you are getting is "pure" , free of sawdust or shavings. The rest of the manure is scattered naturally (by the horses) on the grazing fields, a total of 8 acres, more or less. All that pasture gets raked twice a year before and after ground frost (with the use of a truck) to facilitate the recycling process. This explains why there has been no manure pile on the premises for the past 10 years.

When you pick up your muck buckets, you might notice, as you empty them in your garden, that the steam is coming up and that the bottom of them is warm. This is because the composting process has already begun. This is a good sign. You might not want to disturb this. If you can afford the time, allow a few weeks to go by before you spread it on your garden soil.

You should know that raw manure will kill young growth or roots instead of fertilizing them. This is why I recommend that you do not dump it in concentrated amounts in small areas, and make sure that you are not nearby some wet land that might get infected. It is best to thinly spread it, which on a nice day, allows the sun to neutralize and dry it. If you want to sign up for the manure management program at Hélène's Stables, I will be more than happy to accommodate your needs. We presently have ten individuals participating in this operation. They might leave me with very little material for my own garden, but on the other side, I am proud, beside addressing their gardening needs, to have that many supporters share this effective and healthy way to recycle horse manure. This particular operation was implemented over a decade ago. It was recommended by an employee from the Board of Health at the Department of Agriculture while under Bob Bennett in the 80's. The manure area, to us, is a too bothersome alternative, particularly while regarded from a neighbor point of view. I can be contacted or you can leave me a message at (978) 448-6370. I will return your call promptly.