Spent grain as fertilizer

[ZenBrew]

So I've been fertlizing my lawn with spent grains (and some corn meal glutten to keep weeds down). These are the results.

 

[msa8967]

Looks great. How did you apply the spent grains to the lawn? Did you dry the spent grain first?

 

[Spartan1979]

I tried that. It just attracted ants.

 

[Braufessor]

I dump all of mine in my garden and till it in. Whatever I don't put in the garden I Throw in other areas of the yard in flowerbeds and bushes with othr mulch.

 

[ZenBrew]

I don't dry them. Just stick them in the fertilizer spreader and spread them evenly over the lawn. Since I don't have any sense patches of grain I don't seem to have a problem with ants.

 

[glenn514]

I compost all of my spent grains. When I dig over my gardens, all the spent grains, grass clippings, mulched leaves and organic kitchen waste all go into the soil. This spring, due to several reasons, I did not dig over and plant my gardens, so my compost bin will have quite a bit more stuff in next spring.

glenn514

 

[masonsjax]

I thought I read somewhere that rotting grain actually depletes nitrogen from the soil so it was a poor choice for fertilizer.

 

[Kirkwooder]

I thought I read somewhere that rotting grain actually depletes nitrogen from the soil so it was a poor choice for fertilizer.

As I understand it, the grain (or any organic matter for that matter) will deplete nitrogen for the initial decomposition, then it will release large amounts of it, as it continues to rot.

I wouldn't know for sure though, My chickens gobble up every last grain I put out, and nothing is better fertilizer than chicken crap.

 

[ZenBrew]

I thought I read somewhere that rotting grain actually depletes nitrogen from the soil so it was a poor choice for fertilizer.

I called my local extension office about this and they said I don't need to worry about it. They said organic fertilizers like corn gluten meal biodegrade similarly.

I was told what I should be concerned about is putting too much grain down and ending up with an excess of nitrogen that causes weeds to thrive along with the grass. If I put down the beer grains at the same rate as other organic fertilizers like corn gluten meal, then I should avoid this.