60s: I have a store

Chapter 400 Chicken Manure
Zhou Yimin got up, opened the store, and saw today’s flash sale items. It seemed like he was lucky!

There are one hundred barrels of No. 93 gasoline, one hundred kilograms of dog food, one hundred kilograms of bacon, and one hundred feet of cloth.

Seeing that there is gasoline, it seems that there is no need to worry about refueling in the short term.

The sudden stench made Zhou Yimin feel so sick that he jumped out of bed.

After I walked out of the room, I felt that the stench seemed to be getting stronger.

"Grandpa, what does this smell like?"

"Could it be that the cesspool was blown up by that naughty ghost?"

The old man might be more resistant to stench, so he sniffed carefully and said, "It's not a manure pit, it should be the villagers collecting chicken manure as fertilizer!"

This kind of thing is quite common in rural areas, so people are used to the taste, but Zhou Yimin couldn't get used to it.

But out of curiosity, I came to the chicken coop.

The collective chicken farm in Zhoujiazhuang is a bustling scene, with flocks of chickens running around in the pens, pecking at food, and clucking one after another. However, as the number of chickens continues to grow, chicken manure is also piling up, and dealing with chicken manure has become a big problem.

The old branch secretary looked at the mountain of chicken manure with a frown on his face, thinking that if the chicken manure was spread directly on the fields, it would at least add some fertility to the land, which was better than leaving it in a pile to stink.

So he waved his hand and asked the villagers to prepare to transport the chicken manure to the fields.

When Zhou Yimin arrived, he saw the old branch secretary directing the villagers to shovel chicken manure onto the donkey cart.

Seeing this, he stepped forward and asked, "Old Party Secretary, how do you get all this chicken manure to where?"

In Zhou Yimin's opinion, chicken manure and cow manure are used as natural fertilizers.

The old Party secretary said: "We will transport the chicken manure directly to the fields and just throw it on the ground."

I was a little confused. I didn't expect the old secretary to be so wasteful, so I said, "Old secretary, isn't this a bit wasteful?"

Now it was the old branch secretary's turn to be a little confused: "Yimin, isn't this how chicken manure is handled?"

“How is it a waste to spread chicken manure directly on the ground?”

Zhou Yimin explained: "Old Party Secretary, you see, if we spread the chicken manure directly, not only will its fertility not be fully utilized, but it may also burn the roots of crops due to incomplete fermentation."

"If we pile up the chicken manure, add some straw and rotten vegetable leaves, and then pour some water on it, and let it ferment naturally for a period of time, and make it into farmyard manure, the fertilizer effect will be very different."

"Applying this kind of farmyard manure to the land can not only improve the soil structure and make the land more loose and breathable, but also provide long-lasting and gentle fertility for crops. Next year's harvest will definitely be even better."

As the old branch secretary listened to Zhou Yimin's clear and logical talk, the doubts in his heart gradually dissipated, but there was still some hesitation on his face.

Zhou Yimin saw what the old branch secretary was thinking, and he continued, "Old branch secretary, I know you are worried about the time and labor cost of fermentation, but think about it, we are considering the long-term harvest of crops in the future."

When the old branch secretary heard this, he knew in his heart that he was always right to listen to Zhou Yimin.

"Okay, let's do as you say, Yimin!"

Zhou Yimin said: "Old Party Secretary, don't worry!"

The old branch secretary continued to direct the work, and all the chicken manure was shoveled onto the donkey cart without a drop left.

Pull it to the farthest corner of the village and let it ferment there, so there is no need to worry about affecting the villagers.

No one can stand being surrounded by bad smell for a long time.

The old branch secretary thought the position Zhou Yimin had chosen was quite suitable. He asked, "Yimin, what should we do next?"

He knew nothing about fermenting chicken manure into farmyard manure, so he could only come to ask. He also wanted Zhou Yimin to be fully responsible, but that was obviously unrealistic.

Zhou Yimin now has to teach the villagers and people sent by the commune to study, and he is simply too busy to handle it.

You can only ask clearly what you should do. You are the only one responsible for this matter.

During the fermentation process of chicken manure, carbon sources such as straw, sawdust and hay can help balance the nitrogen content and provide the energy required by microorganisms. The appropriate carbon-nitrogen ratio is conducive to the growth and metabolism of microorganisms, thereby accelerating the fermentation rate.

The moisture content of chicken manure should be maintained between 50% and 60%. Too high or too low humidity will affect the fermentation effect.

The suitable temperature range is 25℃-35℃. Too high or too low temperature is not conducive to the growth and metabolism of microorganisms.

Regularly turning the fermentation pile is an important step to promote uniform fermentation. Every few days, the chicken manure at the bottom is moved to the top to ensure the supply of oxygen, which helps the fermentation process go smoothly.

Zhou Yimin replied: "There is still some film left from building the greenhouse, we can use it."

"Yimin, isn't it a bit of a waste to use such precious membrane on these chicken manure?" The old branch secretary was a little bit unbelieving.

Zhou Yimin explained: "Old Party Secretary, it won't be wasted. Chicken manure fermentation requires a certain temperature. It's cold in winter now. Without the film covering it, it can't ferment at all and will be frozen."

The old branch secretary had no choice but to take the remaining membranes.

"Yimin, do you need to prepare anything else?"

Zhou Yimin said, "Just prepare some straw, wood chips and hay?"

Although the old branch secretary was a little puzzled as to why these things had to be prepared, he still asked people to prepare them.

These things are quite common in rural areas, so it didn't take me much time to collect a lot of them.

"Yimin, do you think this is enough?"

Zhou Yimin saw the pile of straw, wood chips and hay and said quickly, "That's enough."

“The straw, sawdust and hay are then fermented along with the chicken manure.”

After hearing Zhou Yimin's words, the old branch secretary led people to mix the chicken manure with straw, wood chips and hay.

When Zhou Yimin saw this, he originally wanted to help, but he couldn't get over it in his heart, so he could only watch from outside.

The old party secretary and the villagers used shovels to mix chicken manure with straw, wood chips and hay, just like they were mixing cement.

Since the amount of chicken manure is quite large, this project is not small.

After more than half an hour of work, the old branch secretary and his colleagues finally finished their work.

"Yimin, is this all right?"

Zhou Yimin shook his head: "Old Party Secretary, there is only one last step left, which is to cover it with plastic film, and then it will be done."

The old branch secretary took the plastic film and covered the chicken manure mountain with it. Fortunately, the remaining plastic film was large enough, otherwise it would not be able to cover the chicken manure mountain!
Zhou Yimin also added: "Old Party Secretary, from now on, every few days, we need to move the chicken manure from the bottom to the top. Only by ensuring the supply of oxygen can the fermentation process proceed smoothly."

The old branch secretary nodded. He had thought it would be difficult at first, but now that he had done it, he found that it was not difficult at all, just a little troublesome.

(End of this chapter)