creating a vegetable garden in soil previously used as the dog “bathroom”?
Image by clattermonger
The sacks contain gravel excavated from the gutter at the side of the garden.
Question by colleen s: creating a vegetable garden in soil previously used as the dog “bathroom”?
i am hoping to turn an area of the backyard that was previously the bathroom-domain of the family dog for the past 4-5 years into a vegetable garden, but i’m concerned about potential “pathogen” build-up in the soil. can you tell me if this soil will be safe to use? we’ve removed all the visible manure as well as the top 2-3 inches of soil, is there anything else we can do to make sure that the soil is safe to use for growing vegetables?
thanks.
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4 Responses to creating a vegetable garden in soil previously used as the dog “bathroom”?
Leave a Reply to garrettsambo Cancel reply
My first thought was ‘don’t do it’. I also found this link (below) …apparently dog poo is not good on a veg plot, because of the toxins and eggs. They don’t say not to grow the veg, but do say to wash it (and your hands) thoroughly before eating. If you have nowhere else to plane it, maybe you could also build raised beds, so the veg don’t have much contact with the old soil?
doone
March 3, 2012 at 11:06 am
I suggest you don’t do it. Find another place.
garrettsambo
March 3, 2012 at 12:06 pm
Having been a dog kennel owner and part time gardener ,I can tell you this from experience. I placed dog manure on the plot I was going to use for a future garden figuring since my dogs were only fed dog food and it contained 75%cereal grain that I could get rid of the waste and fertilize at the same time.All winter I hauled it to the plot and roto tilled it each time,came spring the ground didn’t stink and was easy to work,result was ,,,not even a weed grew! don’t know if residual effects on food would of been a problem,maybe it worked out best after all???Then I thought back to before I got in the dog business,when dogs used my yard as a dumping spot it killed my grass if it laid there.Best of luck on your plot.
Rod
March 3, 2012 at 12:57 pm
Humans used to use their manure on their food plots in days of yore, So as long as it’s not fresh, I cannot see any problem.
Realist
March 3, 2012 at 1:43 pm