Please advise if chicken or other manure is good for fig tree being in ground or container as fertilizer or not. Thanks.............

If you have composted it or diluted it with water, manure is fine. Do not use it fresh. Also be aware that chicken manure has a very high nitrogen content, so you will get a lot of green growth (good for producing wood for cuttings, bad for trying to get fruit). I think bone meal is better for potted trees. 

Use chicken manure in small amounts.I have chickens, and compost the manure in a compost bin.The first time i used it,i burnt my fig leaves to a crisp along with the green beans i planted.This stuff is very high in nitrogen.I learned a little goes a long way and if you get the amount right it is very good for your trees and plants.

Bone meal is best for potted trees! I also add worm castings to all of my plantings. Never burns. No matter how much you add!!

Chicken manure is high in nitrogen & burns roots especially in pots. Likely better suited for hay growing.
I am using miracle gro general purpose for young potted trees. Older potted trees I used it sparingly.
Older trees in pot culture I use more miracle gro high in "P". For in-ground trees I have never fertilized.

My norm in fertilizing is 

a. Fertilise with miracle gro general purpose fertiliser 2 to 3 times in a 2 week spam when I see my plants in
    potted culture ready to break bud. I only do this to plants more than 3 years old. Like this season, I would
    likely start fertilizing by month end. I would give them a strong dose.

b. Thereafter I fertilize twice weekly with high "P". I would use general purpose on these plants once a month. 
    All fertilizing stop by June. Ready plants for winter.

Plants that are under 3 gets general purpose twice weekly until end June. No more fertilizing  after June. Time to winterize.
I do not give them a strong dose.

last year September, When I picked up Roberto's unknown fig trees, at the same time, I picked up couple "Desert king" from other seller, They were really "Beat up", no water, 40% pot soils gone, I filled it up with mushroom/sheep manure, It woke up 1 month ago,  I put it at windows sill with partly sun, it grows near 1 extra feet already with 8 inches big leaves, I got those mushroom/sheep manure from farm, They were almost free, $5 for one car load.

I use cold manures for my garden, Cold manures do not burn, but vegetables do not response as fast as fertilizer, you need to apply it 2 months a head and do not need to apply for whole year.

Anyway, hope to see your fig trees bear lot of figs.

Hi Ricky, I actually bought 3 bags of chicken manures from Art Knapp last August and gave 2 bags to my friends. One friend applied the whole bag of chicken manure on his 1 year old fig tree in ground by mistake (I told him to apply in Spring time but he did it in last August) Anyway, his fig tree was OK till now. One member told me the other day that chicken manure is good to grow with more leaves but could be less fruits. In this case, I will not take a chance to apply chicken manure for my fig trees being potted to be safe, but I will try to put Miracle Gro all purposes (solution) for those young fig trees potted.

You told that you have seen some young Desert King at Port Kells Nursery in Surrey. Since I am not so familiar how to go there, I will keep on checking other nurseries in Richmond and sure I will buy one in med size when available hopefully in April.

Enjoy your hunting for more new figs

Chicken manure is hot manure because it burn plant with high volume,  it needs to apply much more carefully. In Richmond, most vegetable farmers use Chicken manure because it has high N which is good to grow more leaves.

It is same as using fertilizer, you need to follow direction, do not over doze as well.

My indoor tiny "Desert king" and " Brown turkey" are bearing few figs now about size of quarter coin, I hope that they don't drop it.

Good lucks with your fig trees with lots of figs.




 

Thank you for your valuable informations.. I really appreciate.

Three other points to think about when considering chicken manure.

1. It has a high salt content.  This is more prevalent in commercially raised livestock and a bigger concern when purchasing bagged compost from a retail outlet. 

2. It has a high ammonia content. 

3. There’s a potential for transmitting human pathogens (e-Coli). 

All are valid concerns and can be mitigated by making sure the manure is allowed to age and not used fresh.  Proper aging is up for debate.  Some county agents call for a minimum of 120 days others call for six months.  The aging process helps break down and pathogens and ammonia.  Also by exposing the manure to rain and irrigation helps the salt leach out.  Some folks also argue that manure based compost should only be used in the fall. 

In addition to aging the manure you should consider diluting it with either rain water (to make a tea) or with other forms of compost (leaves, chicken coop bedding, etc.).  The more diverse the compost ingredients the better.  

I use lots of chicken poo on my figs and they love it. grows very well and fruit well for me too.

I wouldn't think you should use chicken manure, it has so much nitrogen that it can burn roots and make to much leaves, not to mention chickens aren't the cleanest animals, like soberli said...

I clean my henhouse in the fall and spread the poop accross the garden no more than inch thick and let it winter over. Come spring it all gets tilled in. I have never had a problem with it burning the roots of veggies which grow and produce like crazy. Now free range chicken poop can contain weed seeds.

Rabbit poop is among the best, usually no weed seeds.

Cow poop is often times full of weed seeds.

Horse poop often times is full of weed seeds and/or herbicide residue from horse specific hay. I avoid horse poop at all cost.

@Likeo - just to be clear, I'm not against using chicken manure. I use it every year but only after it's been composted for at least six months.

Jerry M has the right plan. I can honestly say after reading his post "that guy knows his s##t".

Thanks to all members for your valuable  feedback. Due to many uncertain negatives, I think I should pass using chicken manure for the time being to be safe since I only have one young fig tree in ground

Hi pacifica,
do you have children around ? You know, the ones that grab dirt to mouth it ?
If not, I would use a hand full of manure per pot and it won't hurt at that quantity .
You could remove some dirt from the top of the pots, put the hand full of manure, and put the dirt back to cover the manure. It will sure help with odors .
Tea is a good solution, but bear in mind that it can stink like hell ...
In ground, a shovel of manure won't hurt. Of course, don't mound a bag at the feet of the tree... or that might be the end.

In ground, I use chicken and pigeon manure, and I never had a problem with it.
In a pot, you don't have all the system to break down manure properly.
Normally, the manure you buy is already aged and dehydrated ... So you should be able to use it right away .

As always, if it is a first for you, take a guinea pig and document what you do. You'll know what to do in the following years.
I never tried to burn one of my trees with manure ... though ... I guess that it never was my goal ...

Hi jdsfrance, I do not have chicken in my house. To avoid misunderstanding, are you telling me that I can use chicken manure for my fig trees potted and in ground as follows:
1) For potted, I can use hands to remove some potting soils on the surface and put some chicken manure (from Home Depot being composted of aged) then cover back by the potting soils will do.

2) For in ground, I simply put some chicken manure from Home Depot (composted or aged) on the garden soil surface will do. Since I am new to this and never tried before, please help to correct me if I am wrong in the above procedures with many thanks.

Some members said the chicken manure is good for growing leaves but not the fruits at all. Have you experienced with this before ?

Hi pacifica,
Yes, and as for quantity : 1 hand full for in pot, and 5 for in ground.
I have never had problems when applying manure.

@likeo: find someone that breeds pigeons ... LOL . Here pigeon breeding is a hobby. Especially the voyager pigeons.

What I've learned is to replicate what happens in nature. Nothing is ever tilled (which is very destructive to the balanced layers of microbes and soil structure) and fertilizer like manures, composts, leaves, etc, are all applied to the surface. 

I apply the composted materials in my chicken coop and run (manure, leaves, hay, wood product, and whatever scraps the chickens don't eat) to the surface of my garden area AND my potted plants, and they all do amazing. Its actually the perfect system for potted plants because every time I water, it carries some of the nutrients down, and the amount that I water directly corresponds with the active growing season (i.e. you don't water much in the winter months). I usually have a few earthworms in my potted plants as well, so they come to the top to feed and then carry those same nutrients down to the root system, which by the time it has gone through a worms digestive track, it is that much more perfectly bio-available for the plant. 

I even apply this stuff sometimes when it is not fully composted by the way, with no detriment. Again, if you till it into the root area, it will of course burn the roots, but if its at the surface, it shouldn't hurt anything unless you really piled it up or something. 

You cannot compare composted organic material to chemical fertilizers like Miracle Gro. The former will build your soil in the long run, and the latter will destroy your soil in the long run. They are chemical and salt based, which is destructive to soil life. Again, I'm talking long-term. Furthermore, compared with lab-based chemical fertilizers which only concentrate on the N-P-K values, composted materials have so much more than just the N-P-K, but also include all of the trace nutrients and minerals that plants love. This is why our produce doesn't taste as good as it used to, as our soils are getting more and more depleted. 

Guarantee there will be a difference in the taste of a fig that has been grown in mineral, nutrient, organic material-rich living soil and one that has been sitting in just potting soil and Miracle Gro for years. 

Hope this helps.