Bagged steer manure was used in the past as a topdressing for lawns when overseeding. It was smelly but it worked well. Now there are commercial topdressing products available.

For gardeners today the cheapest solution, steer manure, is one of the worst, nursery experts say. It’s high in salt because of feedlot diets, and when it’s composted, much of the nutritional ...

Remember that their manure is valuable to their own farming, so don’t expect it for free. You can purchase bagged manure, such as steer manure and chicken manure, that is certified organic.

Sow high-quality seed, cover it with a half-inch of steer manure and keep it consistently moist for at least three weeks. Or lay down sod, which provides an “instant lawn.” ...

“It is of no use to spread time, labor and manure too thin.” — “The Old Farmer’s Almanac,” 1922 It is time to clean up your vegetable beds. If the plants are not too woody, you can add ...

The winter crops are in and the plants uprooted, and now the rows sit largely empty, the faint mustiness of steer manure dissipating in the afternoon breeze. From this will grow joy, and sustenance.

The manure was created with Bermuda grass with its heavy rhizomes and low nutritional content. It is plentiful, rich in nutrients and perfectly suited to improving our lean desert gardens.

Louie Keller (left) and Cyril Keller. The brothers invented what is now known as the Bobcat skid-steer loader to help remove manure in second-floor turkey barns. (Courtesy of Bobcat) ...

Pre-packaged bags of steer manure available for purchase at most garden centers are labelled “composted” or “aged”, but if they are still warm to the touch, they are not ready for prime time.