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[[Image:Hestemøj.jpg|thumb|right|Animal manure is often a mixture of animal's feces and bedding straw, as in this example from a [[stable]].]]

'''Manure''' is [[organic matter]] used as [[fertilizer]] in [[agriculture]]. Manures contribute to the fertility of the soil by adding organic matter and [[Nutrient#Nutrients and the environment|nutrients]], such as [[nitrogen]] that is trapped by [[bacterium|bacteria]] in the soil. Higher organisms then feed on the [[fungus|fungi]] and bacteria in a chain of life that comprises the [[soil food web]].

The term "manure" was used for inorganic [[fertilizer]]s in the past, but this usage is now very rare.<ref>[[Ronald Fisher]] seems to have used the word manure systematically for what we would call fertilizer today.</ref>

==Etymology==
The word '''manure''' came from [[Middle English]] "manuren" meaning "to cultivate land," and initially from [[French language|French]] "main-oeuvre" = "hand work" alluding to the work which involved manuring land.

==Types==
<!-- Unsourced image removed: [[Image:cattlemanure.jpg|thumb|right|250px|The temperature of manure rises as it decomposes, giving off steam and a characteristic odor.]] -->
There are two classes of manures in [[soil]] management: [[green manure]]s and animal manures.  [[Compost]] is distinguished from manure in that it is the ''decomposed'' remnants of organic materials (which may, nevertheless, include manure).

Most animal manure is [[feces]] &mdash; [[excrement]] (variously called "droppings" or "crap" etc) of plant-eating [[mammal]]s ([[herbivores]]) and [[poultry]] &mdash; or plant material (often straw) which has been used as bedding for animals and thus is heavily contaminated with their feces and [[urine]].

[[Green manure]]s are crops grown for the express purpose of [[plow|plowing]] them under. In so doing, fertility is increased through the nutrients and organic matter that are returned to the soil.  [[Legume|Leguminous crops]], such as clover, also "fix" nitrogen through ''[[rhizobia]]'' bacteria in specialized [[Root nodule|nodes]] in the root structure.

Other types of plant matter used as manure or fertilizer include: the contents of the [[rumen]]s of slaughtered [[ruminant]]s; spent [[hops]] left over from making [[beer]].
[[Image:Misthaufen16.JPG|thumb|left|Manure on a wall]]

==Uses of manure==
[[Image:brittanydung.jpg|thumbnail|250px|right|Dung cakes being prepared for fuel on the [[Île-de-Bréhat]], [[Brittany]], c. [[1900]]]]
Manure has been used for centuries as a [[fertilizer]] for [[farming]], as it is rich in [[nitrogen]] and other nutrients which facilitate the growth of plants.  Liquid manure from pig/hog operations is usually knifed (injected) directly into the soil to reduce the unpleasant odors. Manure from hogs and cattle is spread on fields using a Manure  spreader. Due to the relatively lower level of proteins in grasses, which [[herbivores]] eat, cattle manure has a milder smell than the dung of carnivores &mdash; for example, elephant dung is practically odorless. However, due to the quantity of manure applied to fields, odor can be a problem in some agricultural regions.  Poultry droppings are harmful to plants when fresh but after a period of [[compost]]ing are valuable fertilizers.

The [[cow dung|dried manure]] of animals has been used as [[fuel]] throughout history. Dried manure (usually known as dung) of [[cow]] was, and still is, an important fuel source in countries such as [[India]], while [[camel]] dung may be used in treeless regions such as deserts. On the Oregon Trail, pioneering families collected large quantities of "buffalo chips" in lieu of scarce firewood. It has been used for many purposes, in cooking fires and to combat the cold [[desert]] nights.

Another use of manure is to make paper, this has been done with dung from [[elephant]]s where it is a small industry in Africa and Asia, and also [[horse]]s, [[llama]]s, and [[kangaroo]]s. Other than the llama, these animals are not [[ruminant]]s and thus tend to pass plant fibres undigested in their dung.

==Precautions==
Manure generates [[heat]] as it decomposes, and it is not unheard of for manure to [[spontaneous combustion|ignite spontaneously]] should it be stored in a massive pile.  Once such a large pile of manure is burning, it will [[air pollution|foul the air]] over a very large area and require considerable effort to extinguish.  Large [[feedlot]]s must therefore take care to ensure that piles of fresh manure (feces) do not get excessively large.  There is no serious risk of spontaneous combustion in smaller operations.

There is also a risk of insects carrying feces to food and water supplies, making them unsuitable for human consumption.

==Trivia==
The [[McGillicuddy Serious Party]] of [[New Zealand]] campaigned on a policy of free dung.

==Further reading==

* {{cite journal | author=Anderson, S., and F. Ertug-Yaras. | year=1998.  | title=Fuel fodder and faeces: an ethnographic and botanical study of dung fuel use in central Anatolia. | journal=Environmental Archaeology | volume=1 | pages=99-109}}
* {{cite journal | author=Charles, M. P. | year=1998.  | title=Fodder from dung: the recognition and interpretation of dung derived plant material from archaeological sites | journal=Environmental Archaeology | volume=1 | pages=111-122}}
* {{cite conference | author=Fenton, Alexander | year=1985  | title=A fuel of necessity: animal manure | editor=Alexander Fenton | booktitle=The Shape of the Past. Essays in Scottish Ethnology |   publisher=Edinburgh: John Donald | pages= 96-111}}
* {{cite journal | author=Miller, N. F. | year=1984.  | title=The use of dung as fuel: an ethnographic example and an archaeological application | journal=Paléorient | volume=10 | pages=71-79}}
* {{cite journal | author=Winterhalder, B., R. Larsen, and R. B. Thomas. | year=1974. | title=Dung as an essential resource in a highland Peruvian community | journal=Human Ecology | volume=2 | pages=89-104}}

==See also==
*[[Album graecum]]
*[[Biofuel]]
*[[Biomass]]
*[[Cow dung]]
*[[Ecological sanitation]]

==Notes==
<references/>
[[Category:Agriculture]]
[[Category:Soil improvers]]