Taking manure pit samples in deep-pitted barns on several hundred company-owned and contracted farms is a huge task, but the payoff is huge, too.

There are many practical reasons why pork producers should take manure pit samples, according to Tim Laatsch, director of Environmental Services for The Maschhoffs, based in Carlyle, IL.

For starters, taking samples of their entire network of grower farms, as The Maschhoffs just did in August, enables producers to get test results and pinpoint the actual nutrient content of the manure prior to fall field application.

Second, the August sampling gives producers a fairly representative sample of manure content because the pits are likely to be nearly full, Laatsch says.

Last and most importantly, from two years of manure collection work, The Maschhoffs learned to refine their sampling technique so the process could be accomplished safely and more efficiently.

“Our preliminary research tells us, basically, that we can collect core samples from the exterior pump-out ports on the barn and approximate very closely the agitated mean of the barn,” he says.

This new process also standardizes the sampling and testing process across the system, providing uniform results, while safeguarding farm biosecurity.

“It is clear we want to stay outside the facility when we are sampling manure, because if you open the door to the barn, you could have all kinds of disease transmission issues,” he says.

New Sampling Process

Manure collection is done using a vertical profile core sampler without pit agitation. “That's the key advantage of profile cores — no need to agitate,” Laatsch explains.

Only deep-pitted barns — gilt developers, wean-to-finish and feeder pig-to-finish barns — are tested using this method.

Open storage, sow units and nurseries are sampled annually using a different collection method. At the time of application, a sample of manure is drawn off of the pump into a container and sent off for analysis.

Take some precautions when using the vertical core sampler to pull manure samples from exterior pump-out ports.

“The pump-out ports are typically designed with a sump hole in the bottom, and you have to be careful about sampling that sump hole because that can skew your sample toward a higher solids and higher nutrient rate content,” Laatsch suggests. Profile cores should only take samples from the main floor of the pit structure.

Samples are preserved by packing them in ice or ice packs, 24-30 samples to a Styrofoam container, and shipped overnight to a certified testing laboratory in Indiana (A&L Great Lakes at Fort Wayne). Cost is $100 for overnight shipping, plus typically $35 in lab fees for the analysis. He stresses only certified labs should be used. For a complete list of certified labs in the United States, refer to the Minnesota Department of Agriculture Web site at www.mda.state.mn or call (651) 201-6000.

“Manure testing allows us to do a system-level analysis of the effectiveness of our nutritional strategies for limiting phosphorus,” he states, “and it gives us that core piece of information to go about establishing rates and matching agronomic needs of the crop.”

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