KC Permaculture Extension Bulletin # M100 February 2016 Author: Steve Mann

Herbicide Carryover in Straw, Manure and Compost

You may be getting more than you bargained for in your straw, compost or manure if
the crops they were derived from were treated with persistent herbicides (Table 1).
These herbicides can persist on vegetation such as straw, in the soil and even in the
manure of animals who ingested crops and grasses treated with these chemicals for
many years.
A class of herbicides formulated from pyridine carboxylic acids such as Clopyra ,
Aminopyralid, Aminocyclopyrachlor and Picloram, all manufactured by Dow
AgroSciences, are the main culprits.
Table 1. Some herbicides containing picloram, clopyralid, and aminopyralid.
Source: North Carolina Cooperative Extension

Organic straw and manure from animals on certified organic farm should be free of this
death-a cide. Its important to ask the sources of your materials if they used any of
these chemicals.
Symptoms reported by growers include poor seed germination reduced yields;
seedling death; reduced yields; twisted, cupped, and elongated leaves and misshapen
fruit. Species most affected are listed in Table 2.

KC Permaculture Extension Bulletin # M100 February 2016 Author: Steve Mann

Table 2. Some plants affected by picolinic acid based herbicides.

Source: North Carolina Cooperative Extension

If you suspect your material might be contaminated, you can do a simple test for
persistent herbicides. A pot bioassay involves growing beans, peas, or tomatoes in the
soil, manure, compost or straw that you suspect is contaminated.
Gather 6 -10, 1 qt random samples of the material and thoroughly mix together.
Prepare a sample by mixing one part of the mixed test material with one part
commercial growing mix. Place in 4 pots and plant 3 -4 seeds in each. Two control
pots should be filled with only the commercial potting mix and planted with the same
seed. If you are testing straw, thoroughly chop up straw and mix one part straw to four
parts growing mix then fill and plant test pots . Be sure to label each test pot and keep
records of planting dates and species being tested.
Two to three weeks after germination there should be two to three sets of true leaves
growing. If the control pots have normal looking plants and the test plants are
misshapen and stunted then it is highly likely the material is contaminated.
These herbicides eventually break down through exposure to sunlight, soil microbes,
heat, and moisture. Herbicides can be deactivated in as few as 30 days depending on
the conditions but deactivation and breakdown can take several years. Hay has been
reported to have residual herbicide activity after three years storage in dry, dark
barns. Degradation is particularly slow in piles of manure and compost.
Solarization of contaminated fields and piles is a possible method of hastening
breakdown. Specially designed compost teas and mycoremediation with inoculated
woodchips are also possible methods for mass decontamination.

KC Permaculture Extension Bulletin # M100 February 2016 Author: Steve Mann

References:
CDMS Agro-chemical database with access to all the herbicide labels:
http://www.cdms.net/Label-Database
Davis, J., Johnson, S. E. , Jennings, K. and Yelverton, F. 2014. HERBICIDE CARRYOVER
IN HAY, MANURE, COMPOST, AND GRASS CLIPPINGS. North Carolina Cooperative
Extension.
US Composting Council 2015. Persistent Herbicide FAQ. Alailable online at:
http://www.cdms.net/ ; last accessed February 7, 2016.