An alternative to fertilizer is a sheepish solution to the problem of wool waste.
In Nebraska, a sheep farmer has found a use for low-grade wool, which otherwise ends up buried, burned, or in the trash after it's sheared from the animals, the Flatwater Free Press reported. Megan Landes-Murphy opened Kestrel Ridge Pellet Co. two years ago and annually processes 10,000 pounds of wool into pellets that can fertilize home gardens.
She started the business out of the garage on the 12-acre ranch she and her husband, Tom Murphy, own. They have 20 ewes and five rams, which account for about 250 pounds of wool each year. The rest comes from farmers within 200 miles of Lawrence, all according to the outlet.
The couple always wanted a farm, and they raise the herd of sheep for meat and breeding. The creatures must be shorn each year to stay healthy, which led Landes-Murphy to look for wool markets, per the Free Press. The state, home to 76,000 sheep and lambs, produced 245,000 pounds of shorn wool last year, but because the quality is low, it can't be used in yarn or fabric.
It is, however, nutrient-rich, and includes about 9% nitrogen. Landes-Murphy found that the University of Vermont had successfully tested wool pellets as a slow-release fertilizer at fruit and vegetable farms.
She partnered with a nearby farm for their own trials and learned that potatoes and broccoli benefited from the wool pellets, while cauliflower did equally well with the innovative fertilizer and standard fertilizer, according to the Free Press.
"Overall, wool pellets performed very similarly to commercial organic fertilizer … and could be a promising alternative that may open opportunities for greater integration of plant and animal systems on diversified farms," one study says, the Free Press noted.
The trial farmer, Katie Jantzen, said it wasn't cost-effective for her operation, which covers 50 plants over half an acre.
"I would describe my target as backyard gardeners who have raised beds or potted plants, including flowers," Landes-Murphy told the Free Press.
It's a tough row to hoe because the business is the only one of its kind in the Cornhusker State. Landes-Murphy, though, is doing well. She put $14,000 into getting things up and running, and scaling up is on the horizon.
"It's really wonderful to try to create or explore a value-added purpose for wool in the Midwest, where we don't have many of the fine wools," Nebraska Sheep and Goat Producers Association President Dan Stehlik told the Free Press.
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