Holy Shit

No one knows more about the backside of agriculture (and the front side, and everything in between) than Gene Logsdon, truly one of the shrewdest practitioners and wisest observers of farming and agriculture. He doesn't care much for social taboos or politeness, and challenges us to see land, animals, ourselves, and, yeah, shit, as parts of one system—whole and undefiled—and maybe discover the Holy in the excremental. This is Logsdon at his best; Holy Shit is a national treasure.

—David Orr, Paul Sears Distinguished Professor of Environmental Studies and Politics, and Senior Adviser to the President, Oberlin College

In his insightful new book, Holy Shit, Managing Manure To Save Mankind, contrary farmer Gene Logsdon provides the inside story of manure—our greatest, yet most misunderstood, natural resource. He begins by lamenting a modern society that not only throws away both animal and human manure—worth billions of dollars in fertilizer value—but that spends a staggering amount of money to do so. This wastefulness makes even less sense as the supply of mined or chemically synthesized fertilizers dwindles and their cost skyrockets. In fact, he argues, if we do not learn how to turn our manures into fertilizer to keep food production in line with increasing population, our civilization, like so many that went before it, will inevitably decline.

With his trademark humor, his years of experience writing about both farming and waste management, and his uncanny eye for the small but important details, Logsdon artfully describes how to manage farm manure, pet manure, and human manure to make fertilizer and humus. He covers the field, so to speak, discussing topics like: 

• How to select the right pitchfork for the job and use it correctly
• How to operate a small manure spreader
• How to build a barn manure pack with farm animal manure
• How to compost cat and dog waste • How to recycle toilet water for irrigation purposes, and
• How to get rid of our irrational paranoia about feces and urine

Gene Logsdon does not mince words. This fresh, fascinating, and entertaining look at an earthy, but absolutely crucial, subject, is a small gem and is destined to become a classic of our agricultural literature.

About the Author

Gene Logsdon

A prolific nonfiction writer, novelist, and journalist, Gene Logsdon has published more than two dozen books, both practical and philosophical. Gene’s nonfiction works include Holy Shit, Small-Scale Grain Raising, Living at Nature’s Pace, and The Contrary Farmer. His most recent novel is Pope Mary and the Church of Almighty Good Food. He writes a popular blog, The Contrary Farmer, as well as an award-winning column for the Carey (OH) Progressor Times, and is a regular contributor to Farming magazine and Draft Horse Journal. He lives and farms in Upper Sandusky, Ohio. ...

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