What’s the first colour that comes to mind when thinking of a ton of horse manure?
The correct answer is green. Packed with nutrients that plants love, horse manure can be a gardener’s best friend.
That’s why Grand River Raceway is giving away a ton of it on May 23 as part of Green Horse Night. It’s a celebration of all the environmentally friendly aspects of the horse industry. From the pesticide-free fields where horses live to the end-product of all that green grass they eat, a healthy environment and happy horses go hand-in-hoof.
But if there is one thing Grand River Raceway knows better than horses, it’s horse poop. Since fresh manure is tough on the garden, Grand River Raceway has partnered with Nincompoop, a company from nearby Maryhill, that specializes in producing eco-friendly organic mulch. The number one ingredient in their mulch is sterilized racehorse manure.
“In the process, the mulch becomes weed free and weed resistant,” explained Tim Schneider, the co-owner of Nincompoop. “But the biggest benefit is that there’s no wood in it. It’s all manure, so over the year it turns into compost.”
And Schneider said that is where the name Nincompoop actually comes from. “Nincompoop means nitrogen in composting poop.”
Beginning at 6pm on May 23, the first 200 people to redeem the coupon from inside the race program will receive a free 50 pound bag of Nincompoop mulch. Recipients won’t even have to lift a green thumb (or finger) to get the bag to their car. From 8:30 to 11pm, staff from Grand River Raceway and Nincompoop will be available to help load the bags into cars.
In addition to the mulch giveaway, a series of cash draws will take place throughout the evening. When the races kick off at 7:15pm, a $25 cash draw will occur for every winning driver in green driving silks, and every horse in green (racing from post 4 and wearing a green saddle pad).
For little ones who are still knee-high to a grasshopper, interactive horse activities will be available in The Neighbourhood from 7 to 9pm. Inside the large white tent beside the racetrack, kids are invited to plant some horse-friendly seeds and visit with a retired racehorse.
So, if the garden could use some love, be sure to get to the track early on May 23 to claim a bag of Nincompoop mulch. For more information about Green Horse Night at Grand River Raceway, visit http://www.grandriverraceway.com/web/?page_id=1446.
