My raised bed has probably been used as a cats toilet for the last year..what to do

[Billabong]

for one reason or another i neglected it for a while. its all overgrown with weeds. im doing the thing that otherfolks mentioned about a question of getting rid of weeds. ive cut and dropped the bits of weeds into the beds minus the seeds. and iv simply covered everything and am gonna just wait now. il be growing everything in containers for some time. but yeah i can defo see a bit of cat poop in there, maybe quite a bit. i did seem to remember reading not to panic about this. another thing i found though which i really wasnt expecting, in one part of it. 3 potato plants that must have reseeeded somehow. i havent deliberately planted potatoes in there in years. and yes i just dug out some edible looking potatoes. im actually flabbergasted. but now though the question is. would it be ill advised to cook em and eat them because who knows how close theyve been to cat poop. im not the type to be easily put off. if its cleaned and cooked il eat it. but is there any reason you can think of that this might be ill advised??? let me know guys

 

[GardenFastSlow]

I've totally been in the same boat with my raised bed. Here’s what I did, and hopefully, it’ll help you out too.

First things first, you gotta get that cat poop outta there. I used a small shovel and gloves to scoop out all the visible poop.

Then, to kill any leftover nasties, I covered the bed with clear plastic and let the sun bake it for a few weeks. It’s called solarizing, and it works like a charm during the hottest part of the year.

After that, I added some fresh compost and soil amendments to make the soil happy again. And to keep those pesky cats out, I put up some chicken wire and tried out a motion-activated sprinkler. Worked wonders!

 

[Ruderunner]

I would just remove the visible poo and refrain from eating it.

I get a chuckle from people worrying about poo in their garden who then add manure. Really if one thinks about it, there's lots of nasty stuff in soil. That's why we don't eat dirt.

There's also all the poo that's not so noticeable, bird and bug droppings, worm excrement, etc. Much of this is beneficial to the plants. It's the plants job to filter it for consumption.

If you're really worried about it, you should go hydroponic.

 

[Esther Knapicius]

While I don't have any raised beds in my garden, I have had over the years lots of cats, and no clue where they went toilet. There is the woods. But in general as I am gardening I have never gave it a thought to their poo or pee. Seem my garden does well all these years. And truly never came across any poo with gloves in hand planting etc.

 

[Anniekay]

As long as you're not pregnant or soon to be, I'd just remove it and the dirt surrounding it. For pregnant women you can give the fetus toxoplasmosis which can be in cat poo, especially stray cat poo, by growing edibles in it and, they say, just by handling it or the dirt it's in.

 

[Mystic Moon Tree]

for one reason or another i neglected it for a while. its all overgrown with weeds. im doing the thing that otherfolks mentioned about a question of getting rid of weeds. ive cut and dropped the bits of weeds into the beds minus the seeds. and iv simply covered everything and am gonna just wait now. il be growing everything in containers for some time. but yeah i can defo see a bit of cat poop in there, maybe quite a bit. i did seem to remember reading not to panic about this. another thing i found though which i really wasnt expecting, in one part of it. 3 potato plants that must have reseeeded somehow. i havent deliberately planted potatoes in there in years. and yes i just dug out some edible looking potatoes. im actually flabbergasted. but now though the question is. would it be ill advised to cook em and eat them because who knows how close theyve been to cat poop. im not the type to be easily put off. if its cleaned and cooked il eat it. but is there any reason you can think of that this might be ill advised??? let me know guys

Well preditor maneur isn't very desireable, but if you plant a nitrogen & urea loving plant that can help process that into useable nutrients for other plants you can add it to the guild there & it may turn the cat maneur into something good for the bed. Cats can be deterred by putting a covering that is not the medium they like to go to the batroom in. I.e. ground cloth, cardboard or pea gravel. The cat urine esspecially will burn & scald a lot of plants if it is too concentrated. Yes, you do need to worry about food crops from the bed if it is a ferral or alley cat or a pet that is not properly dewormed. Cats can carry toxoplasmosis, roundworms & other parasites in their maneur & urine that you can get. If its a pet cat, its not as big of a worry if the maneur is aged and not fresh. Cleaning the potatos well, not eating the skin that might have contacted the maneur & cooking them thoroughly will kill most potential pathogens and parasites, but its still not really appetizing. I would plant pioneer plants that are geared towards processing that waste into a more desireable soil then cut down & till them under while detering the cat with weed cloth, plastic, sand, gravel, cardboard, etc. Then by the time you plant there again it should be really good to go. Look thoroughly for small seed potatos in the soil too, there may be more than you realize.

 

[gary350]

We have 9 cats and 1 dog poop is no problem, good fertilizer.

 

[Billabong]

thanks for all ur responses guys. i am new to all this but im taking it all in believe me

 

[Bryan D.]

I've totally been in the same boat with my raised bed. Here’s what I did, and hopefully, it’ll help you out too.

First things first, you gotta get that cat poop outta there. I used a small shovel and gloves to scoop out all the visible poop.

Then, to kill any leftover nasties, I covered the bed with clear plastic and let the sun bake it for a few weeks. It’s called solarizing, and it works like a charm during the hottest part of the year.

After that, I added some fresh compost and soil amendments to make the soil happy again. And to keep those pesky cats out, I put up some chicken wire and tried out a motion-activated sprinkler. Worked wonders!

Have found cats also don't like mothballs if you don't mind using them