Why did cow manure make the seeds grow the fastest?

Question

i have recently tried growing wheat seeds with different fertilisers. cow manure was the best and horse manure was 2nd. why did cow manure make the wheat grow the fastest over 2 weeks. is there something in cow manure that gets seeds growing earlier and faster than other fertilisers?

Answer 1

Horse manure actually has more nitrogen cow manure, but the cow poo is closer to being compost than horse manure because the digestive system of the cow breaks the feed down much further.  Thus, the nutrients are more readily available to your plants.  

Answer 2

It is a natural compost.

Answer 3

Cow manure contains the most amount amount of nitrogen compared to some other manures. Nitrogen is the main contributer to green/leafy growth in plants. Interestingly other types of manure which contain more phosphorous and potassium will encourage quicker growing of flowers, fruit and stem. Fertilisers are compared to each other by their N:P:K ratio (Nitrogen:Phosphorus:Potassium) ratio, this gives the user an idea of what fertiliser to use for which plant, as different plants need different amounts for optimum growth and yield.

Answer 4

Yep, Pool Guy is spot on. And it also has to do with the digestive system...the time and process taken to digest food affects the manure differently. Don't ask me how, I just remember this from a gardening show where they did the same kinda experiment.