If the chicken manure is fresh - don't use it. If it is aged then make a small channel between rows so the manure is not directly on the root zone. A light sprinkle is all that is required and then cover with soil and mulch.

Alternatively you could make a manure tea.

If the plants are established I would more likely lean towards using a product like Seasol.

This post was edited by wazzamcg on Thu, Oct 2, 14 at 20:41

Why do you think you need to add manure? Will the manure be fresh or well aged?
Generally, side dressing of even above ground crops with anything other then well aged manure is not a good idea because of the potential of disease pathogens
You could side dress, lay manure between the plants being sure none touches the plants (keep 2 to 3 inches away) and cover with a mulch as suggested above, with well aged manure but is that what is really needed?

Not sure if you are trying to do that in a bed with growing plants or you are asking how to improve the soil for next season. Once the season is over you can dig/till in compost, or layer it on top and cover with leaves or other mulch until spring. Depending on your climate the worms can really go to work 'tilling' that in for you over the winter.

Wazz- wouldn't the manure tea have the same problems of putting fresh manure on the plants?
Maybe compost tea minus manure.... Nancy

I used manure from our horses for years on our vegetable garden. In the fall, when the soil was tilled or turned, I would fill wheelbarrows full of manure and dump them on the garden until it was thickly covered. (I also added powdered limestone to lower the acidic quality of the manure.) Over the course of early spring, the manure aged and broke down, and when it was warm enough to plant, I spaded it into the soil.

I'd suggest doing the same with the chicken manure. Aged and fresh, if piled onto the garden in the fall to over-winter, by spring it should be safe for newly planted veggies. IMO that's much easier than trying to fertilize living plants.
Animal manure is highly nutritious for the plant kingdom! Good luck!

Teas made from fresh manure could have the same potential for disease pathogens as fresh manure. It is not very likely that those pathogens would drown during the brewing process.
The Center for Disease Control has guidelines for the use of animal manure in vegetable gardens which say if the plant comes into ground contact manure should not be applied sooner then 120 days to harvest, If the plants grow high enough so ground contact is not made then the time limit is 90 days.

Here is a link that might be useful: manure and vegetables gardens