We have a lot of customers with neighbours who own alpacas and don't know what to do with the fleece. So here is our guide to uses for alpaca fleece and alpaca poop!

I. FLEECE

A quick explanation first. Alpaca fleece are not all equal:

(a). The best quality part comes from the main body, and is called the Blanket. The lower quality short fibre length comes from the neck and legs. We will call this Seconds.

(b). Even the blanket will vary, depending on the breeding and the feeding. The blanket may be suitable for processing, and we have included processing options in the list below. However, not all blanket is of high enough quality, in which case, just use it with your seconds.

Uses for The Seconds (fleece from the neck and leg, or poor quality blanket fleece)

	1. Slug and snail repellent around your vegetable patch. Because it is water-repellent and wicks away moisture, slugs and snails don't want to cross it.
	2. Soil warming and mulch for early veg planting. There are various ways of doing this. One way is to fill your pot or bed with compost, plant up, and water well. Then build a layer of approximately 2.5cm (1 inch) alpaca fleece. Water through the fleece (it will just wick away and into the soil) below.
	3. Put it in your fat ball bird feeders for the birds to build their nests with. In nature, you will see birds picking up sheep and alpaca fleece from hedgerows to line their nests with. They'll come back later in the season for maintenance product to repair their nests with.
	4. A company called SolidWool is even using sheep (and possibly alpaca) fleece to make sustainable composite furniture. Amazing!
	5. Felting: there are loads of How To guides for this on YouTube, and here is an example.

What to do with The Blanket (best quality) Fleece

	6. Send to a wholesaler who will grade it and pay you an amount accordingly. The top grade fleece will be used for wool, and textiles, and lower grade for carpets, duvets and mattresses.
	7. Send off the blanket to specialists mills like the Border Mill to get it processed into your yarn. WARNING: It's expensive if you only have two or three fleeces, and you will need to book ahead. You will also need to prepare your fleece according to the mill instructions.
	8. Learn to spin and make your own yarn! (Image taken from the Library of Congress and is described as "Elderly Spinner").
	9. Use it in the same way you use it for seconds (around the house and garden).

II. ALPACA POOP

It is a FABULOUS FABULOUS compost. It has been found to have the highest levels of nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium of any natural fertiliser and is almost completely odourless. Here's how you can use it:

10. FIELD TO BED: Unlike some manures, you can apply it straight from field to flower bed.

11. COMPOSTED: Or you can mix it in with your home compost and apply once it has turned to the normal soft composted material you are used to.

12. LIQUID FEED: Or, buy or store it, dehydrated, and rehydrate it by popping a layer in a bucket and pouring water over it for a liquid feed. You can get several cans of liquid feed from each serving by refilling the bucket once you have drained it. We are currently researching methods for this and will update once we have the results.