Raw Eggshells in the Garden?

Raw eggshells in the garden?
Absolutely!
We get eggs from our neighbors chickens.
When we cook with them them we save the shells and let them dry out.
(I have NEVER heard of anyone who washes/cooks eggshells before composting them).
After that we crunch them up and either feed them back to the chickens or dig them into the garden.
Chicken manure is great too (as well as horse/cow manure) and it's dug in after it's aged in the compost pile.

You have to realize that while there are germs that can harm us - many germs/bacteria benefit us as well.
In fact it would be quite unhealthy (and fairly impossible) to live in a sterile environment.
Probiotics = good bacteria that are useful to aid our digestive processes.
Bacteria on our skin is necessary.
Studies have been performed on the biodiversity of belly button bacteria!
No - really - I'm not kidding:
http://robdunnlab.com/projects/belly-button-biodiversity/

I love the summer because I enjoy gardening - and with me - it's a full contact sport.
If I can come in at the end of a day covered in sweat, dirt and mud - it's been a good day!
Did you know there are spas where you can get a mud bath?
Throw out the sanitizers, get good and dirty every so often and scrub up afterward with plain soap and water.
It's good for you!

I know this is a phobia of yours but perhaps instead of researching all the dire diseases one could catch from raw egg shells - maybe you should learn about the benefits of the micro flora and fauna that live on us and inside us.

Crushed eggshells add minerals to compost. That's a totally normal and common practice. I don't know anyone who washes eggshells first, let alone cook them.

Funny story - friends of ours bought a house last year. This spring they were doing yard landscaping and started digging up a section of weedy flower bed. They found dozens of eggshells. Not crushed, just cracked open half-shells. They don't break down well when dumped whole in pile and buried.

When one gets dirt or even poop on one's hands, soap and water fixes it. If you have a toddler, you have a reasonable concern about putting things in mouths. Supervision is the mitigating factor. If you have a school aged child, they are typically not going to eat deer poop.

If you're not seeing a therapist for your phobia, please contact someone and get help. You can find just about anything on the internet to confirm or validate your thoughts, but that doesn't make it not irrational. You need less Google in your life right now..

If you purchase fruits and vegetables from a store, then you most likely are purchasing produce that has been grown in soil that's been fertilized. If you only purchase organic products, then they've likely been grown in natural soil with some sort of compost in it that consists of the manure of various creatures.

Most reputable composting sites recommend adding eggs to compost, and most suggest that the egg shells should be lightly crushed, not kept in an intact half. Some sites do suggest rinsing them, but it has nothing to do with diseases. The reason is, if you simply toss an unwashed egg shell onto the top of a compost pile, and don't immediately get around to crushing and lightly burying them, you run the risk of attracting squirrels or deer or raccoons to your compost pile. They will appreciate having an un-rinsed egg shell to munch on. And of course, if raccoons know that you set out a buffet dinner for them routinely, they may get bolder and try to raid your garbage can or make a cozy home in your garage in order to be the first in line at the early-bird special. So, rinsing the egg shells are simply a deterrent to preventing a pest from thinking that your compost pile is the animal equivalent of the buffet all-you-can-eat restaurant. Usually, compost items should be lightly covered with soil or pushed down into the compost. Of course, meat scraps should never be composted.

As you said, there are things you can't control, like animals, farming, composting, and the natural processes that all mammals have. But what you can control is your response. Please seek professional help so that you can eat, visit family, and enjoy nature without suffering so. It's natural to be vigilant about hand-washing, and rinsing produce before eating it, and cooking/preparing things properly, but it's not healthy or natural to fear germs in compost, or deer wandering about on lawns.

Many recent studies show that the more contact a child has with dirt and bacteria, the healthier they are. One study suggests the Amish have an unusually low rate of asthma due to their children growing up close to barns where farm animals are kept.
I have a terrible phobia of heights. Like, there are parts of PA where I can't drive because of the hills and bridges. Slowly, I'm conquering it. But part of the process is forcing myself to face my fear, for instance, I can now look out the window while we go over a bridge when my husband is driving, closing my eyes was reinforcing my fear. Small steps are key, stop reinforcing your phobia by avoiding the source of your fear. A good therapist can help you overcome it, but one thing you can do now is stop avoiding places that cause you anxiety. Go for a walk through the scat with boots on. Touch the finished compost with your bare hands. Let your child play in the dirt.

ya, people use cow manure as fertilizer all the time, so that's nothing to worry about either. Deer scat is far from being a problem either. Pretty much any herbivore manure is fine, you just don't want to compost or use omnivore or carnivore manure. And egg shells are 100% fine. "It bothers me that I have to accept a risk that I can't control". It's not the risk that you need to control, there is no risk. It's YOU that you need to control, AND that's the only thing you can ever control.........

Just watch your kid. You will all be fine.
I have a garden; we composted eggshells for years. No one got sick.

I'm not going to go into the list of things which pose a much higher risk of bacteria or harm, but I will say one thing: if you have such profound anxiety, the only thing irrational in this is not working on having it treated/managed. Talk to your doctor, get some counseling and perhaps some medication. This will really hamper a kid/s ability to enjoy themselves in the world if mom is constantly worried; I mean, are you really enjoying life if you are constantly on guard for every little thing?

Remember, anxiety like this is like any other brain health issue. It changes how our brains work, and if left untreated, can create worsening anxiety as some neural pathways and parts of the brain are getting a constant workout and others are left unattended. Therapy and medication can help significantly. *Please talk to a professional about this.* I struggled with this for years, was stressed and unhappy, anytime anything stressful or worrisome happened, anxiety--for lack of a better term-- hijacked my brain. I was irrational in what I was upset and worried about. Now that I've been treating and managing it for a few years, life is SO much better for myself and my family. I did it-- so can you!

I don't understand what you are afraid of. Walk on the lawn and get a disease, eat her food and get sick?

You fear is pretty irrational and it is really sad if you allow this fear and anxiety control you. Maybe you would benefit from some counseling to help you control your anxiety.

Her food and yard is likely healthier than your own.

Updated

I don't understand what you are afraid of. Walk on the lawn and get a disease, eat her food and get sick?

You fear is pretty irrational and it is really sad if you allow this fear and anxiety control you. Maybe you would benefit from some counseling to help you control your anxiety.

Her food and yard is likely healthier than your own.

People have been composting for thousands of years without an issue. Raw eggshells along with everything else breaks down over time so unless you plan to eat her compost there's really not an issue.

Your anxiety is irrational when it starts to control your life with all the could be and might happen. When you over research something to get more info to show additional risks then yes your anxiety is irrational and should be addressed.

so what are you afraid of? falling into the compost pile and getting a disease? unless your plan is to roll around in the compost there is no reason to fear it. we use raw chicken poop and raw eggshells among other things in our compost. as long as shes using the stuff thats been decomposed then theres no need to worry. and i am sure your mil knows how to compost and how to use it.
just stay out of the fresh additions to the compost and you will be fine

You say that you see online that people say you should wash or cook eggshells that go into compost. Do you believe everything you read that says "don't do this and don't do that"? There are people who post all kinds of stuff on the internet because somebody told them this, or because they read it somewhere, or just because they want somebody to pay attention to them.

Basically, you're letting your own issues drive what you believe when you read.

You say in your SWH "Nobody understands (mental illness) and reacts with judgment". I hope your comment isn't talking about any of the posts here. No one was judgmental. If you think they were, you are the one being judgmental. Disagreeing with your supposition about egg shells in compost doesn't mean anyone has been judgmental about your mental illness.

Eggs *i believe* are washed before being packaged. I thought that was a safety guideline they had to follow.

Composting also heats up materials to such an extent that I think it wouldn't be a concern.

Just avoid the compost and wash hands before coming in - if needs be.

As for wild animal scat - there's more risk from cats and dogs in urban/suburban areas. Not to worry you, but that's why there are laws to pick up after your animals. It ends up getting washed into waterways (where of course, it is treated).