thoroughly composted wood is compost ... use at will ...

unfinished compost is called raw wood... and i not conducive to growing things in ... e.g. you can NOT grow grass over a ground out stump.. unless you remove the grindings ...

raw wood as it decomposes interferes with water maintenance ... uses all available nitrogen ... and if put on thick enough ... will probably heat like in the compost bin ... as it breaks down ...

if you can INSURE.... that there is no raw wood in the product use it..

otherwise... keep composting until fall ....

same with raw urea products like animal bedding .... but the issue is urea levels .... my experience with this stuff is the larger animals.. and i dont really know about chickens/rabbits... nor the volumes of such you are talking about ...

even when i suggest throwing them on the driveway ... i dont add to pee all over them ... or cover them with nitrogen fertilizer ...

you dont mention the size of the babes... but of course.. mature plants.. will have much more leeway ... that smallish babes ....

if this really messes you up.. get a yard or two of topsoil delivered.. and spread it to 8 to 10 inches deep ... so that buy the time it settles.. it will be 6 to 8 inches ... and use that area as a temp nursery.. until you can INSURE ...... you wont burn the roots off your plants ...

there is a very hardcore composting forum ... and they can 'break it down' further for you ... see what i did there... lol ... though from what little i have read there... they will probably end up confusing you... lol ...

ken

Saw shavings or wood shavings should not be mixed into your soil. If you have composted the shavings fully then you can add them, but not shavings that are still wood.

This is what Ken said. I'm just translating.

My suggestion is that you get a soil test as soon as your soil is workable. You don't say where you are gardening, but most Land Grant Universities or Extension Services offer this test. That will tell you what your pH, nutrient and organic content is in your soil. Then you can add amendments based on actual knowledge rather than guestimating.

Steve

Thank you very much! Maybe I have lucked out that I balanced the shavings with enough rabbit poop that I haven't sucked the nitrogen out of my current beds. But I will test those beds seperately and monitor them for potential damage in the long run. I was told by an avid gardener that was the way to go, and didn't see the long term harm. I have enough compost thats ready to go come spring, to make some of the beds.

What Ken and Steve said.

Be aware that a soil test is pretty much useless when it comes to nitrogen. In fact most places don't even test for it. Too many variables like bacterial activity, temperature, moisture, and others will give erratic results, but it will give you a good start for everything else such as calcium, magnesium, iron, etc. If plants start looking weak you may need to add more nitrogen but you should be fine.

You learned that avid gardeners may not be up to speed on some things.

tj