Organic Agriculture Module 4: – Prepare Composting Area

And Raw Materials

Quarter 1, Week 4

Aussie Charity T. Calibo

(SUPPORT MATERIAL FOR INDEPENDENT LEARNING ENGAGEMENT)

A Joint Project of

SCHOOLS DIVISION OF DIPOLOG CITY

and the

DIPOLOG CITY GOVERNMENT

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TLE– Grade 10

Week 4, Quarter 1: Prepare Composting Area and Raw Materials First Edition, 2020

Printed in the Philippines by ________________________

Department of Education – Region IX – Dipolog City Schools Division

Office Address: Purok Farmers, Olingan, Dipolog

Development Team of the Module

Writer: Aussie Charity T. Calibo

Editor: Aussie Charity T. Calibo

Reviewer: Lynne B. Gahisan

Management Team:

Virgilio P. Batan Jr. - Schools Division Superintendent

Jay S. Montealto - Asst. Schools Division Superintendent

Amelinda D. Montero - Chief, CID

Nur N. Hussien - Chief, SGOD

Ronillo S. Yarag - EPS PVR – LRMDS

Leo Martinno O. Alejo - PDO II - LRMDS

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The following are some reminders in using this module:

1. Use the module with care. Do not put unnecessary mark/s on any part of the

module. Use a separate sheet of paper in answering the exercises.

2. Don’t forget to answer What I Know before moving on to the other activities

included in the module.

3. Read the instruction carefully before doing each task.

4. Observe honesty and integrity in doing the tasks and checking your answers.

5. Finish the task at hand before proceeding to the next.

6. Return this module to your teacher/facilitator once you are through with it.

If you encounter any difficulty in answering the tasks in this module, do not

hesitate to consult your teacher or facilitator. Always bear in mind that you are

not alone.

We hope that through this material, you will experience meaningful learning and

gain deep understanding of the relevant competencies. You can do it!

What I Need to Know

This module on Organic Agriculture 10 will be of great help to the

Technology and Livelihood Education students. This has been conceptualized to equip them with the basic knowledge, skills, positive values and attitudes toward produce organic fertilizer activities. It provides concepts necessary to equip them to face the challenges ahead for this time of the pandemic. Lessons are prepared in such a way that it will respond to the needs of teachers and students in this subject area.

You are now in Organic Agriculture-Module 4: Week 4

Learning Outcome 1: LO 1. Prepare composting area and raw materials

After going through this module, you are expected to: TLE_AFOA9-12OFIa-j-IIa-j-1

1.4. Gather materials for organic fertilizer based on production requirements and PNS ;

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What I Know

A. True or False

Direction: Write True if the statement is correct, False if it is incorrect. Write your

answer on a sheet of paper.

______ 1. Azolla is a type of plant residues. ______ 2. Plant residues are chemically simple organic materials.

______ 3. The amount contributed by crop residue does not depend on the crop and the stages which are incorporated.

______ 4. Green manure is incorporated while they are still green.

______ 5. Chicken manure is higher in nitrogen content. ______ 6. Oyster shells are an example of animal residues.

______ 7. Bagasse is one of many sugarcanes by- products. ______ 8. The carbonized rice hull is better than the ordinary rice hull.

______ 9. Coir is useful in young plantations and nursery preparation. ______10. Coir is the thick first layer of the coconut fruit.

______11. Leftover food is an example of wet garbage.

______12. Nutrient content in organic raw materials is not readily available. ______13. The composition and quality of organic materials are highly variable.

______14. The utilization of raw organic materials is more expensive. ______15. Organic materials are predictable in nutrient composition.

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Lesson

4 PREPARE COMPOSTING AREA AND RAW MATERIALS

What’s In

Direction: Answer the following questions in a separate sheet.

1. List down the 4 methods of composting you know. _______________

_______________ _______________

_______________

What’s New

Direction: Answer the following questions in a separate sheet.

1. List down the at least 4 types of raw organic materials

_______________ _______________

_______________

_______________

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What is It

Types of Organic Raw Materials

I. Plant Residues

Plant residues are chemically complex organic materials that enter the

soil and play an important role in maintaining soil productivity by providing

source of nutrients and inputs to organic matter (Allison 1973). They are known to affect soil physical properties, availability of soil nutrients, and soil

faunal populations.

Types of Plant Residues

Crop residues

Crop residue remaining after harvest accounts for large portion of the

organic matter added to soils. The amount of nutrients contributed by crop residue depends on the crop and the stage at which it is incorporated.

Most of the crop residues are not collected for composting and nutrient

recycling, but are used as animal feed (straw/stovers), burnt or left in the filed for natural decomposition.

Azolla and Blue Green Algae

Most important biofertilizers for lowland rice are azolla and blue green algae (BGA). Azolla is an aquatic fern that lives in symbiotic association with

the N-fixing blue –green alga Anabaena azollae. The biomass of azolla is a good source of organic fertilizer after decomposition. Azolla can be used for green

manuring, which could contribute from 20kg to 60 kg N/ha per season. It is

considered an efficient scavenger for K and serves as a source of K for rice crops (FADINAP 2002).

Some blue-green algae (Gloeotrichia Euglena, Phacus, Trachelomonas,

and Nitzchia) have been known for their N-fixing property, particularly their role as N sources in rice paddies. Algal fertilization is comparable to NPK

fertilization. As a biofertilizer, BGA enhances soil N fertility by excreting

nitrogenous compounds into the soil while alive and the release of N-fixed compounds when it decomposes.

Indigenous plants/multi-purpose tree species.

The potential of organic fertilizers using indigenous plants/multi-

purpose tree species in reducing mineral fertilizer inputs in lowland-and upland-based farming system was observed to be effective. Many researchers

have indicated that plant residues from planted fallows or pruning from

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hedgerows in alley cropping system can contribute significant quantities of

nutrients to many crops.

Green manures

Green manures are crops that are incorporated into the soil while they

are still green and succulent in order to improve the soil and to supply N to the associated cash crop. If the primary reason for growing a green manure is

to provide N, then some types of legumes should be planted. For other reasons,

green manures are good materials for compost production, The Sesbania species (Sesbania sesban, Sesbania rostrate, and Sesbania aculeate), N-fixing

shrubs used to improve soil organic matter and fodders, are widely promoted in the humid tropics. Aeschynimene afraspera is a stem-nodulating legume

that can grow also in upland and lowland conditions. This legume is less

sensitive to photoperiod than Sesbania. These shrubs re-grow vigorously after being cut, producing abundant source of organic material.

II. Farmyard Manure

Farmyard manure does not receive the attention it deserves, as it probably rans next to plant residues in terms of abundance in the rural areas.

Storage of these animal manures is in heaps exposed to sun, rain, and wind,

which result in substantial nutrient losses. Farmyard manure can be economical source of plant nutrients and a valuable soil amendment to

improve soil quality.

Types of Farmyard Manure

Poultry

The most important manures in the country are broiler litter and egg layer manure. Because poultry excrete liquid and solid waste together, poultry

manure is higher in N than manure of other farm animals.

Commercial broilers are reared in houses with rice hulls or wood shavings as litter. Egg layers are reared in layered or low-rise houses. Manure

drops to the ground and scraped out more often. In some operations, poultry

manure contains feathers, uneaten feed, and broken eggs. A stack of manure cleaned out of these poultry houses may contain materials varying in age from

a few weeks to months. Variation in the age of the material and the type of the amount of litter in manure, results in the variations in nutrient content.

Cattle and Carabao

The physical and chemical properties of cow manure may also depend on the feed proportion and method of waste collection and disposal. In general,

cattle dung consists of 70-88% moisture, 20% OM, 3% mineral matter, and both macro- and micronutrients.

Cows are kept in dirt-floor corrals where manure and accumulated urine is periodically scraped and stacked. In some dairy farms, cows are kept

in barns that are cleaned daily. The wastewater flows into settling basin and

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lodged into lagoons. When it is necessary to dredge the lagoon. The wastewater

is dumped in the nearest waterway and the sludge is used as soil amendment.

Although carabao and cattle manure are not directly applied in the filed as fertilizer, they are commonly deposited on pasture areas, and others are

collected and used in composting.

Horse

Since there is only a small number of horse in the country, very little of horse manure is available. Horse manure is often mixed with high proportion

of crop residues such as straw, rice hulls, and coir dust.

Swine

In commercial swine farm, manures are swept and collected before

flushing them with that flows into lagoons, river, or nearby vacant lots. The collected manure is either dried on a drying bed or placed into the pit. This

drying bed is exposed to all types of weather. However, another wat of cleaning the farm is to flush the pigpen with high volume of water that flows into a

lagoon.

Goat and sheep

The presence of medium or large herd of goats or sheep is rare in the

country. The manure from sheep and goat is particularly helpful in quick decomposition of organic residues because of their small size and large surface

area. The microbial activity is enhanced resulting in quick breakdown of residues into energy-rich nutrients. The nitrogen content is almost 2.8%.

III. Animal Residues

Some animal residues can also be good sources of nutrients. Animal

blood, horn, feet, and feathers are high in nitrogen. Oyster shells and egg crust

have high calcium. Compared with bulk organic material like farmyard manure and crop residues, concentrated animal residues have high

concentration of nutrients. Because they contain only a small amount of organic carbon. These residues behave similarly with synthetic fertilizers

when incorporated into the soil, particularly in terms of nutrient release rates. Unlike synthetic fertilizer, however, they contain at least trace amounts of

most of the plant nutrients in addition to N, P, and K.

IV. Agri-industrial Wastes

Types of Agri-Industrial Wastes

a. Sugar Wastes and By-products

Bagasse

Many sugarcane processing factories produce substantial

quantities of organic by-product such as bagasse, pith, and mud press.

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Sugarcane has been one of the most important agricultural

crops in the country for several decades, and produces million tons of bagasse per year as a by-product of sugar production. Bagasse is a

solid waste produced after extracting the juice from the sugarcane stalks. Bagasse has high C/N ratio (>150) and percentage of acid

detergent fiber (ADF, 41-62%)but low crude protein (CP, 2.5%) and total digestible nutrients (TDN, 10-39%). Nevertheless, it has served as a

good soil conditioner when plowed back into the soil. Much of the bagasse is used as fuel. The bagasse ash contains 0.28% N, 0.84%P

and 2-5%K.

Mud press/filtercake

About 6% of millable cane produces filtercake or mud press. This

material is dark brown to blck and is composed of varying proportions of sand, soil, bagacillo, sugar, flocculants, and coagulated colloids and

sediments which included phosphate, lime and albuminoids. The

typical composition of mud press is as follows: Oil and wax (lipids) - 5-15%

Fiber - 15-30% Sugars - 5-5%

Crude protein - 5-15% Total ash - 9-20%

Moisture content - 65-80%

Acevedo-Ramos et.al (1963) determined the organic matter of

mud press as ranging from 20% to 30%. Mud press contains high amounts of cellulose and hemicellulose and harbors pathogenic

organism that are spore formers and heat resistant. Hence, the raw material must be composted completely before using on crops.

Sugarcane slop

This is spent-wash in the production of alcohol from sugar. It

contains organic and inorganic substances consisting of potassium and

calcium sulfates and phosphates, traces of iron, magnesium and sodium, proteins, gums, caramel, organic acids, glycerol, and

unfermentable sugars.

b. Rice Hull and Coir Dust

Rice hull (husk)

The rice hulls generated from all the rice mills nationwide probably amounts to more than 2 M t/year. It has very high silica

content (up to 14.5%) but the other nutrients are less than 1%. The C/N ratio is 91, thus very slow to decompose. It is generally used as

bedding in poultry houses. It could be useful as an absorbent of excess moisture in composting municipal wastes.

Smoked or carbonized hull is better material than ordinary rice

hull. It provides a bacteria-and fungus-free material and has a

consistency that can hold onto water and supply nutrients of crops. Carbonized rice hull could be an important component of organic

fertilizer.

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Coir dust

Coir is a fibrous material that constitutes the thick mesocarp

(middle layer) of coconut fruit (Cocos nucifera). The long fibers of coir

are extracted from the coconut husk and utilized in the manufacture of

brushes, automobile seat and mattress stuffing, drainage pipe filters,

twine, and other products. The short fibers (2mm or less) and dust

(‘pitch’) left behind accumulate as waste product. The high lignin and

cellulose content of the pitch prevents the piles from further

decomposition.

It acts as excellent mulch in young plantations and conserves

moisture during the dry months. It has the capacity to absorb moisture

many times over its weight and is used in composting and nursery

preparation.

C. Other Agri-Industrial Waste

Agri-industries, such as fruit and vegetable processing, cotton

ginneries, oil mills breweries, and distilleries, also produce large quantities of organic waste materials which need to be properly managed and utilized for

nutrient recycling instead of dumping and polluting the environment.

Lumbang meal and castor bean meal are the residues after oil extraction from “lumbang” and castor plants. The materials contain 6-7% N.

The production of the food seasoning, monosodium glutamate (MSG), produces a liquid waste with high N (5%), considerable concentration of P

(0.4%) and K (1.7%). The material is strongly acidic (pH 3.4) with high chloride content. Nevertheless, it can be used as nitrogen enriching raw material in

composting.

In beer making, used hops and sludge are produced. The used hops

contain 2.5-3.5% N and 1.0%P.

D. Municipal Biodegradable Wastes

The production and disposal of municipal solid waste in many

countries, including the Philippines, has become an increasingly difficult

problem. Currently, about 50% of urban trashes are biodegradable organic materials which can be degraded and processed appropriately as bioorganic

fertilizers.

Types of Biodegradable Wastes

Biodegradable municipal waste compromises food waste, garden waste,

paper and cardboard, textiles, wood, and other miscellaneous biodegradable

wastes.

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Household waste

Shredding branches is often a major problem for homeowners. Many

municipalities collect these woody yard wastes and dump them in landfill. These wastes are potential composting material.

Wet garbage – kitchen waste such as leftover food, fruits, and vegetable

peelings, fish wastes. Dry garbage – papers/cartons (junk mails, newspapers, shoe boxes, etc.);

garden wastes (plants, dried leaves, tree branches); used clothing,

shoes

Municipal Waste

Wet garbage – solid fruit and vegetable wastes from the market; solid

biodegradable waste from slaughterhouse.

Dry garbage – packing wastes cartons, wooden crates from market; biodegradable packaging materials from commercial establishments.

Important Things to Consider in the Utilization of organic Raw

Materials

Most of the nutrient concentration/content in organic raw materials reported are not readily available for plant growth. Nutrients in organic

material must be released by soil microorganisms through mineralization.

This biological process is affected by variations in plant resources quality, moisture, temperature, and the microbial species and population present in

the soil. Therefore, organic materials are less predictable in nutrient composition, nutrient release, and nutrient-use efficiency than inorganic

fertilizers.

The composition and quality of organic materials are highly variable. Therefore, if organic materials will be used as fertilizer, it is important to get

accurate information about it nutrient composition. To have accurate records

on nutrient inputs, each load of material applied to the soil should be analyzed separately in analytical soil testing laboratories.

Utilization of raw organic materials are usually more expensive per unit

nutrient (to collect, purchase, transport, store and apply) than inorganic fertilizers. When evaluating the cost and benefits of various materials,

however, consider the two additional benefits in utilizing organic materials.

First, the organic materials can supply organic matter which improves soil physical and chemical properties, Second, organic materials provide ‘energy’

for microorganisms, thereby promoting nutrient cycling within the production system, and in some cases, suppressing harmful pathogens. It is, therefore,

difficult to assign a peso value to these non-nutrient benefits.

The use of organic materials for composting should not be focused on single factor such as C/N ratio. It has been shown in many researched that

no single variable has consistently proven to be the best predictor of

decomposition rates of organic materials studied. It is the combination of many factors that affect the decomposition process of organic materials, that

later may affect the process of composting and compost quality.

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What’s More

Directions: Read the items inside the box. Circle the ones that are crop residues, cross the ones that are farmyard manure, double line that

are animal residues, check that are agri-industrial waste of raw organic materials. Copy and answer on a sheet of paper.

What I Can Do

Instruction: Go out and gather different raw organic materials found outside your

home. Do not forget to wear your protective equipment while doing the activity. Be

careful in using sharp objects. Please observe Occupational Health and Safety

always. Take photos of every activity that you perform.

1. Bagasse 2. Chicken 3. Horse

4. Azolla 5. Swine 6. Mud press

7. Oyster shells 8. Blue Green Algae 9. Carabao

10. Mud press 11. Corn Stalk 12. Animal Blood

13. Rice hull 14. Sheep 15. Coir dust

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Rubrics

Excellent Very Satisfactory

Satisfactory Needs Improvement

Quality of Work The learners assembled and produced strong and unique composting bed using 3-4 raw organic materials that are locally available.

Students followed the steps and created 1x1 size of composting bed using 2-3 kinds of raw organic materials.

Performed the correct method and make bed using 2 kinds of raw organic materials.

Build the compost bed without using in raw organic materials that are available in the community.

Use of the Personal Protective Equipment

Maximize the use of all PPE (like; boots, gloves, masks, hat, and jacket) while lay-outing and constructing the bed.

Use only 4 types of Personal Protective Equipment.

Use 2-3 Personal Protective Equipment during hands-on activity.

Did not use any of the personal Protective Equipment.

Speed The learners finished lay-outing and constructing the composting bed within 1 ½ hour.

Students lay-out and make composting bed within 2 hours.

Learners completed the actual lay-outing and building of composting bed within 2 hours and 30 minutes.

Has consumed 3 hours in lay-outing and compost bed making.

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Assessment

MULTIPLE CHOICES Direction: Read each item carefully. Write the correct answers in a separate sheet and submit it to your teacher.

1. This is an aquatic fern that lives in symbiotic association with the N-fixing blue –green alga.

a. Azolla b. green manure c. Indigenous plants d. mud press

2. How many percent of urban trashes are considered biodegradable organic

materials? a. 30% b. 40% c. 50% d. 60%

3. Oyster shells and egg crust are high in; a. Phosphorous b. Potassium c. Calcium d. Nitrogen

4. What is the nitrogen content of goat and sheep manure? a. 1.8% b. 2.8% c. 3.8% d. 4.8%

5. These residues are similar to synthetic fertilizers.

a. crop residues b. animal residues c. farmyard manure d. agri-industrial waste

6. Rice hulls have ______ high content. a. zinc b. nitrogen c. potassium d. silica

7. In household waste, what is often a major problem for homeowners? a. shredded branches b. leftover

c. fish waste d. fruits 8. Coir is found in the _____________ of coconut fruit.

a. first layer b. middle layer c. last layer d. all of the above

9. What is the composition of coir that prevents it from decomposition? a. lignin b. cellulose c. pitch d. none of the above

10. This is a sugarcane product when the juice is already extracted from the plant. a. mud press b. bagasse c. sugarcane slop d. all of the above

11. Which of the following is NOT an example of animal residues? a. blood b. feathers c. manure d. oyster shells

12. Chicken manure is higher in ___________. a. nitrogen b. phosphorous c. potassium d. zinc

13. When is the best time to incorporate the green manure?

a. when still green b. when still very young c. when its dry d. when it’s wilted

14. Which of the following is correct? a. plant residues are chemically simple organic materials

b. plant residues are physically simple organic materials c. plant residues are chemically complex organic materials

d. plant residues are physically complex organic materials

15. This is a type of plant residues. a. bagasse b. coir dust c. azolla d. all of the above

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Additional Activities

Direction: Write an item that can be compostable for each of the letters in the word

―COMPOST‖. The first letter is done for you. Answer in a separate sheet.

C o r n s t a l k

O M

P O

S T

Answer Key

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References

The Philippines Recommends for Organic Fertilizer Production and Utilization

PHILIPPINE COUNCIL FOR AGRICULTURE, FORESTRY AND NATURAL

RESOURCES RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT (PCARRD) Department of Science

and Technology (DOST) Los Baños, Laguna, Philippines 2006