VERMICOMPOSTING

-Niraj KumarPayal Gunaki

BackgroundVermicomposting is as old as life on Earth

Michigan biology teacher ,Mary Appelhof arrived at the idea of home Vermicomposting

In the winter of 1972, she created a Vermicomposting Pit in her basement . The end of the season saw 65 lbs. of garbage consumed and resultant worm compost aiding impressive vegetable growth in her garden

The process of using worms and micro-organisms to turn kitchen waste into a black, earthy-smelling, nutrient-rich humus- Vermicompost

Containing water-soluble nutrients, Vermicompost is an excellent, nutrient-rich organic fertilizer and soil conditioner

What is it?

Materials RequiredWorm BinBeddingWaterWormsFood Scraps

Temperature- 12`c to 25`c, ideally

Eisenia fetida

Lumbricus rubellus

Eisenia hortensis

Eudrilus eugeniae

Perionyx excavatus

Suitable Species

Procedure Select a location for your worm bin Prepare bedding. It should be very damp,

spread evenly and filling three-quarters of the bin

Sprinkle a couple of handfuls of soil (from outdoors or potting soil) into it to introduce beneficial microorganisms and to aid the worms' digestive process

Gently place worms on top of the bedding. Leave the bin lid off so worms will burrow into the bedding. Add food scraps, once they settle

Dig a hole in the bedding, place food scraps and cover with at least an inch of bedding. Wait a week before adding more food

Leave untouched to get worms used to new surroundings

Bury food scraps in a different area of the bin each time (any time of the day) 

Other creatures may be observed

Harvesting Worms & CompostAfter about six weeks, worm castings seen In three or four months, harvest the castings.

Partially decomposed bedding, food scraps and worms will be seen with castings

This mixture is Vermicompost 

Harvesting VermicompostTwo Methods: -Place food scraps on only one side of worm

bin for several weeks, most of the worms will migrate to that side. Remove the Vermicompost from the other side of the bin and add fresh bedding.

Repeat process on the other side of the bin

-Empty contents of worm bin onto a plastic sheet where there is strong sunlight/artificial light. Wait 20-30 minutes and scrape off top layer of compost

Pick up worms that get scattered in groups and gently return them to the bin in fresh bedding

Worm eggs contain two to ten baby worms. Place the eggs back inside bin

MechanismEarthworm gut is an effective tubular bioreactor with feed

entering from one end and castings leaving through other end

73% gram -ve, facultative anerobic, Vibrio sp

A novel temperature regulatory mechanism accelerates bioprocess and prevents enzyme inactivation due to high temperature

Mucous produced by glands in anterior region of gut provides favorable substrate

Using VermicompostEither use immediately or after storingFor outdoor plants, mulch/mix material into soil.

Can also be used as a top dressing on outdoor plants or sprinkled on your lawn as conditioner

For indoor plants mix with potting soil. For top dressing, remove decaying bedding and food scraps from the castings. No worms or eggs in the castings, as they will not survive

"compost tea" to feed plants

AdvantagesEnriching soil (5-10% richer in K, P, N)Increasing harvest yields Suppressing plant disease

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