Vermicomposting - A green enterprise

Swapnali Borah *

Environmental degradation is a major threat to our planet and as the result of Green Revolution, uses of chemical fertilizers contributes largely to the deterioration of the environment and many diseases to mankind. Now there is a growing realization that the practices of ecological and sustainable farming can protect the environment from degradation.

Vermicomposting is a simple biotechnological process which can be effectively used in agriculture to improve the quality of soil as it improves the nitrate and phosphate level by managing organic waste.

At the same time, it is also one of the methods of generating additional good source of income and assuring sustainable livelihood for rural poor specially farmers of hilly region where agricultural field is limited. It is a good and green enterprise at household as well as community level.

WHY IT IS GREEN ENTERPRISE

o Vermicomposting is “green”. It does not harm or pollute anything.
o Recycling the garbage and agricultural waste.
o It helps reduce the volume of land filled waste and Green House Gas (GHG) emissions & also provides a valuable agronomic resource.
o Farmers who use vermicompost on their crops reduce the use of chemical fertilizers which are dangerous to soils, crops and human health.
o It is a source of income for the producers as it can be sold after being properly packaged and labeled.

WHAT IS VERMICOMPOSTING?

Vermicomposting is the processing of organic waste through earth worms. It is a natural, odorless, aerobic process, much different from traditional composting. Vermicomposting is the castings of earthworm. Organic waste like kitchen & agricultural waste gets decomposed by micro-organisms and is consumed by earthworms. The casting of these worms are vermicast or popularly known as vermicompost.

MATERIALS REQUIRED FOR VERMICOMPOSTING

1. Wooden or plastic bin for household level and cement tanks, either single or interconnected for community level.
2. Garbage or agricultural waste.
3. Cow dung slurry.
4. Earthworms (Eisenia foetida or Eudriluseugenae).
5. Water.

STEPS IN THE PROCESS OF VERMICOMPOSTING

1. Cover the bottom of the bin or cement tank with coconut hunk or polythene sheet.
2. Spread 15-20 cm layer of organic waste material (garbage or agricultural waste) on polythene sheet and then sprinkle Cow dung slurry and again organic waste. Fill the bin or tank completely in layers as described. Paste the top of the bin with soil or cow dung. Allow the material to decompose for 12-15 days.
3. When the heat evolved during the decomposition of the materials has subsided (10-15 days), release selected earthworms through the cracks developed.
4. After releasing earthworm cover the bin or tank with gunny bag to prevent birds from picking the earthworms.
5. Sprinkle water every three days to maintain adequate moisture and temperature.
6. The Vermicomposting is ready in about 2 months ifagricultural waste is used and about 4 weeks if sericulture waste and garbage is used.
7. The processed vermicompost is black, light in weight and free from bad odour.
8. When the compost is ready, do not water for 2-3 days to make compost easy for shifting.
9. Pile the compost in small heaps and leave under ambient conditions for a couple of hours when all the worms move down the heap in the bed. Separate upper portion of the manure and sieve the lower portion to separate the earthworms from the manure. The culture in the bed contains different stages of the earthworm’s life cycle, namely cocoons, juveniles and adults.
10. Transfer the culture to fresh half decomposed feed materials.
11. The excess as well as big earthworms can be used for feeding fish and poultry.
12. Pack the compost in bags and store the bags in cool place for selling.
13. Sell these bags by doing cost calculation.
14. It is surely a profitable green enterprise if you do it scientifically and in large scale. (Nagavallemma K P et el, 2004)

HOW TO USE VERMICOMPOST

o It can be used for all types of crops, fruits, vegetables and flowers at any stage.
o For general field crops, around 2 tonne per hectare vermicompost is used by mixing with seed at the time of sowing or by row application when the seedlings are 12-15 cm in height.
o For fruit trees, 5 to 10 kg. per tree depending on age.
o For vegetable and flower crops it is applied around the base of the plant and covered with soil and
o For all, irrigation should be normal and regular.

BENEFITS OF VERMICOMPOSTING

1. When used consistently, vermicompost produces higher quality crops and better yields than chemical fertilizer.
2. Vermicompost never burns plants like overdose of fresh manure or chemical fertilizer.
3. It helps plants healthy, even those highly susceptible to disease.
4. It helps in faster plant growth and is known to make flower plants bear more blooms.
5. Vermicompost contains a high level of humus which is a key to being a successful gardener or farmer.
6. It improves the water holding capacity in soils.

CONCLUSION

Green revolution is required to cater the ever-increasing world population. In India, population increases in alarming rate, which is one of the root causes of environmental degradation. Therefore, Vermicompost is considered as very important to increase food production without harming the environment.

Vermicomposting is one of the methods of generating additional source of income, economic empowerment and assuring sustainable livelihood approach along with the already known environmental benefits. This enterprise has been identified as one of the best strategies to tackle some of the inherent problems in marginalized communities as it rightfully uses the 3 pillars (People, Plant & Profit) of socio-economy.


For further details contact:-
Public Relation & Media Management Cell,
CAU, Imphal.
Email: [email protected]