Vermicomposting/
Vermicompost Production

Vermicomposting is a process or an effective tool, relies on earthworms and micro-organism to help stabilize active organic materials and convert them to a valuable soil amendment and source of plant nutrients. Upto 60% of what is discarded by people, communities and business entities and households are organic materials or organic waste which when discarded and get mixed with inorganic waste create a large problem for waste management and be a cause for many types of health issues and hazards. Earthworms will consume most of these discarded organic materials as food preparation residuals and leftovers, scrap papers, animal manure, agricultural crop residues, organic byproducts from industries and yard trimmings etc and convert them into vermicompost. Vermicompost is an organic manure or bio-fertilizer produced as vermicast by earthworms feeding on organic waste material or plant residue. This compost is odorless, clean; contain adequate quantities of N, P, K and several micro-nutrients essential for plant growth. It is a preferred nutrient source for organic farming. It is ecofriendly, non-toxic, consumes low energy for composting and it is a recycled bio product. It enhances plant growth and suppresses plant disease and insect pest attack.

Materials required and Methods of vermicomposting

In this section we are briefly discussing that what are the basic requirement and process for starting vermicomposting setup at commercial and household level.

Earthworm species used in vermicomposting:

Species of earthworms are categorized in three categories based on their feeding behavior which are:

Epigeics: found on surface upto 5cm and feed exclusively on organic matter.

Endogeic: found upto 10cm feed on soil and organic matter as well.

Anecics: found deep inside the earth and feed exclusively on soil. These are also known as deep burrowers.

Therefore, among these three categories epigeics are mostly used in vermicomposting as they used to feed mostly on organic matter. We have here at our center the three best vermicomposting species of earthworms that are:

Eisenia fetida: Eisenia fetida (older foetida) Known under various common names such as manure worm, redworm, brandling worm, panfish worm, trout worm, tiger worm, red wiggler etc., is a species of earthworm adapted to decaying organic material. It is very easily identified by its striped appearance of alternating broad, dark red brown bands and narrower, pale pink or yellowish bands. The species identifier of its bionomial name ‘fetida’, means foul- smelling, and as if suggest the earthworm can exude an odd smelling yellowish fluid if disturbed. It typically measures 2-6mm in width and 26-130mm in length.

Eudrilus euginae: Eudrilus eugeniae, also called “African Nightcrawler”’ is an earthworm species native to tropical West Africa and now widespread in warm region under vermicompost. The African Nightcrawler has a uniform dark red to purple grey in color, with an iridescent sheen when exposed to sunlight. The underside is a lighter pink/grey color. The posterior segments are evenly tapered to a point. They are large in size usually between 6-12 inches when fully grown (sometimes larger). These are one of the best choices for composting worms.

Perionyx excavatus: Perionyx excavatus is a commercially produced earthworm, Native of Indian sub-continent, mostly of the Himalayan Mountains. Popular names for this species are “Blues”, “Indian blue worm”, “bark worm”, “spiketails”. This species is marketed for its ability to create fine worm castings quickly. This species is best suited for vermicomposting in tropical and sub tropical regions. Lack of the alternate light and dark banding differentiate it from Eisenia fetida. These are thinner than Eisenia fetida and hence rarely used as bait worms. Average length of this species is about 3 inches when fully grown.

Culture Medium (organic waste used in beds/pits)

For vermiculture organic waste (household, agriculture, garden, industrial and cow dung) which decomposes is used as a culture medium. Organic waste which is semi decomposed mixed with cow dung (more than 30%). Cow dung used should be minimum 20-25 days and maximum 90 days old .The waste and cow dung should not contain any non decomposable material. If the waste is dry it should be kept in dumps and water it regularly until it gets semi decomposed. Mostly there are three major methods of vermicomposting.

Bin method:

it is mostly used for small scale indoor composting as home composting in kitchen, balcony or terrace etc. where there is not much of space available for composting. The bins can be made of various materials, but wood and plastic ones are used widely. Plastic bins because of lightness are more preferred in home composting.

Windros/open bed method:

in this method composting is done on the pucca /kutchha floor by making beds of standard size 15 -30 ft length, 3-4 ft width and 1.5-2 ft height depending upon the season. Organic matter should be included layer wise with cow dung. Beds should be covered with organic matter as banana leaves, maize leaves etc. or with jute bags. This method is less expensive, easy to maintain and practice and used for large scale commercial vermicomposting.

Pit method:

composting is done in the cemented pits of size 12x3x1.5 feet. The unit is covered with thatch grass, green shed net or any other locally available material. One should keep in mind that the bottom of pits should not be cemented to avoid accumulation of water. This method is expensive than open bed method but has more efficiency than bed method as wastage is less than bed method.

Benefits of Vermicompost

• Improves soil aeration.
• Enriches soil with micro-organisms (adding enzymes such as phosphatase and cellulase).
• Microbial activity in worm castings is 10 to 20 times higher than in the soil and organic matter that the worm ingests.
• Attracts deep-burrowing earthworms already present in the soil.
• Improves water holding capacity.
• Enhances germination, plant growth, and crop yield.
• Improves root growth and structure.
• Enriches soil with micro-organisms (adding plant hormones such as auxins and gibberellic acid.

Environmental

• Helps to close the "metabolic gap" through recycling waste on-site.
• Bio wastes conversion reduces waste flow to landfills.
• Elimination of bio wastes from the waste stream reduces contamination of other recyclables collected in a single bin (a common problem in communities practicing single-stream recycling]).
• Large systems often use temperature control and mechanized harvesting; however other equipment is relatively simple and does not wear out quickly.
• Production reduces greenhouse gas emissions such as methane and nitric oxide (produced in landfills or incinerators when not composted or through methane harvest).

Economic

• Creates low-skill/unskilled jobs at local level because it is labour based business.
• Low capital investment and relatively simple technologies make vermicomposting practical for less-developed agricultural regions.