vermicomposting Biotechnology

1. Vermicompost
As a component of INM

2. OBJECTIVES
After going through this
presentation, you shall be able to
discuss the vermitechnology.

3. Introduction
• Vermicomposting is a technology of composting
various forms of biodegradable wastes with the help of
earthworms.
•This compost is perfectly balanced and good in plants
nutrients.

4. VERMI
TECHNOLOGY
Vermicomposting Vermiwash
Vermiculture
or
wormery
Inter- linked and inter-dependent processes
Earthworms
Natural Bio-reactor

5. Benefits of vermicompost
Vermicompost is a nutrient rich compost which:
o helps better plant growth and crop yield
o improves physical structure of soil.
o enriches soil with micro-organisms
o attracts deep-burrowing earthworms already present in the soil
which,indirectly improves fertility of soil.
o increase water holding capacity of soil.
o enhances germination, plant growth, and crop yield.
o improves root growth of plants.
o enriches soil with plant hormones such as auxins and gibberellic
acid.
o it is helpful in elimination of biowastes .

6. Nutrient profile of vermicompost
Vermicompost contains :
1.6% Nitrogen;
0.7% Phosphorus;
0.8% Potash;
0.5% Calcium;
0.2% Magnesium;
175 ppm Iron;
96.5 ppm Manganese;
24.5 ppm Zinc
15.5 C:N ratio.

7. Requirements
Earthworms
Epigeic
Litter and surface
dwelling species
( ‘upon the earth’)
Soil dwelling or
upper soil
surface
( ‘within the earth’)
Endogeic
Deep burrowing
species
(‘out of earth’)
Anecic
Ex. Eisenia foetida Ex. Octochaetona thrustoni Ex. Lampito mauritii

8. Requirements Cont’d….
Earthworms:
Commonly following varities are used for vermicomposting
Eisenia foetida
Eudrilus eugeniae
Perionyx excavatus

9. Requirements Cont’d….
Pre digested or decomposed organic wastes

10. Requirements Cont’d….
 Source of water
 Buckets and
water sprayer
Untitled_0011.wmv

11. Requirements Cont’d….
Tools for harvesting

12. Requirements Cont’d….
•Concrete
floor under
shade.

13. Method of Production
Vermicompost can be produced by two methods :
Pit Method
Windrows Method
Click on photo

14. Pit method is commonly used for small scale production of vermicompost.
These steps can be followed :
Pit method
 Construct a pit of 3 x 2 x 1 m size (L x W xD) over ground surface
using bricks. Size of pit may vary as per availability of raw
materials
 Fill the pit with following four layers:
• 1st layer – sand or sandy soil of 5-6 cm. This layer helps to
drain excess water from the pit.
• 2nd layer - paddy straw or other crop residue of 30 cm above
1st layer which will be used for providing aeration to the pit.
• 3rd layer - 15 to 30 days old dung over paddy straw layer at a
thickness of 20-30 cm. This helps in initiating microbial activity.
• 4th layer - pre-digested material about 50 cm
 Inoculate earthworm @ 1000 worms per square meter area or 10
kg earthworm in 100 kg of organic matter.
 Spray water on the bed and gunny bag. Maintain 50-60% moisture
of the pit by periodical water spraying.

15. Pit method cont’d…

16. Windrows method
 Load the organic wastes in the
form of bed (preferably 10 feet L
x 3 feet W x 1.5 feet H). Size of
bed may vary as per availability
of organic waste.
 After loading, the fresh bed
should be covered with jute mate
or dry agriculture wastes such as
rice-bran, banana-leaf, maize
residue etc.
This method is widely used for large scale production of vermicompost.
You may please follow these steps:
Mulching: A mulch is a layer of material applied to the surface of soil. Reasons for applying mulch
include conservation of soil moisture, improving fertility and health of the soil, reducing weed growth
and enhancing the visual appeal of the area. A mulch is usually, but not exclusively, organic in
nature
Dung+ Agriculture waste
Dry Agriculture waste

17. Windrows method Cont’d…
 Sprinkle water over the
covered vermibed to
maintain 40% moisture
in bed.
 Moisture percent can be
checked by forming
lump of organic waste
using hand. it should
easily form lump.
Watering of beds
Checking of moisture
percentage in bed

18. Windrows method
 Bed should be mixed thoroughly to prevent it
from becoming compact.

19. Windrows method Cont’d…
 The first lot of vermicompost is ready for harvesting after 2-21/2 months
and the subsequent lots can be harvested after every six weeks of
loading
 Watering of bed should be stopped for at least 2-3 days before
harvesting. Earthworms go down in the moist soil and the compost is
collected from the top without disturbing the lower layers of vermibed
having earthworm. Vermicompost harvested will be of dark brown colour
and free flowing.
 The harvested compost should be stored in dark and cold place.
Removal of
mulching
Harvesting of beds Collection of vermicompost

20. Women Farmers Unit
Mrs. Shakuntala Devi,
Distt. Aligarh (UP)
Training at
D.S.College
Aligarh UP
Vermicompost production unit at vill.
Hassain, Distt. Hathras (UP)

21.  In 6 months, 8 worms will
multiply into 1500 if
conditions are right.
They will stop breeding if
there is not enough food or
space.

22. Food Waste
Useful for worms.
 Most fruits and veggies
 Coffee grounds and filters
 Tea leaves and bags
 Egg shells
 Most cereals and grains (oatmeal, pasta, rice,
cornmeal, pancakes, breads).

24. Harmful to worms…
• Meat, fish, dairy, oil, or bones
• Potato chips, candy, oils
•Plastic
• Rubber bands
• Sponges
• Aluminum foil
• Glass

25. Moisture & Temperature
• The most common worms used in composition
system , red worms feed most rapidly at
temperature of 59°-77°F.
• They can survive at 50°F. Temperature above
86°F may harm them.
• Prevention of water loss is major factor in
earthworm survival as water constitutes 75-90%
of the body weight of earthworms.
• Availability of soil moisture determines
earthworms activity as earthworm species have
different moisture requirement in different
regions of the world.

26. Harvesting vermicomposition

27. Harvesting…
• There are several method of harvesting
vermicomposition.
• Harvesting may be gradual or by bulk in one
time.
• It is normally done during daytime for ease in
separating the earthworm.
• The vermicompost is ready to harvest when
the raw materials, except for a few,
particularly pieces of woody stem, are fully
decomposed.

28. Harvesting methods
• Gradual, manual
harvesting of vermicast.
• Bulk harvesting by
pyramidal heap.
• Screening or serving
• Harvesting by inducing
first the migration of
earthworms.

29. Precautions
o Only plant-based materials such as grass, leaves or vegetable
peelings should be used for preparing vermicompost.
o Materials of animal origin such as egg-shells, meal, bone, chicken
droppings etc., are not suitable for preparing vermicompost.
o Gliricidia lopping and tobacco leaves are not suitable for rearing
earthworms.
o The earthworms should be protected against birds, termites, ants
and rats.
o Adequate moisture should be maintained during the process. Either
stagnant water or lack of moisture could kill the earthworms.
o The vermicompost should be removed from the bed at a regular
interval and replaced by fresh waste materials.

30. Vermiculture Training Centre
Vermicuture Research Station, D.S.College (Dr.BRA University),Aligarh-202001

31. VERMIWASH
• Vermiwash, a liquid bio-fertilizer can be
collected through the column of activated
earthworm and it is very useful for foliar
spray.
• Vermiwash contains Nitrogen fixing bacteria
Azotobacter , Rhizobium.

32. Method of preparation
of vermiwash
• Select one sufficiently
large container made of
concrete or plastic bucket .
• Drill a hole at the base of
the container to fix a tap
to it.

33. Method of preparation
of Vermiwash
• A base layer of gravel or
broken small pieces of
bricks are placed up to
height of 10-15 cm.
• On the coarse sand layer
place 40-45 cm pre-
decomposed organic wastes
and moisten the different
layers by using water.
• Introduce about 2000
earthworms into the
container

34. • Vermiwash unit should be established
with vermicomposting beds for large
scale production.

35. Advantage of vermicomposition and
vermiwash
• It is a natural fertilizer.
• It is not hazardous for soil.
• It improves soil aeration and texture.
• This method is cost effective.

36. Disadvantage of vermicompostion
and vermiwash
• Composition takes a lot of time to process (6
months)
• It produces a bad smell
• The maintenance cost may be high as constant
monitoring is required.
• The technique a lot of laborers and is pretty hard
to implement in urban areas.