VermiCompost Preparation in a Commercial manner in India

What is Vermicompost

Vermicompost or Vermicomposting Preparation is nothing but the process of decomposition of Organic Material whether it is either Plant or Animal origin by Earthworms. It also includes Commercial production. Commercial Vermicompost Production gives high-income returns for an individual or Marginal Farmer. One can prepare an excellent Vermicompost with the help of proper species of Earthworms. The Earthworms produce an excellent and good quality of Vermicompost within a short period of time in ambient conditions of temperatures. If you compare with Compost Pits that is without Earthforms, Earthworms promote faster decomposition.

In Vegetable Crops, Fruit and Flower Crops Vermicompost plays an important and major role in improving growth, yield and production. Using Vermicompost in many of the Crops has led to the increase in germination percentage and the quality of the produce, In addition, Vermicompost supply minerals and nutrients for Plant growth and development. It also promotes soil structure that leads to the increase in the nutrient and water uptake of the Plants.

There are many advantages of Vermicompost. There are many Benefits of Using Vermicompost in Agricultural, Vegetables and Ornamental Crops. It is very advantageous at any stage of Crop. As Vermicompost preparation takes less amount of investment and more Benefits, Commercial Production of Vermicompost has led to the Demand for it. In order to produce 1 Kg of Vermicompost, it Costs around Rs. 5 to Rs.7. You can Sell Kg of Vermicompost for about Rs.10 to Rs.13. In the last post, you have got all the information regarding Pros and Cons of Vermicompost. In this article, we will let you know all the information regarding the preparation of Vermicompost.

Vermicompost Guide

Vermiculture refers to the process of worm culture or artificial rearing of worms for the benefit of humans. The output of vermiculture is called vermicompost and is nothing other than earthworm excreta and hummus. These are the major constituents.

It is the process in which earthworms eat cow dung, FYM, and other wastages and the excreta is known as vermicompost. Products like municipality wastes, household garbage, and industrial wastes can process in a similar method. Earthworms are essential for maintaining the soil health good environment by just converting garbage into useful manure. The method of earthworm replication and wastage conversion by earthworms are very simple, that farmers can do it by themselves.

Benefits Of Vermiculture Composting To Soil

It improves water holding capacity, soil texture, soil structure and also increases the aeration. It helps plants to grow harder and have a deep root system.it increases disease resistance and drought tolerance. To produce the topsoil worms are necessary. Earthworms help the environment by converting the yard and food wastages into nutrient-rich organic matter by decomposing them. The final products in this system are vermicompost, worm poop or worm casting.

Role Of Worms

vermicompost supplies a marvelous source of nutrients to the soil and tremendously increase the soil fertility and structure. It adds nutrients to the soil which were drawn out by fruits and vegetables when the harvesting is done.

 

Additional Benefits Of Vermiculture

Other than composting it completes its own natural way of recycling loop. Being born, living, dying and again reborn. It promotes the soil fertility and a deeper root system and also checks the soil erosion. It does not contain any synthetic or artificial harmful chemicals. It forms from organic wastes it is eco-friendly and natural fertilizer too. It increases the soil water retention capacity due to its high organic matter content. It also promotes nutrient absorption and better root growth.

Where to Keep Worms

The best types of worms are red worms or (Eisenia fetida) for eating food waste. These worms will stay in top layers because these are surface worms. For every three months, the worms should be harvest and separate from castings. Even they are easy to grow but they require care for food, moisture and dark place to live.

Safety Measures in Vermicompost Guide

protect the worms against natural predators like birds, lizards.frogs and other pests. Provide water to the pit sufficiently to maintain moisture level. The casting should be far from sunlight. This is all about Vermicompost Guide. We hope that this Vermicompost Guide is helpful to you.

The Process of Vermicompost Preparation

What is Vermiculture: Let us know about Vermiculture before knowing the Preparation of Vermicompost. Vermiculture is nothing but Raising of Earthworms in a control condition. Vermiculture is a part of Vermicompost. It is one of the major Step in vermicompost preparation.

• Aware of initial investment before you to Start large Scale Commercial Vermicompost Production. Also, beware of Cost that involves in Cost and Expenses in Production. VermiBed preparation, construction, and Cost of equipment is an initial and one-time investment. In order to Start Vermicompost of 1 ton, the initial Cost is Rs.8,000 to Rs.10,000. However, it may vary from region to region.
• Only production Cost is necessary from the Second year. However, transportation Costs and operation Costs are Constant.
• Build up Shallow layers and spread the agricultural wastes of the current and previous Crop along with the Cow Dung in it. Maintain optimum temperature in the pit. Avoid fluctuations in the temperature as it leads to the death of the Earthworms.
• Maintain a temperature of 28ºC to 30ºC. these temperatures help in faster decomposition of the Biomaterial. Construct a brick line beds at height of 0.25 to 0.5 meters and width 1 to 1.5 meters. Construct it inside the Shed.
• But for Commercial vermicompost preparation, Prepare the Vermi Bed at a height of 0.6 m, width 1.5m, and 15 m length. spread the Biowaste equally over the bed. However, construct the bed according to the necessary. But you cannot increase the height and width of the Bed as it leads to the operations and conversion rate of the compost.
• Place the biowaste in layers so that the Earthworms are allowed to enter in between the layers. For a Cubic meter of bed, spread or introduce 350 to 380 Earthworms. Maintain RH @45% to 50% and temperature range of  22ºC to 30ºC. Sprinkle the water over the beds so that the temperature and Relative Humidity (RH) is effectively maintained.

Role of Earthworms in Commercial Vermicompost Preparation

Earthworms are long and slender in size. They are slender in shape with a number of grooves. There exist 3000 to 3500 Earthworm Species. They are cosmopolitan in distribution. The unique character of Earthworms is that they adapt to various types of environmental conditions. In the Commercial vermicompost Production, Epigeics are the Surface feeders which play the major role. It includes Eisenia foetida and Eudrilus euginae. They are the exotic species of Earthworms. Indigenous earthworm is Perionyx excavatus that is most commonly used in Commercial Vermicomposting.

There are also Epianeic feeds. They feed on leaves litter and the upper layers of the soil. Lampito mauritii is the indigenous Earthworm feeder of this type. It is very active in the Insitu Commercial Vermicomposting. In a period of 6 to 7 weeks, Earthworms reach the reproductive stage and lay an egg capsule. Each Egg capsule consists of Seven Embryos. 3 to 7 Earthworms emerges from those Eggs. Therefore Multiplication of Earthworms depends on the Egg laying capacity of the Earthworm species. On an average, the life cycle of an Earthworm is about 2 years.

Site Selection for Commercial Vermicomposting

Site Selection plays a major and important role in Vermicomposting procedure. Better select rural areas as such environment are highly favourable for the Earthworms. However, you can also Start Commercial Vermicomposting in Suburban and Urban areas having in situ environmental conditions. Make sure for Large Scale Vermicomposting near to a Dairy Farm. It makes the availability of the Cattle Dung Easy and Cheap for Stating Commercial Vermicompost Production.

Commercial Production Components In Vermicomposting Procedure

Cow Dung is the main component that involves in Commercial Vermicomposting. For a large Scale Commercial Vermicomposting, establish the Shed near to a Dairy Farm as it is easy to get the Coe Dung. however, there exist some mandatory components that involve and play a major role in Vermicompost Production. Let us discuss the below major Components of Vermicomposting.

Shed: They are necessary in order to protect the VermiBeds. It is easy to make or construct the Shed in Vermicompost Production. You can use either bamboo, wooden or RCC to Construct the Vermicomposting Production Shed.

VermiBeds: Provide or Construct the drainage facilities while constructing the VermiBed. Construct the VermiBed with a height of about 0.3 to 0.6 m.Maintain uniform height while constructing. Beware of not constructing a height more than 1.5 m height. Less height allows the easy supply of watering.

Land Selection: On an average, 0.5 Acre land is enough to construct a Vermicompost Production House. However, you can also construct two houses in an Acre land. In addition, make sure of adequate and surplus water supply or else construct a bore well.

Farm Building: Construct a room to keep and secure equipment and other implements that we use regularly in the Vermicomposting Procedure.

Seed Stock in Commercial Vermicomposting: Earthworms are the ultimate seeds in Vermicompost Production. Supply or Add Earthworms at a rate of 1 Kg per Cubic Metre. Within 2 to 3 cycles, you can build the Vermicompost House.

Fencing: Fencingplaysy an important role as it avoids the entry of various mammals and strangers into the Vermicompost House.

Water Management in Vermicompost Procedure: Maintain 50% to 60% of humidity or moisture content in the VermiBeds. Supply clean and adequate water to the VermiBeds. This is an important component of the total Vermicompost production.

Transportation: It is done after harvesting of the VermiCompost. Rent or lease minitrucks or trolleys to supply the Vermicompost to the Clients or Customers or Farmers. Make sure of constructing the Vermicompost house nearer to the Farms.

Ideal Conditions in Vermicomposting

• Maintain the pH between 6.5 and 7.5 an Rh @ 60% to 70%.
• Maintain proper aeration facilities within the Shed.
• 19 to 25 C temperatures are suitable for effective Vermicomposting.

Pests and Diseases in Commercial Vermicompost Productions

There are no any particular diseases that infest Earthworms. however, there exist some pests like Ants, Termites, Centipedes, rats, Pigs and Predator Birds. In order to prevent or control such pests, spray the site of Vermicompost Production House with 5% Neem base Insecticides prior to heap filling.

Harvesting Steps of VermiCompost

• Before Harvesting make sure of NOT supplying water to the VermiBeds.
• Heap the compost into divisions and keep them in a container or buckets.
• Disturb the outer layer manually at regular intervals.
• Sieve the total compost material on to a 2mm Sieve.
• The material then passed into the 2mm sieve is the end product i.e., VermiCompost.
• However, you can also go for ReComposting on the same VermiBed.
• In addition, one can also go for intsant in-situ Vermicomposting by applying the VermiCompost of 5 tonnes per Ha with Cow Dung @3 mm thickness. Irrigate the Vermibeds at the rate of 2 weeks intervals.