Vermicompost, the story of organic gold: A review

Abstract

Earthworm has caught imagination of philosophers like Pascal and Thoreau. Yet its role in the nutrition of agricultural fields has attracted attention of researchers worldwide only in recent decades. Waste management is considered as an integral part of a sustainable society, thereby necessitating diversion of biodegradable fractions of the societal waste from landfill into alternative management processes such as vermicomposting. Earthworms excreta (vermicast) is a nutritive organic fertilizer rich in humus, NPK, micronutrients, beneficial soil microbes; nitrogen-fixing, phosphate solubilizing bacteria, actinomycets and growth hormones auxins, gibberlins & cytokinins. Both vermicompost & its body liquid (vermiwash) are proven as both growth promoters & protectors for crop plants. We discuss about the worms composting technology, its importance, use and some salient results obtained in the globe so far in this review update of vermicompost research

Treatment technologies for urban solid biowaste to create value products: a review with focus on low- and middle-income settings

“…The grinding effect of the gut leads to the formation of a granules, a typical feature of vermicompost. Nitrogen content of vermicompost is typically 1-2% higher than that of compost and the nutrients are reported to be more easily available to the plants (Adhikary 2012). Furthermore, enzymes and microorganisms from the gut show very beneficial properties for soil and plants, also suppressing diseases.…”

“…Another product from vermicomposting are the earthworms themselves which are rich in protein (65%) with all essential amino acids and they can be used for animal feed (Lalander et al 2015). They are considered a good pro-biotic feed or used as additives for fish or poultry feed (Adhikary 2012). Pulverized and ingested earthworms have also been studied with regard to their medicinal properties and were found to be effective in treating thrombotic diseases (Christy et al 2015) and beneficial on the wound healing process (Goodarzi et al 2016).…”

Vermicompost and vermiwash as supplement to improve seedling, plant growth and yield in Linum usitassimum L. for organic agriculture

“…In cultivation of organically grown crops, chemical usage is excluded at all stages so organic agriculture broadly provides the dual benefit of soil quality improvement and chemical free organic foods (Gomiero et al 2008). Currently many studies are being done to establish vermicompost as one of the preferred organic substitute to chemical fertilizers Adhikary 2012). During vermicomposting, earthworms carry out the non thermophilic transformation of organic waste with the accelerated microbial decomposition and humification (Atiyeh et al 2001).…”

Time Efficient Co-composting of Water Hyacinth and Industrial Wastes by Microbial Degradation and Subsequent Vermicomposting

“…The process is faster than composting; because the material passes through the earthworm gut, a significant but not fully understood transformation takes place, whereby the resulting earthworm castings (worm manure) are rich in microbial activity and plant growth regulators, and fortified with pest repellence attributes as well. In short, earthworms through a type of biological alchemy are capable of transforming garbage into "gold" [23].…”