Vermicomposting of Food Waste Using Exotic Species of Earthworms “Eudriluseugeniae” at Mangalagangonthri

Abstract

A study has been conducted to assess the role of vermicomposting and carrying out plant nutrients analysis of composts delivered from food waste at Mangalagangothri campus, Dakshina Kannada District, Karnataka-India. Wastes were collected and subjected to pit- and vermi-composting using an exotic species of earthworm (Eudriluseugeniae). The composts were harvested and analyzed for macro-nutrients (N, P, K, Mg, Ca, S) by employing the standard methods. The Bioassay was conducted using PisumsativumL. plant and the data wereanalyzed statistically using SPSS.  20.Results revealed that there was highly reduction in the volume of the wastes equivalent to 30% and 20% for vermi- and pit-composting respectively. The macro-nutrients analysis showed that vermicompost had more nutrientsthan pit-compost. Based on bioassay test, the  vermicompost had the potential for improving plant growth and yield compared to pit-compost and garden soil (control). Thus, vermicompost was found to be cost-effective methods, helps in reducing food waste disposals and supplied soil with a lot of macro-nutrients compared to that of the pit-compost based on results of bioassay and nutritional parameters.

Keywords:Bioassay; Eudriluseugeniae; Food waste, Pisumsativum, Vermicompost.