Vermicomposting; Requirements, Procedure and Advantages
The Environment Department of Kathmandu Metropolitan city says,
more than 60 % of the total municipal solid waste is organic degradable waste.
Segregation of waste at source is the most important step for the solving solid
waste problem of Capital. How can we manage organic waste in home? The answer
is Vermicomposting.
Vermicomposting is the method of making compost which
involves joint action of earthworm and microorganism.
The importance of vermicomposting can be summarized as -
Management of organic waste
Simple technology
Eco-friendly
Waste reduction at the source
And the advantages at glance are-
Income generation
High quality manure production
Small place
Odorless, if manage properly
All the earthworms may not be
suitable for compost making. Some of the effective compost making worms are-
Eisenia foetida
Eudrillus eugineal
Lumbricus rubellus
Perionyx excavatus
Perionyx fovatus
Lampito mauritti
There are some characteristics of the worms which make this
species suitable for composting. The characteristics of composting making worms
are-
Fast multiplying nature
Simple and quick digestive system
Silent nature
Prefer garbage
The detail procedure of the vermicomposting can be
summarized as follows-
1. Selection
of container-
Following can be used as the container for
vermicomposting-
v
Wooden box
v
Plastic bucket/box
v
Bamboo container (Tokari)
v
Cement ring
v
Tyre
v
Ceramic container
2. Making
outlet-
3. Preparation
& Placement of beds
Materials that can be used for bedding are-
2. Saw
dust
3. Paper
4. Coconut
coir
5. Dry
leaves
6. Hay
7. Clothes
waste
8. Jute
sacs
4. Spreading
of cow dung
5. Placement
of compost making worms
6. Covering
with organic waste
7. Covering
the container
Organic waste into compost.
It is very important to know how to separate worms after the
preparation of the compost. Following are the procedures for it-
• Removal of Surface foods from the top
• Take prepared vermicompost/ turn the container
upside down
• Arrange the contents (vermicompost) in a cone
shape
• Leave for 10 minutes
- Let the worms gather at the bottom
- Collect the vermicompost from the top
- Transfer the worms in a new container
The product can be sold at market-
There are few precautions for effective and sustainable
vermicomposting. Some of them are-
ü Temperature
control/Food Quantity
ü Water
Quantity
ü Light
Intensity
ü pH
maintenance
ü Change
into new beds
ü Control
from enemies of worms
The other products of vermin technologies are vermin wash
which is very fruitful in rooftop/indoor gardening.
