COMPOSTING, BIOFERTILIZERS,

BIOPESTICIDES AND
BIOLOGICAL CONTROL

Submitted by
Sarin Jose
Roll no:13
1 Msc Botany
 COMPOSTING
• Enriched biomass is known as compost.
• Compostng is of two types; Aerobic composting and Anerobic composting.
• Aerobic composting uses oxygen and bacteria and replicates natural
decomposition.
• It can be used with all types of organic wastes and is also suitable for waste
that is high in Nitrogen.
• It works quickly but requires a high amount of maintenance, as the moisture
and temperature need to be monitored closely.
• The end product of aerobic decomposition are water, ammonia, CO2 etc.
• Thus by action of bacteria organic wastes are converted into useful inorgnic
substances which can be used by plants again.
• Anerobic composting is the decomposition of organic material by anerobic
bacteria in the absence of oxygen normally inside a sealed tank or digestor.
Preparation of compost and its
maintenance
• Area selected for making a compost pit should be free from water
logging
• Materials used for composting should also be in the right proportion
and stage.
• Woody and bigger pieces takes a longer time to decompose and it
limits the activity of micro organisms.
• If pieces are big, the heat is lost because of too much interspace
• Very small peces such as saw dust is also not desirable.
• Waste materials are added upto 3” from the bottom of the pit.
• C:N ratio should be around 30:1.
• 50 to 60 % of moisture would become necessary.
• Temperature may vary anywhere between 35 to 550c.
• Plenty of oxygen is needed to keep microbes active and therefore aeration is
necessary.
• The fermenting mixture soon becomes acidic in reaction to the production of
humus.
• Acidity must be neutralized to make the microorganisms work at the required
speed.
• Base is therefore necessary. Calcium or Potassium carbonates in the form of
powdered chalk or limestone, provide a pH value ranging from 7.0 to 8.0 for the
microorganisms to break the cellulose.
• Manure pit should not be too small or too big or too deep.
• Organic matter must be spread layer by layer with 10 to 20% animal excreta, 10
to 20% of green matter and the rest is farm waste or house hold waste, provides
ideal conditions for the decomposition.
• Compost prepared may be ready in three to four months.
 VERMICOMPOST
• Type of composting I which certain species of earth worms (Eudrilus eugeniae
and Eisenia foetida) are used.
• They feeds the organic waste materials and pass it through their digestive
system and gives out in a granular form (worm cast) which is known as
vermicompost.
• Normally a vermipit is a meter wide, 30 to 40 cm high and any convenient
length.
• Biomass with some amount of dung, decomposed for three to four weeks,
should be spread to a thickness of 3 cm before allowing the worms in the pit.
• In about 15 to 20 days, 70 to 80% of the waste is consumed and converted
into worm cast.
• To separate the vermicompost , the entire compost along with the worms
is removed and heaped on a surface.
• After 24 hrs, the worms gather at the bottom like a ball which can be
seperated.
• Compost is sieved in a 3mm mesh so that the undigested material, cocoon
and the worms are seperated and transferred in to the pit as before, into
the fresh decomposed bed.
APPLICATIONS
• Worm castings contain higher percentage of both macro and micro
nutrients than any other compost.
• Rich in NPK which are in readily available form
• Enhamce splant growth, suppress disease in plants, increases porosity and
microbial activity in the soil and improves water retension and aeration.
• Reduce the need for the chemical fertilizers and decreasing the
amount of waste going to the land fills.
• Vermiwash is another biofertilizer collected after the passage of the
water through the columns of worms.
• It is diluted and used as foliar spray to different crops.
 BIOFERTILIZERS
• Biologically active products or microbial inoculants of bacteria, algae
and fungi which help in making atmospheric nitrogen and phosphorus
in the soil available to the plants
• When dead they add fertility to the soil substantially.
• Among the nitrogen fixing microorganisms, Rhizobium, Azotobacter,
Azospirillum, Azolla and blue green algae are important.
• The phosphate solubilizers are Bacillus, Pseudomonas, Aspergillus and
Penicillium etc.
• Mycorrhizae help to bridge soil with plant root for transporting
phosphorus to plants from the soil.
 Rhizobium
• Nodule forming bacteria in the roots of leguminous plants
• These bacteria are multiplied in the laboratory and incorporated in to the soil through
seed treatments.
• After germination, the Rhizobia gets in to the roots and fix atmospheric nitrogen and
stores it in the galls formed on the roots
• The Rhizobium losses its efficiency if it is exposed to the sun.
• While treating seeds with Rhizobia, care should be taken to see that a minimum
quality of the inoculum sticks to the seed.
• 25g of jaggery or sugar is dissolved in half a litre of water, boiled for 15 min ad cooled
and in to this 150g of Rhizobium culture is mixed to form a thin paste.
• Culture is smeared carefully to cover all the seeds and dried in a shade on a
cloth .Sowing is done only after making sure that the culture has adhered sufficiently
to the seeds.
 Azotobacter
• Gram negative, free living and plant growth promoting rhizobacteria,
which exist in all types of soil.
• It also secretes growth promoting substances such as gibberellins,
cytokinins and vitamins.
• This biofertilizers is used in India for cereals, millets, sugarcane,
vegetables, fruit crops etc
• Seed treatment is similar to Rhizobium application. It can also be applied
to the seedlings.
• The required quantity of Azotobacter is made in to a solution and the
seedlings are dipped for the 10 to 15 min before transplanting.
• It can be applied directly to the soil before planting.