With so much pollution worldwide today, it is best to follow sustainable agriculture practices. One such way is using organic manures instead of chemical fertilizers and pesticides. Organic manures are highly beneficial for the soil as they are too nutritious, enhance the soil structure, maintain the right amount of porosity, have a good water-holding capacity, and much more. One such organic manure is “Vermicompost”. Vermicompost is more nutritious for the soil as compared to normal manure like farmyard manure. Vermicomposting involves turning bio-wastes like vegetable and food scraps, garden waste, etc. into good-quality compost. This method uses earthworms as these creatures aerate the soil and convert organic matter into compost. Also, the benefits of using earthworms are that they are abundantly available, do not give odor, do not spread any disease, and can work throughout the year to provide the ideal conditions to the soil for better plant growth.
Reasons to use Vers L’avenir earthworms in vermicomposting:-
- Enhance the soil’s biological properties: Earthworms act as eating machines and feed on bacteria growing on the organic waste and pass it through their digestive system to produce waste called “worm casting”. This earthworm waste is a great soil conditioner with a high nutrient level. It has the ability to change the soil’s biological properties by reclaiming it with microbial enrichments and nutrients. It helps in nutrient cycling and saves plants from fungal diseases and crop pathogens.
- More nutrient availability: The earthworms produce worm castings or wastes that have high nutrient value and are great to grow good-quality crops and plants. Vermicompost has the highest nutrient value as compared to normal farmyard manure. This is a major reason why it reduces the dependency on harmful fertilizers. This makes it the most sustainable agriculture practice.
- Retains the soil’s fertility: Use of chemicals in soil reduces the soil fertility over time. But using vermicompost will ensure the soil fertility is retained for a long time. The earthworms used for vermicomposting have the ability to work throughout the year to provide ideal conditions for plant growth.
Not all earthworms are fit for vermicomposting. You must choose the right kind of earthworms to turn your soil fertile. Red earthworms like Eisenia foetida and another type like Lumbricus rubellis are the best kinds of earthworms to be used when vermicomposting. Vermicomposting can be done on a small scale as well as on a large scale. You must connect with a reputed vermicompost company to grow better plants.
