ICAR-DPR and ICAR-CRIDA developed Poultry litter compost and vermicompost by mixing paddy straw -"Wealth out of Waste"
Intensive poultry production results in generation of large quantity of poultry litter. If the litter is disposed off in the field without any treatment, it may cause environmental pollution. This problem can be solved by utilizing the litter for productive purposes. The poultry litter generated, could be successfully converted into compost by mixing it with paddy straw in proper ratio of carbon to nitrogen (C/N ratio) content present in the litter as well as in paddy straw. Finally, vermicompost was developed from the compost by introducing earthworms into the pile of compost. Dr. R. N. Chatterjee, Director DPR and his team in collaboration with ICAR-CRIDA could convert poultry litter waste to wealth.
i) Vermicompost preparation with C/N ratio of 35:1
The compost was prepared having C/N ratio of 35:1 by mixing poultry litter with paddy straw having Relative Humidity 45%, pH 5.5 and Temperature 320C. 6 Kg of litter was mixed with 40 Kg of paddy straw. The humidity was maintained at around 45%. The temperature was changing due to the growth of the microbes inside the pile. The compost was ready on 47th day. Once the compost was ready, earthworms were introduced into the pile of compost for converting it into vermicompost. The final product (vermicompost) was ready on 45th day after introduction of earthworms. The Relative Humidity was 50%, pH was 5.5 and Temperature was 240C on 45th day.
ii) Vermicompost preparation with C/N ratio of 30:1
The compost was prepared having C/N ratio of 30:1 by mixing litter with paddy straw as supplement having Relative Humidity 45%, pH 5.5 and Temperature 320C. 8.7 Kg of litter was mixed with 40 Kg of paddy straw. The compost was ready on 47th day. Once the compost was ready, earthworms were introduced into the pile of compost for converting it into vermicompost. The final product (vermicompost) was ready on 45th day after introduction of earthworms. The Relative Humidity was 50%, pH was 5.5 and Temperature of the pile was 250C on the final day.
iii) Vermicompost preparation with C/N ratio of 25:1
The compost was prepared having C/N ratio of 25:1 by mixing litter with paddy straw as supplement having Relative Humidity 45%, pH 5.0 and Temperature 310C. 14.3 Kg of litter was mixed with 40 Kg of paddy straw. The compost was ready on 47th day. After the compost was ready, earthworms were introduced into the pile for converting it into vermicompost. The final product (vermicompost) was ready on 45th day after introduction of earthworms. The Relative Humidity was 50%, pH was 5.5 and Temperature was 250C on the final day of vermicompost formation.
