Advantages of vermicompost:

1. Vermicompost is rich in all essential plant nutrients.
2. Provides excellent effect on overall plant growth, encourages the growth of new shoots / leaves and improves the quality and shelf life of the produce.
3. Vermicompost is free flowing, easy to apply, handle and store and does not have bad odour.
4. It improves soil structure, texture, aeration, and water holding capacity and prevents soil erosion.
5. Vermicompost is rich in beneficial micro flora such as a fixers, P- solubilizers, cellulose decomposing micro-flora etc in addition to improve soil environment.
6. Vermicompost contains earthworm cocoons and increases the population and activity of earthworm in the soil.
7. It neutralizes the soil protection.
8. It prevents nutrient losses and increases the use efficiency of chemical fertilizers.
9. Vermicompost is free from pathogens, toxic elements, weed seeds etc.
10. Vermicompost minimizes the incidence of pest and diseases.
11. It enhances the decomposition of organic matter in soil.
12. It contains valuable vitamins, enzymes and hormones like auxins, gibberellins etc.

Nutrient content of vermicompost
Nitrogen- 1.5 – 2.5 %
Phosphorus- 0.9 – 1.7 %
Potash- 1.5 – 2.4 %
Calcium- 0.5 – 1.0 %
Magnesium- 0.2 – 0.3 %
Sulphur- 0.4 - 0.5 %

And other micronutrients with vitamins, enzymes and hormones.

Materials for preparation of Vermicompost:
Any types of biodegradable wastes-

1. Crop residues
2. Weed biomass
3. Vegetable waste
4. Leaf litter
5. Hotel refuse
6. Waste from agro-industries
7. Biodegradable portion of urban and rural wastes.

Methods of preparation

1. The vermicompost can be prepared in concrete tank. The size of the tank should be 10 ft. length or more depending upon the availability of land and raw materials, breadth 3- 5ft and height 3 ft. Suitable plastic tube / basin structure may also be needed. The floor of the tank should be connected with stones and pieces of bricks.
2. The available bio-wastes are to be collected and are to be heaped under sun about 7-10 days and be chopped if necessary.
3. Sprinkling of cow dung slurry to the heap may be done.
4. A thin layer of half decomposed cow dung (1-2 inches) is to be placed at the bottom.
5. Place the chopped weed biomass and partially decomposed cow dung layer wise. (10-20 cm) in the tank / pot up to the depth of 2 ½ ft. The bio waste and cow dung ratio should be 60: 40 on dry wt. Basis.
6. Release about 2-3 kg earthworms per ton of biomass or 100 nos. earthworms per one sq. ft. area.
   Efficient species:
   Eisenia foetida
   Amyanthes diffrigens
   Eudrillus engineac
7. Place wire net / bamboo net over the tank to protect earthworm from birds.
8. Sprinkling of water should be done to maintain 70-80 % moisture content.
9. Provision of a shed over the compost is essential to prevent entry of rainwater and direct sunshine.
10. Sprinkling of water should be stopped when 90 % bio-wastes are decomposed. Maturity could be judged visually by observing the formation of granular structure of the compost at the surface of the tank.
11. Harvest the vermicompost by scrapping layer wise from the top of the tank and heap under shed. This will help in separation of earthworms from the compost. Sieving may also be done to separate the earthworms and cocoons.

Vermi wash- a plant growth regulator
Vermi wash is a liquid plant growth regulator, which contains high amount of enzymes, vitamins and hormones like auxins, gibberellins etc along with macro and micronutrients used as foliar spray.

Methods of preparation

1. Take one big bucket and one mug.
2. Set up one stop cork on the lower most part of the bucket.
3. Put a layer of broken bricks, pieces of stones having thickness of 10-15 cm in the bucket.
4. Over this layer put another layer of sand having thickness of 10-15 cm.
5. Then put a layer of partially decomposed cow dung having 30-45 cm thickness over it.
6. Then put another layer of soil having 2-3 thicknesses.
7. Now open the stopcock of the bucket and when the materials taken in the bucket.
8. Then put 100-200 nos. of earthworms in the bucket.
9. After that, a layer of paddy straw having 6 cm thickness is given.
10. Now open the stopcock of the bucket and spray water regularly for a period of 7- 8 days.
11. After 10 days the liquid vermin wash will be produced in the bucket.
12. Hang one pot with a bottom hole over the bucket in such a way so that water falls drop by drop.
13. Every day 4-5 liters of water is to be poured in the hanging pot.
14. Keep another pot under stop cork to collect the vermin wash. Every day 3-4 liters vermin wash can be collected.

How To Apply Vermi Wash
Bio fertilizers are microbial inoculants consisting of living cells of micro-organism like bacteria, algae and fungi alone or combination which may help in increasing crop productivity by way of helping in the biological nitrogen fixation, solubilization of insoluble phosphorus fertilizer materials, stimulating growth or in decomposition of plant residues.

Advantages of using Bio-fertilizer

• Can replace 20 to 50 % of chemical fertilizer ‘N’ and 15 – 25 % of phosphatic fertilizers.
• Bio-fertilizers being cheap, provide highly cost effective supplement of chemical fertilizers.
• Increase farm productivity, generally 10-40 % in grain yield and 15 – 30 % in vegetable growth.
• Activates soil biologically thereby increasing natural fertility of soil, which causes sustainable agriculture.
• Help in stimulating plant growth in general and roots in particular as they serve various growth promoting hormones like auxin, gibberellins etc and vitamins. They help in better nutrient uptake and increase tolerance towards drought and moisture stress.
• Secrete some fungi static and antibiotic like substances, which reduce the incidence of various soil borne diseases. It has got antagonistic behaviour against pathogens.
• They help to proliferate and survival of other beneficial microorganisms in soil.
• Help in decomposing plant residues in soil, thereby improving C/N ratio, improving soil texture and structure. Also help in increasing water-holding capacity.
• In composting processes improve the quality and nutrient value of the compost.
• Being environment friendly and cost effective do not cause any harmful effect on soil and environment. On the contrary they help in degradation of other harmful chemicals such as weedicides and pesticides. Thereby they help in increasing the biodegradation capacity of the soil.

Types of Bio-fertilizers
For Nitrogen
a)Rhizobium bio-fertilizer to be used only in legume crops. Rhizobium in different for different legume crops.
b) Azatobacter / Azospirillum bio-fertilizer for all non-legume crops. Azotobactum is for upland crop and Azospirillum is for low land crop.

For Phosphorus
Phosphatika for all the crops and to be used along with Rhizobium / Azotobacter a Azospirillum bio- fertilizer.

Method of application

There are three methods of application

1. As seed treatment for direct seeded crop.
2. As seedling root dip Treatment for transplanted crops.
3. As soil treatment for potato, sugarcane crop where seed treatment and seedling.