Abstract

VERMICOMPOSITING

*Dr. Shipra Sinha, Khileswar Prasad Paikara, Gajendera Yadav, Priyanka Das and Prerana Shukla

ABSTRACT

Earthworms are terrestrial invertebrates belonging to the Order Oligochaeta, Class Chaetopoda, Phylum Annelida, which have originated about 600 million years ago, during the Pre-Cambrian Era. About 2,350 years ago Aristotle has said, “Earthworms are intestines of the Earth”. Earthworms occur in diverse habitat, exhibiting effective activity, by bringing about physical and chemical changes in the soil leading to improvement in soil fertility. An approach towards good soil management, with an emphasis on the role of soil dwellers like earthworms, in soil fertility, is very important in maintaining balance in an ecosystem (Shuster et al., 2000). Vermiculture is basically the science of breeding and raising earthworms. It defines the thrilling potential for waste reduction, fertilizer production, as well as an assortment of possible uses for the future (Pinoys, 2010). Vermiculture yields vermicompost as a by-product which helps in soil fertility.

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