TURNING TO VERMICULTURE FOR ORGANIC SUSTAINABLE FOOD PRODUCTION

Vermiculture is the cultivation of earthworms especially for use in composting and production of organic fertilizer. The best worms to use in vermiculture are red wigglers or Eisenia foetida . Kenya imports 22,000 tons of synthetic fertilizer annually to boost food production in the region.

Earthworms are known to consume food equivalent to their body weight every day. Composted manure and other substrates are digested by the earthworms resulting in a dark, rich, earthly smelling fertilizer and soil amendment that is full both of primary and micronutrients readily available to plants. Worm casting or worm poop also improves the physical property of the soil by improving tilt, ferocity and moisture holding capacity of the soil.

Worm castings consists of: highly concentrated, nutrient-packed fertilizer

Benefits of Vermicomposting:

• Improves the physical structure of the soil
• Enriches soil with micro-organisms
• Microbial activity in worm castings is 10 to 20 times higher than in the soil and organic matter that the worm ingests
• Improves water holding capacity
• Enhances germination, plant growth, and crop yield
• Improves root growth and structure