Organic Nutrient Resources and its biofortification

This lecture deals about various source of organic manure and its nutrient content

1. Lecture 7-Organic Nutrient Resources and its biofortification

2. Farmyard manure refers to the decomposed mixture of dung and urine of farm animals along with their litter and left over material from roughages or fodder fed to the cattle. Application of FYM improves physical, chemical and biological condition of the soils. FYM can supply all the nutrients required by the plant, however with low quantity. Farm Yard Manure (FYM)

3. The composition of FYM is shown below: Nutritional status of FYM (%): Nutrient Content(%)   Nitrogen 0.5 Phosphorus 0.25 Potassium 0.4 Sodium 0.08 Sulphur 0.02 Zinc 0.004 Copper 0.0003 Manganese 0.007 Iron 0.45 Farm Yard Manure (FYM)

4. Methods of preparation of FYM a) Pit Method : This method is commercially adopted by farmers usually pits of 8m x 2m x 1m dimensions are prepared, which are filled in layers by the mixture of dung, urine and litter up to about 50 cm above ground level. The top is nicely filled, pits is covered by dry soil and then plastered by mud paste. The manure became ready after about 150 to 180 days of plastering. Usually 10-12 tonnes of FYM obtained/pit or every animal gives out about 5 to 6 tonnes of FYM /year. Farm Yard Manure (FYM)

5. Trench Method : This method is also called as Dr.C.N.Acharya method. In this method trenches of 6 to 8 m length, 1.5 to 2 m width, and 1 to 1.25 m depth are prepared. Mixture of dung and urine soaked litter is deposited in layers in these trenches until it becomes 50 cm above the ground layer. Now it is covered with 50 cm deep soil or wood ash- soil layer and then plastered by mud paste. Manure becomes ready for use after about 150 – 160 days of plastering. The farmyard manure should be reinforced by addition of super phosphate @ 30-40 kg per trench before application to the lands.   Farm Yard Manure (FYM)

6.   Heap Method : Most commonly used by the farmers. Every day sweepings, cow dung and litter are collected and heaped at any fixed place. After about 6 to 9 months, the rotten manure is used. According to an estimate, about 30 to 35% N 2 , 20 to 25% P 2 O 5 & 4-6% potassium are lost during preparation of manure due to leaching, washing and volatilization. Farm Yard Manure (FYM)

7. Methods of FYM Application :   FYM should be uniformly spread over soil surface and mixed thoroughly. It should be applied 15-20 days before sowing or transplanting so that manure goes under ammonification and nitrification process. Application of undecomposed manure should not be applied. Soil should have sufficient moisture at the time of application so that proper microbial activity takes place. Usual rate of application ranges between 2-5 tonnes/ha for most of the crops. But it may show high as 50 to 100 tonnes/ha for vegetable, sugarcane etc. For best response it must be well powdered and it should be sieved, especially for use in nursery. Farm Yard Manure (FYM)

8. Beneficial Effects of FYM : FYM is rich in nutrients A small amount of N is directly available to the plants while a larger portion is made available as and when the FYM decomposes. When cow dung and urine are mixed, a balanced nutrition is made available to the plants. Application of FYM improves soil fertility. It has spectacular beneficial effect on physical, chemical & biological properties of soil. Farm Yard Manure (FYM)

9. Disadvantages:   Its decomposition releases harmful gases which pollutes atmosphere. Reduces availability of certain micronutrients Needs more cost/unit weight of nutrients during handling, storage and application as compared to fertilizer. Farm Yard Manure (FYM)

10. Losses during handling and storage of FYM: Losses during handling: FYM consists of two original components the solid or dung and liquid or urine . Approximately half of N and K 2 O is in the dung and the other half in urine. By contrast, nearly all of the P 2 O 5 (96%) is in the solid portion. To conserve N, P 2 O 5 and K 2 O, it is most essential that both the parts of cattle manure are properly handled and stored .

11. Loss of liquid portion or urine Under Indian conditions the floor of the cattle shed is usually un-cemented or Kachha. As such the urine passed by animals during night gets soaked into the Kachha floor. When the animals, particularly bullocks, are kept in the fields during the summer season , urine gets soaked into soil . But during remaining period cattle are kept in a covered shed and therefore the Kachha floor soaks the urine every day. Large quantities of nitrogen are thus lost through the formation of gaseous NH 3 . The following reactions take place:

12. ii) Loss of solid portion or dung It is often said that 2/3 of the manure is either utilized for making cakes or is lost during grazing , the remaining manure is applied to the soil after collecting in heaps . Firstly, the most serious loss of dung is through cakes for burning or for use as fuel Secondly, when milch animals go out for grazing, no efforts are made to collect the dung dropped by them, nor is this practicable, unless all milch animals are allowed to graze only in enclosed small size pastures.

13. (II) Loss during storage: Mostly, cattle dung and waste from fodder are collected daily in the morning by the cultivators and put in manure heaps in an open space outside the village . The manure remains exposed to the sun and rain . During such type of storage, nutrients are lost in the following ways: i) By leaching: Losses by leaching will vary with the intensity of rainfall and the slope of land on which manure is heaped. About half of portion of N and P 2 O 5 of FYM and nearly 90% of K are water soluble. These water soluble nutrients are liable to get washed off by rain water.

14. Loss of NH 3 increases with the increase in the concentration of ammonium carbonate increase in the temperature and air movement ii)By Volatilization: During storage considerable amount of NH 3 is produced in the manure heap from the decomposition of urea and other nitrogenous compounds of the urine and the much slower decomposition of the nitrogenous organic compounds of the dung. As the rotting proceeds, more and more quantity of ammonia is formed. This NH 3 combines with carbonic acid to form ammonium carbonate and bicarbonate. These ammonium compounds are unstable and gaseous NH 3 may be liberated as indicated below :

15. Improved Methods of Handling FYM : It is practically impossible to check completely the losses of plant nutrients and organic matter during handing and storage of FYM. However, improved methods could be adopted to reduce such losses considerably . Among these methods are described here under: Trench method of preparing FYM Use of gobar gas-compost plant Proper field manageme nt of FYM Use of chemical preservatives

16. Compost is organic matter that has been decomposed and recycled as a fertilizer and soil amendment. In nature , nothing is considered as a waste--- everything is food for something else . Com p o st The controlled decomposition materials biological of organic

17. Parameters in Composting Carbon: nitrogen ratio Ideal moisture pH Temperature Oxygen availability 30:1 50 – 60% 6 – 8 55 – 75 C (thermophile range) 5 -15%

18. Nutrient Balance in Composting Optimum C/N ratio –is 30:1to 50:1 It is an important factor for the bacterial activity to continue, the carbon should be 30 to 50 times more than the nitrogen. C/N higher than optimum: nitrogen will be used up and carbon leftover, thereby leaving the digestion of organic matter incomplete.

19. C/N lower than optimum means when there is too much of nitrogen then the carbon will soon get exhausted and fermentation stops leaving nitrogen in the digestor which will combine with hydrogen to form amonia. This can kill or inhibit the growth of bacteria, especially the methane producers. Thus the anaerobic digestion will hence require an optimum C/N ratio of about 30-50 :1 Sources of N & P - Organic wastes, manures, sludges, etc. Sources of C – wood wastes, woodchips, sawdust

20. Methods of Preparation of Compost Indore Method This method was developed by A. Howard and Y. D. Wad at the Institute of Plant industry, Indore, India NADEP Method Demonstration of this method at large scale was initiated at J. N. Krishi Vidyalaya, Indore. Bangalore Method This method was worked out by L. N. Acharya at Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore. Coimbatore method Introduced by manickam 1967

21. Indore method Size of the pit Breadth Depth Length 6-8 feet 2-3 feet ( not more than 3 feet) 10 feet or more as per requirement Com p o st

22. Filling the composting pits First of all, spread dry wastes with cattle dung and soil in ratio of 4:2:1 up to 2 inch layer in Composting pit. Afterwards, sprinkle the water over the materials Pit is filled with above materials up to 1 foot above the ground level One more layer of bedding material with wood ash and urinated mud should be added. Indore method Raw material Mix plant residues,weeds, sugarcane leaves, grass, wood ashes, bran etc. Animal dung, Wood ashes, Water and Urine soaked mud

23. Turning The material is turned three times for proper aeration and moisture. First turning : 10-15 days after filling the pits. Second turning : 15 days after first turning. Third turning : After 2 month of second turning During the process of turning the readily biodegradable organics are consumed . The waste Is allowed to cure for another 2-8 weeks without turning. The entire composting process thus Takes 3-4 months time after which the compost become ready to use as manure or sale.

24. This method involves anaerobic decomposition and does not involve any turning to the waste and is hence cleaner than the Indore method. This method saves labour cost because there is no need of turning and regular sprinkling of water. The refuse and the night soil in this method are piled up in layers in an underground earthen trench (about 10mx1.5mx1.5m). This mass is covered at its top by a layer of earth of about 15cm depth and is finally left for decomposition. Bangalore method  After the initial aerobic composting (about eight to ten days), the material undergoes anaerobic decomposition at a very slow rate. It takes about six to eight months to obtain the finished product.

25. Within 2-3 days intensive biological action starts. Considerable heat generated in the process raising the temp. to about 75 C. The heat prevents the breeding of flies by destroying the larvae. After about 4-5 months (depending upon season) the refuse get fully stabilized and changes in to humus. This humus is removed from the trenches, sieved on 12.5mm sieve to remove stone, broken glass etc and then sold out in market as manure. The empty trenches can again be used for receiving further batches of refuse.

26. Method of Filling the Composting Pits Finally the heap is covered with 1 inch thick mud. After 8-9 months all material decomposes and compost becomes ready for the application. Spread the moist farm refuse at the bottom of the pit up to one inch. Then, spread two inch of cattle dung followed by 1 or 2 inch layer of soil This heap is made up to 1.5-2.0 feet above the ground level following above process. Bangalore method

27. Aerobic Anaerobic In the presence of oxygen In the absence of oxygen Energy is released / lost Energy is conserved End products are CO 2 , water & energy End products are organic acids & other compounds Faster Slower

28. Coimbatore Method Similar to Bangalore method. Composting is done in trenches. The waste materials are from farm refuse, dung slurry along with urine soaked earth. Some times SSP, RP are also used Th trenches filled up above ground level to a height of 1 – 1½ft A layer of waste is first laid in trench and then moistened with a suspension of 5-10 kg cow dung in 2.5-5.0 litres of water After two months it is mixed and restate on the surface of the earth and allowed for one month First it is aerobic and in trenches anaerobic In this method mixing and restating is done It ensures more homogenous and well decomposed manure After 3 months the manure is ready for application

29. Enriched Farmyard Manure Generally P is fixed by the soil constituents and makes it unavailable for the crop uptake. It also depends upon pH. In case of acidic, red and laterite soils, the dominant cations found is Fe 2+ , Al 3+ and Mn 2+ . These cations and their hydroxides react with H 2 PO 4 - and form insoluble complexes. Similarly, in alkaline and calcareous soils, the P is fixed by Ca, Mg and form dicalcium phosphate dihydrate, tricalcium phosphate and octacalcium phosphate and the phosphorus use efficiency get reduced. The P use efficiency ranges from 10-15 per cent. Therefore, instead of applying the P in the form of SSP (or) rock phosphate directly to the field, incubating the P fertilizer with farm yard manure for specific period and the organic acids and organic anions released from FYM during the decomposition by microbes compete with H 2 PO 4 - for fixation sites with Fe, Al and the availability of P get increased.

30. Vermicomposting Composting worms eat decaying organic matter and turn it into worm castings (worm feces). The result is vermicompost, a mixture of worm castings and composted material such as the bedding in bin.

31. Introduction Vermicomposting is a technology of composting various forms of biodegradable wastes with the help of earthworms. The earthworms eat the organic residues , digest it and excrete in the form of pellets. The earthworm excreta called worm cast This compost is perfectly balanced and good in plants nutrients

32. Nutrient profile of vermicompost Vermicompost contains : 1.6% Nitrogen; 0.7% Phosphorus; 0.8% Potash; 0.5% Calcium; 0.2% Magnesium; 175 ppm Iron; 96.5 ppm Manganese; 24.5 ppm Zinc 15.5 C:N ratio.

33. Requirements Soil dwelling or upper soil surface ( ‘ within the earth ’) Endogeic Deep burrowing species (‘out of earth’) Anecic Ex. Eisenia foetida Ex. Octochaetona thrustoni Ex. Lampito mauritii

34. Common varieties used are-

35. Pre digested or decomposed organic waste

36. Source of water Buckets and water sprayer

37. Method of Production Vermin compost can be produced by two methods : Pit Method Windrows Method

38. Precautions Only plant-based materials such as grass, leaves or vegetable peelings should be used for preparing vermin compost. Materials of animal origin such as egg-shells, meal, bone, chicken droppings etc., are not suitable for preparing vermin compost. Tobacco leaves are not suitable for rearing earthworms. The earthworms should be protected against birds, termites, ants and rats. Adequate moisture should be maintained during the process. Either stagnant water or lack of moisture could kill the earthworms. The vermin compost should be removed from the bed at a regular interval and replaced by fresh waste materials.

39. 42 Preparation of Concentrated Organic Manure Blood meal: Dried blood or blood meal contains 10-12% N and 1-2% P 2 O 5 . Blood meal is prepared from the blood collected from slaughter house treating with copper sulphate, dried, powdered and bagged and sold as bloodmeal . Bloodmeal is a quick acting and effective for all crops on all soils. Meat meal: Bones and meat are cooked in special type of pan for 2-3 hours. Bones are separated and meat is dried and powdered. It is quick acting on all soil. It contains 10.50% N and 2.5% P 2 O 5 .

40. 43 Fish manure: Fish and fish waste is dried and powdered. It is quick acting on all types of soils. Fish manure or fish meal contains 4 to 10% N, 3 to 9% P 2 O 5 and 0.3 to 1.5% K 2 O. Horn and hoof meal: Horn and hoof cooked in bone digester, dried and powdered. It contains 13% N.

41. Poultry Manure Poultry manure contain rich amount of N and organic matter. It contains 1.0-1.8 per cent N, 1.4-1.8 per cent P 2 O 5 and 0.8-0.9 per cent of K 2 O. The excreta of birds ferment quickly. It left exposed, 50 per cent of N is lost within 30 days. Deep litter is a valuable organic manure. In the deep litter system of poultry farming, the old, built up litter are generally replaced at the beginning of winter season. The litters are generally kept for one year only. The built up litter is balanced organic manure. It contains 3 per cent N, 2 per cent P 2 O 5 and 2 per cent K 2 O.

42. Guano It consists of excreta of seabirds, animals and remains of dead bodies of animal and sea birds. Available predominantly in arid regions particularly in Peru and Pacific ocean. It is grey to dark black in colour . Chemical composition Distinct odour due to the presence of uric acid and this is a major source of N in guano. The uric acid undergoes further chemical changes and converted into (NH 4 ) 2 CO 3 , (NH 4 ) 2 SO 4 , (NH 4 ) 2 HPO 4 . Generally the guano contains 11-16% N, 8-12% P 2 O 5 and 2-3% K 2 O. Different types of guano (a) dissolved guano (b) rectified guano and (c) fish guano.