Abstract:
Tea factory waste (TFW) is a difficult-to-degrade and fibrous waste material generated in tonnes during tea
manufacturing. Though TFW contains high amount of nutrients; high phenolic compound content and fibrous
nature limit its direct use in agriculture. In this study, TFW was mixed with cattle manure at different pro portions for evaluating possibility of recycling TFW through vermicomposting. It was observed that earthworms
(Eudrilus euginae used in this study) could only survive when TFW was mixed with cattle manure at least in 1:1
proportion (w/w basis). The quality of vermicompost prepared from 25% TFW and 75% cattle manure com bination was comparable to the vermicompost of sole cattle manure. Phosphorus (P) is one of the major nutrients
required for plant growth. Though the effect of phosphatase enzyme in P mineralization during vermicomposting
is well established, phytase enzyme in the vermicomposted organic substrate was not quantified before. In this
study, phytase enzyme, measured in vermicomposting materials, was positively related to the amount of P
mineralized. Both acid phosphatase and phytase enzymes were responsible for P-mineralization during vermi composting. It was observed that acid phosphatase enzyme contributed to the P-mineralization in the first
50 days, while phytase enzyme contributed in the latter part of vermicomposting.
