Composting Technology and the Impact of Compost on Soil Biochemical Properties PDF

Keywords

Organic farming, sustainable agriculture, composting technology, impact of compost, fertilizing

Abstract

Organic farming is one of several approaches to sustainable agriculture. Properly managed organic farming reduces or eliminates environmental pollution and helps conserve water and soil on the farm. Organic farming systems require significantly greater amounts of organic fertilizers input than conventional systems. Because of the shortage of organic fertilizers in arid areas, composting is a way to transform waste materials left over from agricultural production and processing into a useful resource. Mature compost is an excellent organic fertilizer and soil amendment. The potential of of composting to turn on-farm waste material into farm resources makes it an attractive proposition. Composting offers several benefits such as to enhance soil fertility and soil health, thereby increasing agricultural productivity, improving soil biodiversity, reducing ecological risks and improving the environment. Aerobic composting of some agricultural wastes (peanut, wheat straw and palm tree wastes) was carried out to raise its fertilizing value compared with the widely used organic fertilizer, farmyard manure. The influence of composted and non-composted agricultural wastes on the availability of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium (NPK) in sandy soil, as well as the uptake of these elements by corn plants, was also studied. Results indicated a rapid degradation of palm tree and wheat straw wastes as compared with peanut wastes. The composting process raised the fertilizing value of agricultural wastes as indicated by an increase in nutrient availability. The application of the composted wastes as organic fertilizers to sandy soil increased the content of available N, P and K. Results showed that the application of different composted organic materials increased the dry weight and NPK uptake by corn plants