Composting of Natural Fibre Wastes for Preparation of Organic Manures and Bio-enhancers

Abstract

"Various agricultural and industrial activities produce natural fibre waste that can harm the environment if not disposed properly. These wastes contain valuable plant nutrients that need to be recycled to sustain soil quality and health, and reduce environmental pollution. Composting is an efficient, sustainable, and inexpensive way to treat solid wastes. This study focused on the preparation of composts from jute leaf waste, pineapple leaf wastes, banana pseudo stem waste along with retting liquors as bio-enhancers and to evaluate their quality. The quality of compost determines its ability to perform its projected function. The feedstocks are the main factor that affects the compost qualities, but the composting process also counts. The compost and retting liquors were tested in the laboratory for different parameters such as electrical conductivity, pH, organic carbon, total nitrogen, total phosphorus and potassium, micronutrients, heavy metals and C/N ratio. The results showed that compost made from natural fibre and bio-enhancer i.e. retting liquor can be a good source of plant nutrition and microbial activity. Pineapple leaf waste had a higher C: N ratio than jute leaf waste which resulted faster decomposition of jute leaves. Retting liquor had more bacteria than fungi. No actinomycetes were seen in the liquor. Waste wool had the highest nitrogen content among other fibre residues, so it can be a sustainable alternative to nitrogen source for crop nutrition. The quality evaluation will give us an insight on influence of compost produced from natural fibre waste in crop production."