Insect frass as a promising remedy of increasing the fertility of agricultural land in Siberia

Abstract

One of the main tasks of modern organic crop production is the search for effective environmentally friendly fertilizers. A promising approach to this problem could be the study insect frass, a product of organic processing by insects. Insect frass is obtained as secondary products from the cultivation of such economic insects as, for example, housefly (Musca domestica) and black soldier fly (Hermetia illucens). Insect frass has a high concentration of nitrogen, which was processed within the digestive tract of insects, which makes it more accessible to plants and contributes to their active distribution and development. It also has insecticidal and fungicidal properties due to its own microbiome. Insect frass can also enhance the moisture-holding capacity of the environment and be used as sorbents for petroleum products. The actual study examines the use of insect frass as a stand-alone growing medium or as one component of a finished substrate. A study was carried out and the nitrogen content in ammonium and nitrate forms, total acidity and the phytotoxicity index of insect frass in mixtures with lowland peat were measured. The study showed that insect frass has acceptable acidity for use as a substrate, as well as a high nitrogen content in two forms. At high concentrations, insect frass is a source of phytotoxic properties, therefore, when using it, it is necessary to maintain the ratio with other components of the substrate. Thus, insect frass, with normal application, can become an effective fertilizer for all household producers engaged in organic farming, where the tools for increasing productivity are seriously limited, and all useful elements taken from the soil must be replenished without the use of chemical fertilizers.