ABSTRACT
Norman Arancon, Clive A. Edwards, Katie A. Webster, and John C. Bucker„eld
I INTRODUCTION
Animal manures, food wastes, yard waste, and sewage sludges have long been recognized in agriculture as bene¤cial organic soil amendments for the maintenance of soil fertility to support crop growth. The new approaches to the use of organic amendments in farming have proved to be an effective ecological means of improving the physical, chemical and biological properties of soils. Organic matter is an excellent source of plant-available nutrients, and its addition to soil maintains high microbial populations and activities (Pascual et al. 1997; Zink and Allen 1998) with increased values of biomass C, basal respiration, biomass C to total organic C ratios, and metabolic quotients (qCO2). Many crop yields have increased with the
CONTENTS
I Introduction .................................................................................................. 103 II Nature of Vermicomposts ............................................................................. 104
A Characteristics of Vermicomposts ......................................................... 104 B Physical Properties of Vermicomposts .................................................. 104 C Chemical Properties of Vermicomposts ................................................ 105 D Biological Properties of Vermicomposts ............................................... 105
III Effects of Vermicomposts on the Growth of Greenhouse Crops ................. 106 IV Factors In¯uencing Increases in Growth and Yield ..................................... 117
A Plant Growth Hormones in Vermicomposts .......................................... 117 B Humates in Vermicomposts ................................................................... 121
References ..............................................................................................................124
