A comparative study of effective microorganisms (EM) and biocompost in the decomposition of coconut waste material

Lignocellulosic waste materials are recalcitrant in nature due to their interconnected complex polymer. Hence, composting of this type of lignocellulosic waste material is time consuming. This study aimed to compare the efficiency of effective microorganisms (EM) and biocompost in enhancing the decomposition of coconut waste.. A windrow heap of 3 x 2 x 1.5 m was prepared with alternate layers of coconut waste and cow dung. Two percent of effective microorganisms and biocompost were augment in each heap and the changes in the nutrient status of the compost across different composting time periods (15, 30, 45, 60, 75 and 90 days) were studied. It was observed that augmentation of both effective microorganisms and biocompost significantly reduced the organic carbon, while the total nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium increased on successive days of composting. At the end of study period, application of effective microoganisms (EM) reduced the organic carbon by 30.97%; and recorded the highest total nitrogen (1.20±0.024%), phosphorus (0.21±0.003%) and potassium (1.21±0.016%) content. Furthermore, augmenting effective microorganisms was highly effective, and the compost maturity was attained on the 60th day with a CN ratio of 17.8:1. The compost maturity test also validated that the effective microorganisms were more effective than biocompost in improving the rate of degradation of coconut waste and in producing mature compost of good quality.