Influence of earthworm cast on manure from cattle, sheep and goats and its effects on maize growth

Abstract

An experiment was conducted to evaluate the effect of earthworm activities on manure from indigenous breeds of cattle, sheep and goats of Nigeria. Three treatment groups of manure from cattle, sheep and goat were inoculated with earthworms in prepared worm beds and worm casts derived were evaluated after 8 weeks. The results showed that earthworms had a great impact on the chemical constituents' transformations in the manure. The percentage of nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium in worm cast was found to increase. Nitrogen totals from worm casts were 1.65, 1.72 and 1.96% for cattle, sheep and goats, respectively compared to 0.95, 1.21 and 1.31%, obtained from manure. Within the species, the manure and worm casts derived from goats were superior to that from sheep and cattle. Weights of maize plant grown with worm cast were almost twice that of the fresh manure across the treatments. It was concluded that earthworm casts from cattle, sheep and goat manure were nutritionally superior to manure from which they were derived. Such improved manure can serve as a ready source of high quality fertilizer for the resource poor farmers in Nigeria.