State-of-the-Art and New Perspectives on Vermicomposting Research - Earthworm Ecology - page 383

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State-of-the-Art and New
Perspectives on
Vermicomposting Research

Jorge Domínguez

Departamento de Ecoloxía e Bioloxía Animal, Universidade de Vigo, Spain

CONTENTS

Introduction....................................................................................................................................402
What is Vermicomposting?............................................................................................................402
Earthworms....................................................................................................................................403
Earthworm Life Histories..............................................................................................................403
Earthworm Species Suitable for Vermicomposting.......................................................................404
Temperate Species..................................................................................................................405

Eisenia fetida (Savigny, 1826) and Eisenia andrei ( Bouch, 1972)............................405

Dendrobaena rubida (Savigny, 1826)..........................................................................405

Dendrobaena veneta (Rosa, 1886)...............................................................................406

Hoffmeister, 1843)......................................................................406
Tropical Species......................................................................................................................406

Lumbricus rubellus (

Eudrilus eugeniae (Kinberg, 1867)..............................................................................406

Perionyx excavatus Perrier, 1872..................................................................................407

(Perrier, 1872)..............................................................................407
Influence of Environmental Factors on Survival and Growth of Earthworms.............................407
Temperature.............................................................................................................................409
Moisture Content....................................................................................................................409
pH............................................................................................................................................410
Aeration...................................................................................................................................410
Ammonia.................................................................................................................................410
Effects of Diet on the Growth and Reproduction of Earthworms................................................411
Ecology of Vermicomposting: A Case Study................................................................................411
pH during Vermicomposting...................................................................................................412
Carbon Mineralization during Vermicomposting...................................................................412
Nitrogen Transformations during Vermicomposting..............................................................412
Vermicomposting and Heavy Metal Availability...................................................................413
Humification during Vermicomposting..................................................................................414
Stability of Organic Wastes and Maturity of the Vermicomposts .........................................414
Vermicomposting and Human Pathogen Destruction ............................................................414
Soil Food Webs in the Vermicomposting System .........................................................................414
Applications of Vermicomposting .................................................................................................416
New Perspectives in Vermicomposting Research..........................................................................417
Operation of the Process: How Vermicomposting Works......................................................417

Pheretima elongata

401