Physicochemical aspects of recycling tree leaf litter in the south of Western Siberia by the Eisenia fetida (Savigny) vermiculture

Abstract

The utility of the compost worm Eisenia fetida (Savigny) for recycling mixed leaf litter of the tree species characteristic of the forests in the south of Western Siberia and used in the landscaping in the city of Tomsk has been demonstrated. The tree species that are the major contributors to the leaf litter in the examined area include the genera Populus, Salix, and Betula. Two-fraction substrates for leaf litter vermicomposting and conventional composting (decomposition with and without earthworms) were prepared of the harvested and dried leaf litter. The feeding fraction consisted of leaf litter moistened with distilled water and the absorbing fraction, of alluvial river sand. The physicochemical properties of the studied leaf litter were weakly acidic pH of aqueous extracts, a very low content of nitrate nitrogen, and a relatively low K+ concentration. The prevalent cation in the assayed leaf litter was Ca2+. The leaf litter was partially decomposed on the surface of sand substrates during 35-day incubation under humid conditions; accumulation of inorganic ions in the sand was one of the signs indicating this decomposition. Ca2+ was also prevalent among these ions.