Effect of cow dung and manure of laying hens on growth and reproduction of Eudrilus eugeniae

Abstract

The objective of the current study was to compare the effect of cow dung and manure of laying hens, associated to one of the three carbon substrates, on weight and population of this worm. Each substrate was sown with twenty (20) adult worms, 0.7 to 1 g weight. The weight of worms was collected at the beginning and at the end of breeding. The number was collected weekly until 60 days of breeding. The average number of worms was multiplied by 2.38 (60±6.78 in cow dung, 40±6.81 in manure of laying hens and 43 ± 8.23 in control). The average weight of worms was 27.19±1.21, 24.41±1.20, and 22.41±1.44 g, respectively. These results suggest that cow dung is better than manure of laying hens for vermiculture of E. eugeniae.