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Project properties |
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| Title | To what extent do vermicompost production parameters affect subsequent carbon and nutrient cycling in soil? |
| Group | Soil Biology |
| Project type | thesis |
| Credits | 24-39 |
| Supervisor(s) | Alix Vidal, Enno Sonntag |
| Examiner(s) | prof.dr. Rachel Creamer |
| Contact info | alix.vidal@wur.nl |
| Begin date | 2023/09/01 |
| End date | |
| Description | Vermicompost, i.e., compost through the activity of earthworms, can be used as a soil amendment to improve soil fertility, carbon storage and plant growth. The characteristics of vermicompost can vary according to the used source material as well as the conditions during composting. The effect of vermicompost production parameters on soil biogeochemical cycles has been rarely considered. Here, earthworms (Eisenia andrei) were fed with spend mushroom (Pleurotus ostreatus) substrate with the goal of maximum earthworm biomass production. You will investigate how the characteristics of the substrate used to feed earthworms (different fragmentation size and decomposition stage) affect vermicompost composition and ultimately the carbon and nutrient cycling in the soil. You will incubate various vermicompost types in soil microcosms and quantify their effects on heterotrophic respiration (CO2), soil carbon pools and total nitrogen and phosphorus contents. Your results will be used in a larger study aiming at using vermiculture to develop more circular food systems. |
| Used skills | literature review, writing proposal and thesis, experimental set-up, laboratory work, sampling, data analyses |
| Requirements | Handbook for the generic thesis requirements at SBL, https://ssc.wur.nl/Handbook/Course/SBL-81836 |