Recycling farm wastes into valuable organic fertilizer

Recycling farm wastes into valuable organic fertilizer 

Dr Abe V Rotor

Living with Nature School on Blog

Home made compost from plant residues. Lagro, QC 

1. Crops leave a lot of waste after harvest. The most common wastes for composting are rice straw, corn stover, peanut and mungo hay, banana stalk, ipil-ipil, wood and coconut by-products.

• We are getting in return very little of the value of the fertilizer we apply to our crops. We don’t even get half the value of Nitrogen, Phosphorus and Potassium, the most important ingredients of chemical fertilizers.
30 to 60 % for N,
10 to 35 % for P, and
15 to 30% for K.

• For rice, there are more nutrients removed from the soil that go into the straw than the grain. Here is a comparison. (Grain versus straw, kg nutrient/MT)
Nitrogen: 10.5 - 7.0
Phosphorus: 4.6 – 2.3
Potassium: 3.0 – 17.5
Magnesium: 1.5 – 2.0
Calcium: 0.5 - 3.5

• Rice straw contains 85-90 percent of potassium (K) of the biomass. Thus much greater amounts of K must be applied to maintain soil supply where straw is removed.

2. Farm animals are ideal recyclers.

• Our Philippine carabao is the most efficient feed converter. Of the ruminant animals it has a digestive system that can extract the most nutrients from roughage. Thus it can survive long dry spells, and its manure is excellent fertilizer.

• Native chickens are more resistant than pure breeds to pest and unfavorable weather. They thrive on palay and corn; they forage in the field, and glean on leftovers. They are therefore, more economical to produce, tastier and free of antibiotic residues and artificial growth hormones.

• Goats thrives on farm by-products and unwanted plants. Practically anything that grows in the field is food for goats. Goats however, must be tethered or kept in pens.

• Another recycling project is vermiculture, the culture of earthworms for composting, bait for fishing, and source of protein supplement in feeds. Earthworm castings are excellent soil conditioners for ornamentals and garden crops.

3. Recycle wastes from market and kitchen. Vegetable trimmings, and waste from fish and animals require efficient collection, segregation and processing into biogas and organic fertilizer.

Fruits in season that otherwise go to waste are made into table wine of different flavors. Typhoon or drought affected sugarcane make excellent natural vinegar and molasses.

4. There are many plants growing in the field that are taken for granted or considered weeds. They are Nature’s Gifts. Tap them instead. Examples: Lantana camara as natural pesticide; oregano as natural medicine for cough and sore throat; chichirica as drug against cancer; pandan as spice and condiment; eucalyptus as liniment and cold drops; bunga de China for toothpaste, lagundi for fever and flu.

5. Water harvesting and conserving: Runoff water is waste. Small Water Impounding Projects (SWIP) are popular in many parts of the world where water is seasonal. Bigger ones can even generate electricity for the locality. The Bureau of Soils and Water Management of the Department of Agriculture has developed the technology on water impounding.
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NOTE: In observance of the International Year of Soils 2015 
Day of celebration: December 5
Please add more information to further enrich this article, particularly on those practices in farm recycling indigenous in your place.

* Lesson on former Paaralang Bayan sa Himpapawid (People's School-on-Air) with Ms Melly C Tenorio 738 DZRB AM Band, 8 to 9 evening class Monday to Friday

 2 comments:

Cay Cabotage said...

Recycling is one of the best ways for you to have a positive impact on the world in which we live. Recycling is important to both the natural environment and us. We must act fast as the amount of waste we create is increasing all the time. Recycling is very important as waste has a huge negative impact on the natural environment. Recycling is essential to cities around the world and to the people living in them.

 

Aina Dawang said...

It has been an endless battle for humanity to think of a solution against these plastics. Ways to segregate, the 3Rs and the like.

But the truth is practicality and discipline is the only answer. The 3r's wont be that of effective if we, users doesn't have the discipline to do so and the guided information on how to do it.

Many municipalities are doing a 'no plastic city drive'and in fact even teaches its citizens on how to recycle plastics.

This blog is a good eye opener to all that could help people realize how it would greatly effect our future if we recycle things in our home.