BIOTECHNOLOGY - V. H. Gerasymenko - 2006

Part II. Special Biotechnologies

Chapter 23. BIOTECHNOLOGY OF ORGANIC WASTE UTILIZATION BY VERMICULTURE

23.7. METHODS OF BED DIVISION

The timing of earthworm Separation and The formation of new beds depends on the climatic conditions of the region. In areas with a temperate and warm climate, earthworms can be propagated three times a year: in April, July, and October. It should be noted that this is a labor-intensive and time-consuming process requiring careful preparation and the Structure/175.html">Implementation of various technological practices.

Beds are separated either with or without the harvesting of biohumus.

In preparation for bed division, feed must be applied regularly, with new portions being more palatable than the previous ones.

To divide the beds—that is, to form new beds from the existing ones—various technological Methods of extracting earthworms from the substrate are employed.

Technological methods for earthworm extraction

Method 1: Layer-by-layer removal of earthworms. Before adding new feed to the bed, a 5 cm layer of the previous substrate is removed. After 6–7 days, another layer of the same thickness, containing 50–60% of the earthworm population, is removed and transferred to a new bed. Fresh feed of equal thickness is then added in place of the removed layer. Once again, after 6–7 days, this layer is removed, containing 25–35% of the earthworm population, and is also transferred to a new bed. Fresh feed is added again, and the remaining population is harvested after 6–7 days. This method achieves an almost complete (95–97%) extraction of the population, which, very importantly, is painless for the earthworms.

Method 2: The entire top layer of the substrate is collected to a depth of 12–15 cm and transferred into a conical container exposed to light (sunlight or electric lamps). After 2–3 hours, the earthworms move to the bottom of the container. The top layer (substrate) is removed, while the earthworms remain at the bottom. However, this method has low productivity. It is more effective to place the substrate with earthworms on a concrete pad in the form of heaps up to 1 m high. Exposed to light, the earthworms burrow downward, and after removing the top layer of the substrate, they remain on the concrete floor.

Method 3: In the Carpathian region, a starvation diet method is used for bed division. For 3 weeks, earthworms are kept on a "starvation diet," meaning no new feed is added to The surface of the beds. After 3 weeks, fresh feed is applied to the surface of the beds and moistened. The earthworms crawl up to this layer to feed, and the layer is then harvested along with the earthworms.

Bed division. The First Division takes place in April and is threefold. If the facility operates year-round, the first bed division is carried out in April. Each April bed is divided into 3 new ones (hence, threefold) with the extraction of the entire earthworm population and the harvesting of biohumus. The newly established beds mature and become ready for division in July. Earthworm extraction is performed using one of the methods discussed above.

The second bed division takes place in July and is twofold, meaning one bed is divided into two without harvesting biohumus. This division has certain peculiarities. Whereas during the division of April beds the top layer of the substrate was removed across the entire surface of the bed, in July beds it is removed only from half the surface along the width of the bed. No new feed is added; instead, a 5 cm layer of substrate is removed three times at 5–7 day intervals. As a result, one half of the bed will be 15 cm higher than the other. After extracting the earthworms, both halves of the substrate are leveled to the same height.

The third bed division is carried out in October. During this period, a threefold division is performed on beds established in April, complete with biohumus harvesting, alongside a fourfold division of beds formed in July, without biohumus harvesting. These latter beds enter the winter period as they are, and their division with biohumus harvesting will take place in April of the following year. Thus, the biohumus formation period lasts 6 months.

Earthworms are harvested during bed division mechanically using 4-tine forks with rounded edges. In addition, various mechanical devices are used, such as vibrating screens, funnel-shaped sieves, and specialized cylindrical trommels.

Methods of thermal, light, electrical, and chemical (using formalin) stimulation have also been developed to induce earthworms to leave the substrate independently.