Address :
(Division of Microbiology, Indian Agricultural Research Institute, new Delhi 110 012, India).
Main Data :
Five composts prepared from wheat straw enriched with different organic amendments were characterized to evaluate their suitability as fertilizers. The parameters determined were pH, total organic carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, humus, heavy metals and enzymatic activities. The physiological effect to these composts was also studied on seed germination. After three months of decomposition, vermicompost had the lowest C: N of 11.6 with highest N, P and humus content and germination index of 90%. It was followed by microbially enriched compost (C:N 16.6). on the basis of self-heating test, vermicompost was assessed as the most stable compost, free from toxic compounds. Contrarily, three moths of decomposition period was not enough for wheat straw compost to be fully mature as adjudged from germination index and some other closely related parameters.