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The effect of earthworms on the physiological state of the microbial community at vermicomposting

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Abstract

The effect of earthworms on the microbial community of composts and vermicomposts was assayed by the following parameters: mineralization activity, the levels of physiologically active and growing microbial biomass, the requirement for growth factors, and the spectrum of assimilation of organic substrates by the microbial community. The substrate affinities of microbial enzyme systems in vermicompost were found to be lower than in compost without earthworms, which is evidence of a higher amount of r-strategists in the microbial community of vermicomposts. Physiologically active biomass of microorganisms is higher in peat-based vermicompost than in compost. The microorganisms of vermicomposts and composts experience deficiency in growth factors to a lesser extent than the microorganisms in soil. The presence of earthworms influences the physiological diversity: the Shannon index increases or decreases depending on the type of composted substrate and incubation time. The growth rate of microorganisms increases on various test substrates in the presence of worms.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Soil Science Faculty, Department of Soil Biology, Moscow State University, 119991, GSP-1, Leninskie gory, 1, 12, Moscow, Russia

    A. V. Yakushev & B. A. Byzov

  2. Institute of Physicochemical and Biological Problems of Soil Science, Russian Academy of Sciences, ul. Institutskaya 2, Pushchino, Moscow oblast, 142290, Russia

    S. A. Blagodatsky

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  1. A. V. Yakushev
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  2. S. A. Blagodatsky
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  3. B. A. Byzov
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Correspondence to A. V. Yakushev.

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Original Russian Text © A.V. Yakushev, S.A. Blagodatsky, B.A. Byzov, 2009, published in Mikrobiologiya, 2009, Vol. 78, No. 4, pp. 565–574.

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Yakushev, A.V., Blagodatsky, S.A. & Byzov, B.A. The effect of earthworms on the physiological state of the microbial community at vermicomposting. Microbiology 78, 510–519 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1134/S002626170904016X

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