Production and characterization of organic manure from liquorice residues

Journal Pre-proofs Production and characterization of organic manure from liquorice residues Raghad S. Mouhamad, Zainab J. Mohammed, Ahmad A. Abdulhadi, Mazhar Abbas, Munawar Iqbal, Arif Nazir PII: DOI: Reference:

S2214-3173(16)30077-4 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.inpa.2019.09.004 INPA 219

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Information Processing in Agriculture

Received Date: Revised Date: Accepted Date:

30 July 2016 31 December 2017 16 September 2019

Please cite this article as: R.S. Mouhamad, Z.J. Mohammed, A.A. Abdulhadi, M. Abbas, M. Iqbal, A. Nazir, Production and characterization of organic manure from liquorice residues, Information Processing in Agriculture (2019), doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.inpa.2019.09.004

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Production and characterization of organic manure from liquorice residues

Raghad S. Mouhamad1,**, Zainab J. Mohammed1, Ahmad A. Abdulhadi1, Mazhar Abbas2, Munawar Iqbal3,*, Arif Nazir3 1Soil

and Water Resources Center, Ministry of Sciences & Technology, Baghdad, Iraq

2CVAS,

Jhang Campus, University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Lahore, Pakistan

3Department

of Chemistry, The University of Lahore, Lahore, Pakistan

Corresponding author: [email protected] (R. S. Mouhamad)**, [email protected] (M. Iqbal)*

Production and characterization of organic manure from liquorice residues

Abstract In present investigation, organic manure was produced and characterized from liquorice residues using activated Effective Microoganism (AEM). The liquorice waste residues were fermented for the period of 6 months in the presence of activated AEM at the rate of 2.5% and 5% of total fermented mixture. Nitrogen (62.5 g) was used per 10 Kg of liquorice and moister was maintained at 55-60% during fermentation. The AEM manure production efficiency was evaluated on the basis of pH, C/N ratio, electrical conductivity (EC) and mineral contents. The final pH of organic manure was 6.2, C/N ratio reduced from 13/1 to 6/1, EC and the mineral contents were increased of composted liquorice. Results revealed that the AEM are effective to produce organic manure from agricultural waste matter since the organic manure physic-chemical properties were within the permissible limit and AEM could be used for the production of compost liquorice. Moreover, this technique can also be extended to other agricultural waste materials for the production of organic manure. Key words: Liquorice; organic manure; fermentation; physicochemical analysis 1. Introduction The EM has 80 different sorts of micro-organisms that have been collected from natural sources. The main strains include lactic acid bacteria, photo-synthetic bacteria, yeasts and actinomycetes. The EM’s has been reported to be beneficial for the health of plants and soil and are also used for organic manure production. This technique was developed in 1970’s at the University of Ryukyus, Okinawa, Japan (1). Researchers highlighted applications of EM in various fields i.e., agriculture, livestock, gardening and landscaping, composting, bioremediation, cleaning septic tanks, algal control and

household uses (2). In the presence of lactic acid bacteria, EM species produced organic acids, enzymes and antioxidants, which can be utilized for organic manure production. The creation of an antioxidant environment by EM assists in the enhancement of the solid-liquid separation, which is the foundation of cleaning water (2-20). It has been reported that EM could improve crop growth and yield by increasing photosynthesis, producing bioactive substances such as hormones and enzymes, controlling soil diseases and accelerating decomposition of lignin materials in the soil (21) and in view of importance of plants and crops in health and food (22-31), the use of organic manure production have been reported to be highly effective to enhance the quantity and quality of natural products. Other than organic manure production, EM techniques have also been expanded to resolve environmental issues (32, 33). Previously, Jusoh (34) highlighted the potential of EM for compost from the waste of animals or crops and its applications in increasing yields of crops versus traditional forming systems. EM helps to solubilize minerals, which then easily be can absorbed and transported to the plants and it is obvious that crop quality affects the yield (35). Practices eco-friendly technique for the enhancement of agricultural productivity (36-43), composting is one of major techniques which have been used for production of organic manure for application in agriculture sector Present study was designed to produce organic manure from liquorice residues using AEM, which has not been reported previously. The principle objectives of the tudy were to produced and characterize the organic manure from liquorice residues. The efficiency of AEM was evaluated on the basis of various physico-chemical properties set for organic manure testing. 2. Material and Methods 2.1.

EM Activation and composting

Dormant EM was activated before application and for activation, molasses (5 L), water (90 L) and 5 L dormant EM was mixed and stored in clean plastic container and kept in dark for 5-10 days till pH dropped below 4 and also a white layer on the top of solution was appeared along with pleasant smell. For composting, activated EM (1 L) was mixed with water (30 L) in a plastic container. This mixture (15 L) was sprayed on 3 x 1 meter composting area and liquorice was spread (15 cm thick layer) over the site and the activated EM was sprayed over this layer and another layer of liquorice was spread (15 cm) an again sprayed with activated EM. This procedure continued till 120 cm layer of liquorice was developed along with activated EM spraying after spreading of each layer. Whole stack was covered with 5 cm layer of animal dung and covered with plastic sheets. After 25 to 30 days, mass volume dropped and white mold appeared on the biomass along pleasant smell (44). Compost samples were collected, dried, friended, sieved (25 mm) and subjected to physico-chemical analysis. 2.2.

Physico-chemical analysis

Samples were collected for the period of nine-weeks (6 samples) with sampling gap of three months. Control sample was collected at zero days (before fermentation started). Compost sample (5 g) was taken for each sample and samples were collected in triplicate. For analysis, samples were dried in an oven for 24 h at 105 0C (weighed and re-weighed until a constant weight). The samples were cooled down to at room temperature and prepared for analysis. The pH was measured according to Page (45) using a digital electrode pH meter. The total nitrogen was determined using the Kjeldahl method. The Total Organic Carbon (TOC) was determined by wet digestion method in K2Cr2O7 with concentrated H2SO4. Briefly, samples were digested at 150 0C for 30 min, and titrated against ferrous ammonium sulphate to determine Cr2O2. The mineral

elements i.e., K, Ca, Na, Mg, Mn, Zn, Cu and Fe were determined using the standard method (Aqua regia digestion method) and analyzed by AAS. Phosphorus was determined by Page (45) method. All data was analyzed by SAS 2000 software and means were separated using the LSD method (46). 3. Results and Discussion Organic manure was produced and characterized from liquorice residues using activated EM. The liquorice waste residues were fermented for the period of 6 months in the presence of activated EM at the rate of 2.5% and 5%. The EC after 3rd week of fermentation increased insignificantly (P>0.05) in EM treated liquorice in comparison to control. The EC was recorded 33.37 (dS/M) in case of 2.5% EM treatment followed by 5% treatment (32.55 dS/m) and control showed 31.24 (dS/m) EC value (Fig. 1(A)). The reason could be the nitrogen immobilization by EM, which resulted in reduced nitrogen availability to the organisms. As the fermentation proceeded, the EC increased and after 9th week of fermentation it was 33.18 (dS/m) and 34 (dS/m) for 2.5% and 5%,, respectively and control showed 32.1 dS/m. Figure 1(B) shows the pH values of organic manure at different doses of EM. It was observed that the pH of organic manure varied significantly and high pH was observed after 6th week of fermentation, which were 7.78 and 7.63 for 5.0% and 2.5% EM, whereas control showed 7.75 pH value after 6th week of fermentation. The pH values of 6.25, 6.25 and 6.28 were recorded in control after 3rd, 6th and 9th week of fermentation, respectively. The C/N ratio is one of the most important parameters used to assess the rate of decomposition in the composting process, which reflects the maturity of the composite material. Figure 1(C) shows the C/N response in response of EM treatment of liquorice and results revealed a significant reduction in C/N value, which an indication of better is composting process, which is due to the mineralization of organic matter. The initial C/N ratio for 2.5% treatment

was 33.4, whereas it was 34.0 in case of 5% EM treatment and C/N ratio after 3rd week of composting was 13.8 and 11.4 for 2.5% and for 5% treatments, respectively and control showed 13.5 value of C/N after 3rd week of fermentation. The C/N ratios after 6th week of fermentation were recorded to be 8.2, 9.9 for 2.5% and 5% EM treatments, respectively and it was 8.8 in control. By increasing the fermentation time up to 9th week, the C/N ratios reduced significantly, which were 6.5 and 6.7 for 2.5% and 5% EM treatments, respectively. The decrease in C/N ratio was due to utilization of carbon by microorganisms as an energy source. In fermentation process, carbon is absorbed by the microorganisms and transformed to CO2 during the metabolic processes and remaining carbon was utilized in membrane and protoplasm formation processes. Throughout the composting process the organic matter is decomposed by microorganisms and organic carbon is oxidized in aerobic condition to CO2 gas and escaped in to the atmosphere and thus lower the C/N ratio (47, 48). These results are line with previous reports (2, 49). Author revealed complete reduction of wastes, development of pleasant odour and formation of finely dispersed composted mass with 672.0, 708.0, 2927.0, 13.02 (mg kg-1) and 35.1% of total nitrogen, phosphorous, potassium , humic acid and organic carbon. Javaid (50) also reported that soil organic matter, total nitrogen, alkaline hydrolysable nitrogen, available P, and K contents were higher in EM composted plots than in the traditionally composted plot in rice planted plots. The temperature of composted material also increased, which was due to the heat generation and decomposition of sugar, starch and protein and is indication of degradation of organic matter, however, change in pH is a good indicator since microbial activity changed as the pH decreased (2, 49). The mineral contents (N, P, K) of composted liquorice is shown in Fig. 2. Results revealed that N and K contents increased significantly at the end of composting

period, whereas P value decreased. The initial N value (after 3rd week) was 1.4% for 2.5% EM treatment and 1.66% for 5% EM treatment and 1.34% in control. After 9th week N content increased and values were 2.94% and 2.84% in 2.5% and 5% treatment (Fig. 2). The increase N content may be due to the dry mass net loss as the loss of organic C in the form of CO2 during composting, In addition, the N may also increase due to the nitrogen-fixing bacteria activity (51). The P value after 3rd week was 0.05% for 2.5% EM treatment and 0.07% for 5% treatment and 0.16% was recorded in control. The change in P contents after 6rd week of composting was insignificant (P>0.05) and 2.5% and 5% EM treatments showed P values of 0.06%, 0.16%, respectively, which was 0.21% in control. The lowest P values versus control was recorded in 2.5% treated composting material, that was 0.09%, while 5% EM treatment showed 0.13% P value after 9th week of composting. The loss in P value during the composting process was possibly due to the leaching of P in the soluble organic solute (52). The K contents after 3th week were 1.3% and 1.4% for 2.5% and 5% EM treatments, respectively. Liquorice treated with 5% EM showed the highest K contents after 6th and 9th week of composting, which were 2.1% and 2.0%, respectively. At the end of the composting period, the K value in 5% EM treatment was 2.0% and 2.5% EM treated sample showed insignificant (1.5%) effect and was equal to control. It is well known that K is easily leached out, however, K plays an important role i.e., elongation of the roots, control ion balance, improve protein synthesis, enhance enzymatic reactions, improve the photosynthesis process and development (53, 54). Results revealed that composted liquorice can be good source of K since the K contents enhanced significantly of composted material. The Na, Mg and Ca contents are shown in Fig. 3, and after 9th week of composting, the Na, Mg and Ca contents were recorded significant (P>0.05) higher versus control. The Na value for 5% EM treatment was recorded to be 1435 mg kg−1 followed by 2.5%

treatment (1480 mg kg−1), whereas it was 523.86 mg kg−1 in control. It can be conclude that activated EM enhanced the Na contents considerably. Na contents after 6th week were recorded to be 1480 mg kg−1 and 1358 for 5% and 2.5% treatments, respectively, whereas control showed 1290.3 mg kg−1 of Na value. Mg contents recorded after 3rd, 6th and 9th week of composting were changed insignificantly (P<0.05) in activated EM treated samples. Mg content in 5% activated treated samples were 4547.1 mg kg−1, whereas it was 4947.9 mg kg−1 in 2.5% treatment after 3rd week of composting. After 6th week, the 5% treatment showed 6430.3 mg kg−1 Mg followed by control 6768.3 mg kg−1, whereas it was 5285 mg kg−1 in 2.5% treatment and the Mg contents did not change after 6th week of composting. The change in Ca contents was insignificant (P<0.05) at the end of 3rd week, whereas the Ca contents changed significantly at the end of 6th and 9th week versus control. At the end of 9th week, 5% treatment showed Ca content of 38386.6 mg kg−1 and in control this value was 34496.6 mg kg−1 and 33976.6 mg kg−1 Ca contents were recorded in case of 2.5% activated EM treatment. The highest Ca was recorded in 5% EM treated samples (38703 mg kg−1) at the end 6th week of composting and these finding are in line with previous studies that mineral contents may increase in composted material (55, 56). The micronutrients in composted material also increased except Zn (Figs. 4 and 5). The initial (at the end of 3rd week), the Zn content was 49.2 mg kg−1 for 2.5% EM treatment and 38.03 mg kg−1 for 5% treatment (Fig. 4) and at the end of 9th week, the Zn value for 2.5% EM treatment was 78.44 mg kg−1 and 50.86 mg kg−1 in case of 5% EM treatment. Mn content in activated EM 5% sample was 65.16 mg kg−1, which increased with composting period and recorded to be 227.31 mg kg−1 (Fig. 4) at the end of 9th week of composting. Whereas, 2.5% activated EM treated sample showed the Mn value of 93.07 mg kg−1 after 3rd week and 247.85 mg kg−1 at the end of composting period

(9th week). An increasing trend in Cu content was observed, the initial value was 19.77 mg kg−1 in 2.5% EM treatment and 19.91 mg kg−1 for 5% treatment, which increased to 24.36 mg kg−1 for 2.5% and 22.96 mg kg−1 for 5% treatment at the end of composting period (Fig. 4). The Fe content after 9th week was also changed significantly (P>0.05) of composted material. In 5% EM treatment, the Fe content of 34 mg kg-1 was recorded and it was 32.1 mg kg−1 in case of control. The 2.5% EM treated sample showed Fe contents of 33.18 mg kg−1. The highest Fe contents was recorded for 5% EM treatment at the end of 9th week of composting, while the lowest value was observed in case of 5% EM treatment in samples composted for three weeks (Fig. 5). The composted liquorice showed high mineral contents and this leaching and availability is due to the degradation efficiency of microorganisms present activated, which increased the solubility of minerals. The Zn, Cu, Mn and Fe are useful as trace elements for plant growth and composted matter could be used to enhance the soil fertility and plant growth characteristics. However, frequent use of compost can disturb the metal ionssoil equilibrium and intense application of organic compost containing metal ions can lead to accumulation of ions in soil, which may induce toxicity (57). Based on present environmental pollution issues (58-74), the use of eco-friendly techniques should be adopted to enhance the productively without enhancing the soil fertility and application of organic manure is best option in this regard. 4. Conclusions Organic manure was produced using activated EM and evaluated on the basis of physiochemical methods of characterization. The liquorice inoculated with activated EM, was composted for the period of 6 months and analyzed for EC, C/N, pH, micro- and micronutrients. A significant difference between treated and control samples was observed. The pH, EC and C/N ratio, macro- and micronutrients affected positively in the

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Figures captions Fig. 1: EC, pH and C/N ratio of liquorice compost after 3rd, 6th and 9th weeks of composting

Fig. 2: Total nitrogen, phosphor and potassium of liquorice compost after 3rd, 6th and 9th weeks of composting Fig. 3: Sodium, calcium and magnesium of liquorice compost after 3rd, 6th and 9th weeks of composting Fig. 4: Manganese, zinc and copper of liquorice compost after 3rd, 6th and 9th weeks of composting Fig. 5: Iron contents of liquorice compost after 3rd, 6th and 9th weeks of composting

Conflict of interest Author declared no conflict of interest