Phytate Mineralizing Fungi for Phosphorus Recovery from Organic Wastes

Abstract

Microbial recovery of organic phosphorus (P) from crops and animals residue can be an effective technology for sustainable P management. The present investigation was an attempt to prepare compost from substrate mixture of paddy straw (P.S) and animal manures such as cattle manure (CM), farm yard manure (FYM) and poultry manure (PM) each added separately as source of P and nitrogen. A consortium of phytate mineralizing fungi developed by including Aspergillus niger ITCC 6719, Aspergillus flavus ITCC 6720 and Trichoderma harzianum ITCC 6721 was inoculated for recovery of P from a mixture of P.S + manure. The chemical analysis of mature compost (obtained after 120d of aerobic decomposition) for total and different P fractions revealed that fungal inoculation improved the sodium bicarbonate extractable-P content of CM and FYM supplemented P.S compost by 32.3 % and 23.5 % respectively, compared with their respective un-inoculated counterpart. Sodium hydroxide extractable organic P content was more than inorganic P content and was highest in CM-P.S compost. The fraction of P extracted with HCl ranged from 8.51 % to 14.39 % of total P. Application of P-enriched compost to soil can reduce the input of chemical P and offer potential environment and economic benefits to farmers under sustainable agriculture.