- Nursery entrepreneurs often face problems due to inadequate decomposition and heterogeneity of coir pith in terms of nutrient content.
- In order to overcome this, Arka fermented coco-peat has been developed by IIHR for vegetable seedling production.
- This product is developed by the solid state fermentation of raw coir pith, by employing a fungal consortium.
- The entire process can be completed in thirty days at the nursery level itself.
- On completion of the fermentation process, the material can be enriched with the Arka Microbial Consortium comprising of N fixing, P & Zn solubilizing and plant growth promoting microbes and used for pro-tray vegetable seedling
HIGHLIGHTS/ ADVANTAGES/ UNIQUENESS/BENEFITS OF THE TECHNOLOGY
- Reduced cost and time of production
- No need for washing of the raw coir pith, hence environmentally friendly
- Can be done at the nursery itself
- Dispenses the need for sterilization of the growth media
- Better germination and vigorous uniform seedlings
- Seedling raised on this growth media attain early transplantation maturity
Market Potential: Coco-peat prepared from coir pith a by-product of the coir industry is mainly used for raising of vegetable seedlings in pro-trays. Protray vegetable seedling production is increasingly becoming popular; hence the market potential for coco-peat is also expected to increase.
Investment required: To start a production unit of 1 tonne capacity per day an investment of approximately Rs.40, 000 would be required to meet the non - recurring expenditure.
