Extensive application of agrochemicals for crop production and protection has negatively affected soil health, crop productivity, and the environment. Organic amendments have been proposed as an efficient alternative for enhancing soil and plant health. Vermicompost amendment offers a sustainable approach to plant nutrition, improving soil health and fertility. This review aims to provide key insights into the potential of vermicompost to boost crop production and protect crops from biotic and abiotic stresses without harming the environment. The role played by earthworms in improving organic matter decomposition, soil fertility, and soil microorganisms’ activity is also discussed here. The value of vermicompost is its promotion of plant growth based on its enrichment with all essential nutrients, beneficial microbes, and plant growth hormones. This review analyzes how vermicompost regulates plant growth and its role in mitigating abiotic stresses such as soil salinity and drought, as well as biotic stresses such as diseases and insect pests attack. The beneficial effects of hormones and humic substances present in vermicompost are also discussed in this review. In fact, due to its properties, vermicompost can be a good substitute for chemical fertilizers and pesticides and its usage could contribute to producing healthy, contaminant-free food for the growing population without negatively affecting the environment.

Environmental pollution has become a pressing concern worldwide due to the accumulation of pollutants from industries and agricultural sectors in soil and water environments. Heavy metals pose severe hazards to the environment, plants, and human health. Consequently, an eco-friendly technique is needed to combat environmental pollutants. Vermibiochar, a product prepared through the combined action of earthworms and biochar, demonstrates great potential in reducing heavy metal concentrations in contaminated soil. Its large surface area and high cation exchange capacity enhance the sorption of contaminants onto the vermibiochar surface, reducing their bioavailability. This review highlights the roles played by earthworms and biochar in heavy metal detoxification and immobilization. It discusses the current methods of remediation, vermibiochar production, its effects on soil properties and plant growth, and biochar’s impact on earthworm growth and reproduction. The studies reviewed suggest that vermibiochar is a novel strategy for addressing heavy metal contamination.

Organic products are gaining popularity due to their positive impact on human health and the environment. While hydroponics is commonly used in vegetable production, it relies on mineral fertilizers derived from limited and non-renewable resources. As a result, farmers are actively seeking sustainable farming solutions. This study comprehensively evaluated the effectiveness of vermi-liquids (organic nutrient solutions) as a replacement for conventional inorganic nutrient solutions in promoting growth and nutrient acquisition in Diplotaxis muralis plants in a controlled environment. The results showed that plant biomass and SPAD values of D. muralis grown in Hoagland solution and enhanced vermitea (vermitea having relatively low pH and high EC) were higher compared to standard vermitea (high pH and low EC). The findings also revealed improved nutrient assimilation of phosphorus, potassium, calcium, iron, manganese, copper, and zinc in the enhanced vermitea plants. The heavy metal contents in D. muralis leaves were evaluated, too, and they were found to fall significantly below the safe threshold, rendering them safe for human consumption. However, the standard vermitea, with its high pH and low EC, performed poorly as a hydroponic solution. This research suggests that enhanced vermitea can completely replace chemical nutrient solutions in hydroponic agriculture. This substitution could lead to reduced production costs and improved product quality.

The utilization of vermi-technology to reduce allelopathic effects is a cost-effective, efficient, and environmentally appropriate alternative to traditional chemical and mechanical methods. The current investigation was an effort to obtain vermicompost from C. erectus and its binary combination with soil and farmyard manure (FYM) using E. foetida. The pH, EC, organic carbon, macro and micro-nutrients, CO₂ emission, the average growth rate of the worms, number of worms, number of cocoons, and weight gained by earthworms were analyzed by standard methods. The present study also investigated the effect of produced vermicompost on the growth and yield of mung beans (Vigna radiata L). The maximum reduction in soil pH was observed (6.47) in vermicompost of C. erectus leaves, among other treatments. The highest N (1.86%), P (0.15%), and K (0.41%) contents were found in the vermicompost of C. erectus leaves + FYM. Similarly, the maximum plant height (36.00 cm) was achieved in vermicompost of C. erectus leaves + FYM compared to other treatments. The highest SPAD value was observed (56.37) when the soil was treated with vermicompost (C. erectus leaves + FYM) @ 5 t ha⁻¹, followed by the treatment where vermicompost (C. erectus leaves + soil) @ 8 t ha⁻¹ was applied. The soil amendment of vermicompost (C. erectus leaves + FYM) @ 5 t ha⁻¹ showed competitive results (in terms of the growth and yield parameters of mung beans) compared to other types of vermicompost and C. erectus biomass. This study has the potential to reduce the phytotoxicity of C. erectus biomass and transform it into a potent organic fertilizer through vermicomposting.

Recently, we reported the efficacy of organic nutrient solutions in supporting the hydroponic cultivation of Diplotaxis muralis. The aim of this study was to elucidate the influence of standard and enhanced vermitea formulations, compared to the conventional Hoagland solution, on phytochemical and metabolomic changes in D. muralis. Using NMR-based metabolomics and multivariate analysis, we observed significant metabolite variation among treatments. Both vermitea formulations increased the levels of acetate, alanine, and 2-oxoglutarate, and boosted the biosynthesis of key secondary metabolites, including methoxy flavonoids and glucosinolates. The standard vermitea treatment further resulted in a higher accumulation of leucine and citrate, while the Hoagland solution induced higher glucose concentrations. Enhanced vermitea improved copper and zinc uptake, positively correlating with methoxy flavonoid production. In contrast, the higher phosphorus and potassium content of the Hoagland solution correlated with increased glucose levels in D. muralis. Metabolite profiling coupled with multivariate analysis identified the enhanced vermitea as the best alternative to chemical nutrient solution for improving the nutritional and phytochemical quality of D. muralis leaves.