Isolation and Identification of Bacteria Associated with the Compost Generated from Cocoa Pod Husk and Cow Dung

Abstract

Generation of compost from organic materials has been in practice for numerous decades. This study was conducted to isolate and identify bacteria responsible for the composting of Cocoa pod husks (CPH) and Cow dung (CD).Ten kilogram of fresh Cocoa pod husks and 10.0 kg of Cow dung were composted for twenty days with a view to generating compost from the mixture. One gram of the compost was weighed and suspended into three test tubes containing 9.0 ml sterile distilled water. The mixture was vigorously shaken to give room for the formation of supernatant. Subsequently, 1.0 ml of the supernatant was introduced into test tubes containing Mineral Salt Medium (MSM).The mixture in the test tubes was then shaken vigorously and allowed to settle. The test tubes were subsequently incubated at 37.0 0C for four days and observed for bacterial growth indicated by broth medium turbidity. Bacterial growth observed after incubation was sub-cultured into three test tubes containing Trypticase Soy broth (TSB) and incubated at 37.0 0C for 48 hours. Further subculturing was carried out using three Trypticase Soy Agar (TSA) plates at 37.0 0C for 48 hours and colonies (C1, C2, C3, C4, C5, C6, C7 and C8) that developed were observed and recorded. Bacterial colonies were subsequently picked and transferred to other glass slides to form smears. Gram staining procedures and biochemical tests were subsequently conducted. The results of the biochemical tests conducted on C1, C2, C3, C4, C5, C6, C7 and C8 indicated Alcaligenes feacalis, Streptococcus sp, Serratiamarcescens, Pseudomonas sp, Flavobacterium sp, Escherichia coli, Bacillus stearothermophilus and Bacillus subtilis as the isolated bacteria. However, molecular identification of the bacterial isolates is recommended with a view to further confirming their identity.