Water from Cooked Beans as Substrate for Some Heterotrophic Organisms: Case Study of Moulds

Abstract

The discovery of new ecological fertilizers can sustainably enhance plants nutrition. In that point of view, the present study aimed to demonstrate the high concentration of water from cooked beans in organic compounds, various mineral salts and water. For that purpose, moulds were used because of the above listed elements as their basic feeding needs. Cold water from cooked beans was collected and kept during five days at open-air; the evolution of its aspect was daily followed up. The experimental design was a randomized complete block in 10 replicates; an eleventh bucket filled with the same water was used to perform some of its characterization. The moulds are Aspergillus L. The water from cooked beans is a heterogeneous mixture and particularly a globular proteic suspension. At rest, it organizes itself in a superficial flaky domain and a lower liquid domain. The flaky domain is mainly organic and the liquid domain is mainly both mineral and aqueous. The density of the flaky domain was 0.964 and that of the aqueous domain was1.011. The average speed of the growth of Aspergillus L. at the surface of the water from cooked beans was 3,17 cm2/H; they cover then in five days a surface of 379.74 cm2. The exponential growth of Aspergillus L. at the surface of the water from cooked beans generated a continuous decreasing of the pH; this behavior shows that the water from cooked beans seems to be an adequate substrate; it then implicitly contains all the nutrients required for their optimal development; this include water, organic matters and mineral salts among which nitrogen, potassium, phosphorus, sulfur and calcium can be named; it is then a complete liquid organic fertilizer. That water appears also as a high grade activator for soils micro flora. Peasants could thus save a lot of money by using this liquid single or in combination with other fertilizers to promote the sustainable development of agriculture in their ecosystems.