Bokashi for beginners: what is it, and what can it do for me?

[mad librettist]

yeah, I've sprayed and drenched with it. sorry I assumed you were too.

I got no discernible benefits, no harm.''

if things look awry I reach for compost tea or worm castings slurry.

 

[organicterra]

Question on Bokashi Bran:
My last 50lb batch of homemade Bokashi bran is running low and I'm gearing up to do another batch.
Last batch I used AEM, water, molasses and a little sea salt.
Should I be using the mother culture instead of the activated?
Also, I now have some Sea 90, would that be good to add in? How much for 50lb batch?
I would like to add some kelp meal also but not sure how much.
I run the buckets through my compost pile. Which is looking awesome by the way.

 

[mad librettist]

I use the activated to make bran.

kelp meal - a few handfuls per 10 lbs or so should do it, but honestly you are better off putting kelp meal on as a top dressing.

 

[CC_2U]

Question on Bokashi Bran:
My last 50lb batch of homemade Bokashi bran is running low and I'm gearing up to do another batch.
Last batch I used AEM, water, molasses and a little sea salt.
Should I be using the mother culture instead of the activated?
Also, I now have some Sea 90, would that be good to add in? How much for 50lb batch?
I would like to add some kelp meal also but not sure how much.
I run the buckets through my compost pile. Which is looking awesome by the way.

OT

On the SEA-90 I would use the same amount that EM America recommends for their proprietary salt product.

Kelp meal loses many of the benefits from the compounds (in particular Alginic acid and Mannitol) as they're reduced to their basic elements one the fermentation process has broken the molecular bonds.

Around the world and in particular in India and Southeast Asia in the process of producing fermented fertilizers (really, really extended bokashi bran) the addition of fish (meal and bone meal) is always in the mixes from the sites I've looked at. Massive amounts of fish products actually. Using rice hulls is also very typical which makes sense for a number of reasons.

CC

 

[organicterra]

Thanks Mad and CC
I did a quick search and was only coming up with the basic recipe.
50 lbs wheat bran
3/4 cup EM-1
3/4 cup molasses
3-4 gallons water

I would guess 1/4-1/2 cup sea salt?
Any rock dust? I noticed the ceramic powder. Not sure what that does.
Also the podchef guy mentioned he uses kelp in his AEM. Is that counter productive?
I'm using the bran strickly for the kitchen scrap buckets then into the compost.
But I use the AEM for lots of other stuff.

 

[CC_2U]

OT

This process of producing fermented fertilizers might give you some ideas/products to consider.

CC

 

[organicterra]

OT

This process of producing fermented fertilizers might give you some ideas/products to consider.

CC

Thanks CC,
That's a great article, I should have read it better the last time you linked it.
I think I will add the fish meal and some fish bone meal this time as well as some rock dust and sea salt.
super charged Bokashi!

 

[CC_2U]

OT

If you do some reading on palm sugar you may find some compelling reasons to use that as your carbohydrate source. Takes a bit more effort than a liquid like molasses but it's a completely different plant with its own properties/benefits, IMHO

CC

 

[Stankie]

Does the 1:1:20 ratio apply to using palm sugar instead of molasses in making an activated EM?

 

[CC_2U]

Does the 1:1:20 ratio apply to using palm sugar instead of molasses in making an activated EM?

Stankie

I did but I couldn't give you a sound reason why I did - I was just following the original instructions from what was then called EMAmerica.com - now it's TerraGrafix.com or something like that.

CC

 

[johnnybsmokin]

My DIY Bokashi bin

My DIY Bokashi bin

Hello mad librettist

Great thread, have read it twice now and you have inspired me to start up with a "bokashi" system. But instead of buying a couple I thought i would make my own (I'm a cheap bastard...lol).

After reading all of this I realised that I would need 2 bins to keep things rolling along and at $60 each works out a little to much. So for about $18 bucks I have materials for 2 DIY buckets that I'm sure will do the same job as the store bought one's.

If you don't mind I will give a quick "how to" of my buckets.

The first pic is of the finished product ready to go including a "bought" bag of the bokashi mix. (Iv'e ordered a bottle of EM-1, so I'll be making my own from now on)



And the materials bought to make the 2 buckets.



Now originally I was going to cut up a couple of old "20 litre" bucket lids for the strainer/base but when I got home and tried a couple of old buckets I had at home and slipped them into the new 1's, I found that they sat about 25mm/1 inch up of the bottom making the perfect size gap on the bottom to allow for the tap.



So with that in mind I did the following to one of the old buckets and made the strainer for the bottom. Holes drilled, bottom cut off from old bucket and almost ready.



Now I know that the strainer will sit about 25mm up from the bottom but as you are required to push/compact down the contents and try to eliminate air pockets I though I would strengthen the bottom and used some stainlees steel screws as follows.



These where fixed into place by drilling, screwing and then hot glueing them into place. Once trial fitted it was a perfect fit. If you look closely you con see the "edge" of the cut bottom against the new bucket in the next pic. (haveing the same coloured bucket doesn't help to clarify it but you can see the details).



Ok now for the "tap". Iv'e used a standard 12mm/1/2 inch irrigation system tap available at most good hardware shops ( all of the goods bought where from good old bunnings by the way). First I removed the "barbed" end, drilled a hole ever so slightly smaller than the shaft and gently filled the hole to make the tap a tight fit. The next step I did was to ruff up the surounding edges with sand paper in preperation to hold/seal the hot glue used to glue the tap in possie. This include the inside and out. I then applied a good amount of hot glue to the edge of the tap that comes into contact with the outside of the bucket and shoved it in nice and tightly.

On the inside I cut a short peice of the ploy pipe that is used with these fittings and again applied a good amount of the glue and pushed the pipe over the fitting and up against the side of the bucket to try and make a nice tight and water proof seal. The final thing to install is one of the "clamps" that are designed to be used with the "iirigation" system, nice and tightly to stop things from moveing (use a pair of pliers to do this).



Now those with a keen eye will see that I also cut off 1 of the "wings" from the tap so that it would fit up nice and close to the bucket and when operated wont touch the side of the bucket. Take a close look at the finished bucket below.



So there you have it, 1 made up with another to go shortly. As can be seen in the next pick, I will use them on top of one another. The bottom 1 will be the one which will be full and matureing and the one on top will be the current 1. This way the top 1 will add weight and ensure that the bottom 1 is sealed nice and good.



Hope you all enjoy and if you want some more details just ask and I will edit this post.

Cheers Johnny

 

[CC_2U]

Very nice design! That will get you up and running quickly.

CC

 

[johnnybsmokin]

Very nice design! That will get you up and running quickly.

CC

Yes it did. Only took about an hour to make up and it is alread 1/3 full of goodies that I had stocked pilled in the last 2 days. I have a worm farm, rotating compost bin (again DIY) and a compost pile as well, so nothing goes to waste in my house hold.

The bokashi bin will now enable my to recycle the meats and other things that you cannot put into conventional compost and worm bins.

Cheers Johnny

 

[mad librettist]

awesome!

I am putting this in the table of contents


go easy on the meats. I'm not convinced it's safe like I was when i first started bokashi composting.

 

[johnnybsmokin]

awesome!

I am putting this in the table of contents


go easy on the meats. I'm not convinced it's safe like I was when i first started bokashi composting.

Hey mad, I'm honoured to have you put it into the table of contents, this is a great thread so I'm happy to contrbute.

As far as the meat is concerned. it would only be the left overs from dinner etc, so it won't be a lot.

On another note, I'm currently enjoying some fresh water cray fish and was wondering if the "shells" could be put into this system after they are crushed up that is???, it would certainly add some calcium to the mix. What are your thoughts??

Cheers Johhny

 

[mad librettist]

any arthropod shells are great for bokashi.


it's chitin, baby!

 

[johnnybsmokin]

Hey all

I was searching for some info on "cultivating mycorrhizal fungi" (yes I know, doesn't really belong in this thread) but I cam across a reference to Bokashi info here http://www.the-compost-gardener.com/bokashi-composting.html as a result.

It has some great reading explaining the use off Bokashi and some links at the bottom of page which explain making the "bran" as well as "paper" inoculant etc. A quick copy and paste below.

The Bran

How to Make Bokashi

To make your own you need these ingredients.

* EM, effective microorganisms - some people try to save money by using their own microbe concoction. This does work to some extent but from what I see it looks like they get going with just the lactic acid bacteria. Yeasts may or may not be present and I pretty sure the photosynthetic bacteria are missing altogether. For me I recommend buying your microbes to ensure you get the three types of microbes including several strains of lactic acid bacteria, yeasts, and photosynthetic bacteria.
* Molasses - you can use either the type you'd find at the grocery store or the feed store.
* Water with no chlorine residues. You can use tap water as long as you leave it sitting out for at least 24 hours before using it.
* Wheat or Rice bran
* Mixing tub or tarp depending on how much you're going to make
* Airtight container to hold your bran while it ferments.
* Time

Recipe for 10 Pounds of Bokashi

* 4T - 60 ml EM-1 or equivalent microbes
* 4T - 60 ml Molasses
* 10 cups - 2.5 liters water - no chlorine residues
* 10 lbs - 4.5 kg bran

Dissolve the molasses in the water. Add the EM microbes. Put the bran in a container big enough to hold it. Add the liquid and stir it up well with your hands. The mixture should be damp enough to hold together when you squeeze it into a ball but not so wet liquid is dripping from it. Adjust the moisture by adding either a bit more liquid or more bran.

Put the damp bran into an airtight container.A dark garbage bag in fine. Squeeze out all the air and fasten the top securely. Let it sit in a warm place out of the way for a minimum of two weeks. It's okay to leave it longer.

There may be some white mold on the fermented bran at the end of the two weeks. This is good. If however the mold is black or green it means either some air got in or the material was too wet.

For storing long term dry the bran well. Ten pounds of bokashi would last the average family 6-10 months. Properly dried it can be stored for several years. Store in an airtight container out of direct light.

You might decide to get together with friends and make a big batch at once. Here are the amounts you need to make 50 pounds of the bran. For a family this would be enough for several years.

Recipe for 50 pounds of Bokashi

* 6 ounces, 3/4 cup or 180 ml of EM-1 or equivalent
* 6 ounces, 3/4 cup or 180 ml of molasses
* 3 gallons or 12.5 liters water
* 50 lbs -23 kg bran

Use the same method as above. The water needed will depend to some extent on where you live. If it is very humid you will likely need less water, very dry more water. Test by squeezing a handful of the bokashi together.

For long term storage dry and then store in airtight containers out of direct sunlight.

How Much Money Do I Save?

I just spoke with the local feed store here and can get a 25 kg or about 55 lb bag of bran for $20. I can buy a liter of microbes from a Canadian supplier for about $30. I only need $6 worth for my bran. The rest I can store for later batches. I figure I can make a 3 to 4 year supply of bokashi for about $28.

For premade bokashi I would pay about $15 for 5 pounds from one supplier.

Sourcing Ingredients

Your bran and molasses are available either at the grocery store or at a feed store if you live in an agricultural area. Water comes from the tap left to sit out for a couple of days. The only tricky ingredient is the EM-1, effective microorganisms or something equivalent. As microbes can not always pass borders easily you need to find a source for your country.

For the United States EM-1 is available though Teraganix

Canadians can order an EM equivalent product at The Organic Gardener's Pantry.

If you are from another country contact EMRO Japan to find a source for your area.

And the Paper method. (uses home made lactobacillus serum, which is also descibed but EM-1 can also be used)

Instead of using expensive bran I ferment newspaper to use between the layers of compost in the bucket. I take one part lactobacillus serum to one part molasses to six parts water. (label and freeze any extra serum) I soak a bunch of newspapers thoroughly in the mixture and drain well. I place the soaked newspapers in a 2 gallon zip lock baggie, remove all the
air and seal.
Place in a cool dark spot and wait 10 days to 2 weeks to get a good fermentation. After the fermentation process I separate and dry the newspaper. It’s now thecarrier for the bacteria.

Is quite interesting reading for any body who wishes to know more. Just thought Id'e share with you all.

Cheers Johnny

 

[big_daddy]

ML,

I just opened my Bokashi tote, and it's generating a lot of heat......I've never had this happen before. Do you have any information on this?

I did let it go for over a month, and the last few times it was good to go at 3 weeks.

thanks,

b_d

 

[mad librettist]

Bokashi for beginners: what is it, and what can it do for me?

ML,

I just opened my Bokashi tote, and it's generating a lot of heat......I've never had this happen before. Do you have any information on this?

I did let it go for over a month, and the last few times it was good to go at 3 weeks.

thanks,

b_d

lol I would get that outside fast. throw it on a pile ASAP.

I have cooked a wormbin, but never a bucket.

 

[GoneRooty]

So I just finished eating a mango, and I'm looking at this pit and wondering, Can this go in my bokashi bucket? Any ideas? I'm thinking it should be ok, but not positive.