A great set of videos that has opened my eyes to Bokashi and how we can use all of our organic waste matter. You are a very good communicator and I was hanging on every word. Thanks again for sharing and educating us on the subject. All the best,Phil. In the UK.
I hope you re aware how wonderful to have a partener that interessed in all there process and holding the camera for you, you can sense i am little jalous too ; )
Hi @Simo Boudarbala Honestly, none of these video would be possible without Denise's help, guidance and questions to keep us on point! Besides working the camera she is also film editor and chief sound engineer too!
I made a video that I’ve yet to publish, but since you’re talking about the 2 bucket system. Look for a “5 gal bucket grit guard”. It’s something car washes use to separate grit from clean water, and is also perfect with a gamma lid and an Italian bottling spigot to make a 1bucket bokashi system.
Many thanks for your videos which are always great and give excellent step by step detail. I'm just about to start my first bokashi bin after preparing LAB as you described in other videos. It will be great to reduce what goes to landfill and to keep the carbon for our soil. Many thanks
I have my 1st set of buckets going...sealed them together with silicone sealant n added a spigot for draining. No smell so far...cept when I open it to add a layer!
Great video. I started bokashi because I was feeding a worm bin and realized how big my waste stream of food was. Now its all captured. I don’t really have land, but with a small raised garden bed and a compost tumbler, I’m working on all the cardboard and paper waste. Plastic though. Hard one to get away from.
Great video indeed and I’d love to try your method. I did use the bokashi bucket with the tap, however it attracts lots of fruit flies at the tip of the tap.
We find the 2 bucket system didn't have any insect problems. When we dump the leachate we give the collection bucket a spray of LAB to help control odor.
No you don't need to use half the solution. The sugar used in super saturation doesn't displace the lab bacterias but simply binds with the water. So the amount of lab in a teaspoon of unsaturated is essentially the same as the super saturated.
Why can’t you use the poultry bones? I think this is the most in-depth resource of actually implementing bokashi that I have found, so thank you for this. Really helpful. I’ve just put in some spent chicken stock carcass and bones, and even before bokashi those are brittle enough to be crushed between fingers. I’ve been curious about what I can expect from those bones next month. I also have some pork ribs that are going through a bokashi ferment, so any details on what happens with and what you do with the bones would be greatly appreciated.
Hmmm @Kellen Chase regarding poultry bones I do run them trhough the bokashi system, same as all the other bones. However, after composting through the second phase I use pork and beef bones to char and make water soluble Calcium Phosphate and then discard the spent crushed charred bones to the garden like bio char. the poultry bones when I have enough I bury their remains like by rose plants under the mulch.
Thank you for your informative videos. One question: is the chlorine in tap water a problem with mixing LAB? I think I have to let my tap water sit for a bit so the chlorine can escape. Does the chlorine in tap water kill the bacteria?
I’ve heard that having a jar/bucket of water from the tap that is left 24 hours to “off gas” it’s fine. In other words leave your water in a bucket for 24 hours to air out
Rainwater or ground well water works well. However, the chlorine and amines in city water can be neutralized by allowing the water to sit in a protect place open to the air for 1-2 days or until you don't smell it anymore. Same tip to use when making the rice wash mix to make LAB. Using chlorinated water out of the tap will kill the microrganisms.
The Lactobacillus bacteria (LAB) solution is kept refrigerated which slows its metabolism down to where it survives up to 6 months. When we apply the LAB to the food waste as we fill the Bokashi bucket we are cultivating LAB as the dominant bacteria which is pickling the food waste. During this process leachate and carbon dioxide are formed. If the leachate is allowed to saturate the bucket it will stop the LAB from being dominant and will allow other anaerobes to gain an upper hand. This disrupts the pickling process and causes putrefaction. Putrefaction in itself isn't bad and over the long term (think months) will also decompose the waste to a level its safe to use. Our goal is to use LAB to increase acidity to keep other anaerobes suppressed and quickly create a pickled food waste (roughly two weeks) that when the fermented bokashi is exposed to the aerobic bacteria in soil or a compost pile will decompose much faster than putrefaction or materials not treated via bokashi. The added benefit is this happens so much faster than either putrefaction or just burying food waste in the garden and doesn't attract animals.
We found that the liquid diluted in a spray bottle worked just as well. So we basically eliminated this interim step since we make our own LAB from scratch as needed.
Bare Mtn Farm that great but seeing that lab is alive and needs air, when u placed in spray bottle, there is no means for air. How do I explain that part, I was thinking of doing same but placing a 1/8 hole upper where handle is and to spray placing thumb on top.. however if this is not needed please advise thanks
@@brothersofjesus My guess is that when you store the solution in the fridge, it slows them down and maybe cause them to require less or no oxygen... just my guess, I don't really know :)
Hey Denise, hey Tony, we give in our bokashi-bucket some layers of biochar and so we dont have any liquid., but reloaded biochar! Do you know, if you give manganesesulfat or ironsulfat in your bokashi-bucket , so can your plants bether useably the manganese or the iron. Do you know the work of John Kempf and his team? Best wishes from bavaria Silke and Gunter
Hi @Silke Baumhauer we haven't tried the biochar in the bucket but it sounds interesting. we have experimented in using semi decomposed wood chips as a moisture absorbing method and it works well too. Since we use purely our own LAB and not any EM The pickling process in the bucket is predominantly Lacto fermentation. The dominant microbe will be LAB so I'm not sure what affect this may have of putting the sulfate compounds into solution such that the ions are absorbable by the biochar. Very curious...have you had any experience with this? On John Kemp we are fascinated by his approach although for small scale growers such as us Plant Sap analysis for us is pretty expensive. Love his podcast!
Yes you can put ferment Bokashi in the compost tumbler as long as there are other regular compost materials to mix well with it. Then just use your regular process for making compost. I would think you'd not want to go over 40% bokashi in any batch, first because of the acidity and second in most cases the Bokashi will act as a green.
Thank you for your simple and clear process! I have been doing Bokashi composting for about a year, using your method. I especially like the simplicity of preparing a solution, and storing a diluted version of it in a spray bottle in the refrigerator, and just spraying down each layer of material as I put it in the compost bin. All this has been very effective in delivering the desired results. I have a question, though. Given that the vast bulk of my food scraps are vegetables, why are the best LAB strains obtained by culturing the bacteria in milk? Wouldn't other strains specializing in vegetables be as effective or more effective? Since I make sauerkraut from time to time, I have been experimenting with mixing my LAB concentrate obtained through the method you describe with plain old sauerkraut liquid. I can't tell if this has had a good, bad or indifferent effect on my composting process. Do you have any thoughts on this? Why not just dilute sauerkraut liquid and spray it in the Bokashi bucket?
I guess the LAB made with milk is effective in generating a microbe dense whey solution that can be stored that has a low salinity level. The milk version has a higher lactose sugar content hence food source that allows the LAB to grow rapidly and out compete other spoilage bacteria. The Sauerkraut process is using LAB but it also contains a high salt level in the process. The salt is used to counter act other bacteria that are pathogenic but not as salt tolerant like LAB. However, using it should give the same pickling results in bokashi. I guess my concern would be eventual salt levels, however diluting the juice 1:30 with water probably solves this for the most part. Guess I'd try it out and see if its as effective alone. Interesting experiment! Thanks so much for the comment.
Interesting stuff. Question: On the part where you lay the newspaper down first: Is there any concern about the chemicals in the newspaper? Are they not containing things that transfer over to the plant? Thanks for the info.
@@BareMtnFarm thanks for answering,, can we use lactic acid by mixing it only with water to make the spray for bokashi, i mean without mixing it with molasses?
Typically traditional Bokashi Bran is made with EM1 fermented wheat bran. The bran is dried and is used the same as an LAB spray that is enough evenly to act as an inoculation. LAB is primarily Lactobacillus bacterium with a minor amount of yeasts. EM! contains specific strains of Lactobacillus, yeasts, and photosynthetic bacteria . However in a Bokashi bucket the Lactobacillus in the anaerobic environment quickly become dominant and primarily are what ferments the food wastes. So using a cheap homemade LAB solution accomplishes the same thing as the Bokashi Bran.
Hi @Chris Zinck The brown sugar is used to supersaturate an LAB serum to be able to store the LAB at room temperature. If you store your LAB in the refrigerator it will keep fine for 3-5 months no problem and you don't have to use sugar to supersaturate it.
You were also sprinkling some BSugar onto food scraps in your bokashi bucket…….as well as spritzing with the super saturated lab? I was just wondering if that extra sprinkle of brown sugar was necessary? I really like the idea of just spraying the lab onto food scraps rather than making the bokashi out of wheat bran ( finding a place to dry it is always a challenge)
@@hobin1433 Right! The brown sugar was totally optional because I had a fair amount of paper towels in the scraps that were going into the Bokashi Bucket. I just did that to give the LAB a little extra food to juice it so to speak. So no if your scraps are really low in cellulose like the towels totally not necessary. Thanks!
Can I add the leachate to a 55 gallon worm tea bucket? I have air going through the bucket with castings and leaf compost bags in the mix. Will it add or take away from the mix? I can't find the video where you feed this to the worms. I want to add the worm bin and the leaf compost pile this year. to be clear...you build out and spray a bucket till it's full then put it outside to ferment for 2 weeks then add to worm bin...correct?
Hi @Camp Davidson The Bokashi leachate is highly acidic, talking pH in the 4 range so it needs to be dilutes at minimum to 1:100 with water. The leachate contains a fair dose of LAB and depending on how long the leachate has been at ambient temps in may have begun to grow other anaerobic bacteria as well. It does have a fertility value when highly diluted and applied as a soil drench but I'm not sure it would add much benefit to the biology in your AACT brew. I have to say it might be worth an experiment but be careful on how much you add try to keep the ratio in that 1:100 zone maybe.
Ok then maybe !'ll just add to the leaf pile out back. Thanks for getting back. I also added some of the lab to bran grain, It's in a bag with no air and some molasses. When I dry that out in a few weeks I can save it in another bucket and it will last for weeks still alive? I have the rest of the lab in the fridge.
I'm planning to try use my LAB ( rice wash and milk whey) on our white carpet. Do i still need to add sugar or molasses when I'm gettingg ready to use it? I store my lab in the refrigerator.
Hi @Jo Cox The process of making LAB room stable for several months is called super saturation. We use brown sugar instead of molasses. Molasses contains a fair fraction of water and will not drive the LAB into hibernation. The reason sugar is the most effective is that the sugar molecule has a stronger affinity to the water molecules than the LAB bacteria. In essence as we add sugar to the mix to the point where the solution will not dissolve anymore sugar the sugar is now out competing the bacteria for water. The Bacteria reacts the same as if in nature when its environment becomes extremely dry like in summer with no rain. Under extreme dry conditions the bacteria encapsulate themselves, slow their metabolism way down and in a sense hibernate until water becomes available again. Using molasses you can never get to this supersaturated condition. That being said the plain LAB in the fridge has lasted me 6 months. I usually use it all before then anyway😀
I recent discovered you on the No Till podcast interview you did with Jennie Love. Enjoying your videos and love the depth of information!! Question...to clarify, those items that normally cannot be put into the compost pile (i.e. onion and avocado skins, citrus peels, bones, nut shells, cooking oil) can be gathered and put into the Bokashi bucket? Can I assume that the Bokashi is done when there is no more liquid draining out? So excited to try this!! Really appreciate all the time you both put into these videos!!
Would small amounts of diluted LAB be dangerous for human or animal consumption? IE if spray gets into your eyes/mouth or if your dog drinks a bit of it?
If you're referring to the original LAB serum that comes from the whey in your original process of making LAB. That is okay in small amounts for animal consumption. But like anything you want to try to avoid getting anything like that in your eyes. It's like the same thing as saying well vinegar won't kill you but you definitely don't want to get it in your eyes. You can give LAB in the water for livestock or a dog or a cat at a dilution rate of about 1 to 300. And you can consume that yourself probably not more than a liter of it in a day diluted but I'm not going to give you any advice on that I'm not a medical person and of course everything always depends on your own personal situation and health. So before consuming anything like that for yourself you would definitely need to take that into account. But when you're making LAB the curds or cheese is also edible. Now once you use the LAB in bokashi the leachate at the bottom of the bokashi bucket contains more than LAB and it should not be consumed or let animals consume it. This leachate contains minerals half digested proteins, some LAB, as well as other bacteria that may have grown in the leachate after it's drained to the bottom of the pail. I use the leachate in my aerobic compost piles straight it tends to quickly be consumed by the aerobic bacterias, fungi, and other life. As always when you're making these things like bokashi or LAB you have to be as careful as possible not to get the stuff in your eyes and to use it in such a way that it doesn't cause any problems
As far as removing liquid, maybe just fit a small tap to the bottom and keep your buckets on a stand? be easier to just open a tap while holding a bottle to catch the liquid.
I do agree that a container with a tap does can work great. I have seen Bokashi bins for sale with that installed and they look great. I tried to install one on the Homer Buckets and found the gasket needed to seal plus the spigot was cumbersome for me to use and I kept damaging the buckets when moving them around. That's just me being clumsy I guess. Due to space constraints and since I have multiple buckets running simultaneously that I stack on top of each other I decided to stick with the no spigot method.
Thankyou for great info on this method. One query, I have seen others using rice husks or something similar between the layers of veg matter. It is supposed to help balance the moisture and the actual mix consistency. What's your view on adding the drier (carbon layer) between food scrap layers. Cheers
Adding carbon in the bin is a good idea whenever you think the material is way too wet. Take for example adding something like applesauce it would benefit well to add say shredded cardboard or the case you said rice husks. The other thing is that you want to be certain that you add more than enough LAB or (EM if you're using that method ) to inoculate the material well. There are some Folks who have had success in a one bucket system by adding to the bottom of their bucket enough shredded carbon materials to absorb leachate liquid. I think some folks think that carbon doesn't belong in a bokashi bucket but adding enough to balance excess liquid is fine.
Hi @A Nother There are quite a few studies that have been conducted over the last several years regarding Bokashi leachate and the compost itself. Although the leachate is quite acidic (in my own measurements I have seen Ph of 3.5-4) it also contains some LAB and some alcohols but also quite a abit of enzymes/metabolites, nitrogen and minerals like K, Fe, Mn that plants can use. However like anything what is exactly in your leachate will depend upon what you put into the fermentation bucket. Here is a sample link to a study done on the effects on growing corn/maize using food waste bokashi leachate: www.google.com/search?q=bokashi+leachate+used+as+plant+food+academic+journal&client=firefox-b-1-d&channel=tus5&sxsrf=AOaemvKCbbnDgB_7uhS8BRGwD8EcOC7rjQ%3A1637474462290&ei=nuCZYe-fEaHA7gL40rT4Bg&ved=0ahUKEwjv5pzd46j0AhUhoFsKHXgpDW8Q4dUDCA0&uact=5&oq=bokashi+leachate+used+as+plant+food+academic+journal&gs_lcp=Cgdnd3Mtd2l6EAM6BwgAEEcQsAM6BAghEApKBAhBGABQ3wZYyUpg0l9oAXACeACAAeECiAHAIZIBCDIuMjAuNC4xmAEAoAEByAEIwAEB&sclient=gws-wiz Apologize for the URL length and it is a PDF. This was published in the : Politeknik & Kolej Komuniti Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities, Vol. 4, No. 1, 2019 The result of this study showed a substantial positive difference in better plant height, stem thickness, # of leaves and leaf length then a control of no fertilizer. The leachate in this study that had the best results was applied at a 1:30 rate approx. Although you can find other studies showing in some cases negative impacts and some with no statistical differences at all. My personal experience in using food waste leachate at a 1:100 dilution on a 10 day rotation during the summer growing seasons in 2020 and 2021 on perennial plants such as boxwood and hybrid roses has been positive with stronger growth. I think the key here is what you put in the bokashi bucket and the right dilution rate and this may differ depending on the plants. Hope this helps.
This channel has such good content but yet again, whoever runs this channel cannot get the basics right. No sections, no links, no mini playlists. Channel so under optimized it is triggering my OCD 😂
Ha..never knew that smelly.garbage cans...about LAB that is...ALWAYS LEARN SOMETHING FROM U..I LOOKED into thisnaeveral years bsck and it wss just infomercials on selling me stuff...NO ONE EVER SAID IT LOOKS THE SAME!!! BUT IT WAS BROKEN DOWN???? EXCEPT THE BONES? I THOUGHT U COULD JUST IMMEDIATELY PUT IT IN THE GARDEN!!! I DONT.TURN MY.COMPOST.PILE...EVER...
@Sislertx The key here is that the materials are in essence pickled in a low oxygen environment with cheaply made LAB. Many folks try and sell you a system, fancy buckets with drains plus inoculated grains with EM1 or whatever. Fact is it is cheap and easy to do this at home. You can do several things with the Bokashi once it has fermented. 1). put it in an active compost pile and let nature take its course, 2.) Make an easy aerobic digester out of an old rubber maid tote, mix the ferment with lots of carbon 60% of the bin (cardboard , egg cartons, wood chips, dry leaves etc all work) let it sit for two weeks, no turning, then either feed it to your worms or put it in your garden. 3.) Dig a hole in your garden such that the materials are covered when dumped into the hole by 6-8 inches of top soil. Water it well & give it 2-3 weeks before planting over the spot to allow the acidity to dissipate and the soil biology to consume it. By the way the leachate always diluted 1:100 is an excellent low yield fertilizer for perennials such as roses
can't stop replaying all your videos!!!
Wow, that is so nice. We hope that they are helpful. Thank you so much for watching.
great work! thank you for sharing it with us.
Our pleasure! Thank you for watching.
Your presentation was the most comprehensive instruction around… fantastic!
Thank you for educating me on the science behind it all in plain language!
I thank you. I am 61 and learning so much.
I am 63 and still learning too. Thank you for watching.
A great set of videos that has opened my eyes to Bokashi and how we can use all of our organic waste matter. You are a very good communicator and I was hanging on every word. Thanks again for sharing and educating us on the subject. All the best,Phil. In the UK.
Thank you - this did actually make sense. Its a whole new world and i am learning all the time.❤
thank you for the thorough process and glad to find you on UA-cam. I've learned a lot. Big thank you again!
I hope you re aware how wonderful to have a partener that interessed in all there process and holding the camera for you, you can sense i am little jalous too ; )
Hi @Simo Boudarbala Honestly, none of these video would be possible without Denise's help, guidance and questions to keep us on point! Besides working the camera she is also film editor and chief sound engineer too!
I’m jealous here too !!!
Seeing them and others on UA-cam work together as a team is so endearing to me, hopefully I’ll find a husband someday 🤷🏼♀️
Great information, thank you!
Our pleasure! Hope it is helpful. Thanks for watching.
Thanks for your wonderful videos on Bokashi!😀 Is the LAB used undiluted ? Thanks so much!🙏🙏
In suspense for part 2 n 3. Thx.
I made a video that I’ve yet to publish, but since you’re talking about the 2 bucket system. Look for a “5 gal bucket grit guard”. It’s something car washes use to separate grit from clean water, and is also perfect with a gamma lid and an Italian bottling spigot to make a 1bucket bokashi system.
Thanks for the tip!
Have you published the video yet
Where is your video that tells you what to do after the Bokashi in the bucket is done?
Thank you for all the well-informed concepts. Also, hats off to your commentating partner especially when she plays the advocate of the devil :)
Our pleasure. As a former school teacher, I am always trying to anticipate any questions that might come up. Thank you for watching and your comment.
Many thanks for your videos which are always great and give excellent step by step detail. I'm just about to start my first bokashi bin after preparing LAB as you described in other videos. It will be great to reduce what goes to landfill and to keep the carbon for our soil. Many thanks
I have my 1st set of buckets going...sealed them together with silicone sealant n added a spigot for draining. No smell so far...cept when I open it to add a layer!
Fabulous video. Thanks so much. Learned a lot.
Thank you so much for watching. Happy to hear that our videos are helpful.
Great video. I started bokashi because I was feeding a worm bin and realized how big my waste stream of food was. Now its all captured. I don’t really have land, but with a small raised garden bed and a compost tumbler, I’m working on all the cardboard and paper waste. Plastic though. Hard one to get away from.
Yep @Kellen Chase plastic is in and on everything!
Plastic is everywhere was in Bolivia for vacation before this pandemic....Wow Plastic water bottles washing up on the beaches just sad sad sad...
Great video indeed and I’d love to try your method. I did use the bokashi bucket with the tap, however it attracts lots of fruit flies at the tip of the tap.
We find the 2 bucket system didn't have any insect problems. When we dump the leachate we give the collection bucket a spray of LAB to help control odor.
Brilliant!!!! I knew that there’s simpler method to do the bukashi stater :) love it!
Glad it was helpful! @Ilona Blaut
Can't wait for part 2 and 3
Would I want to use half the dilution you did if I'm using pure refrigerated LAB serum instead of a super saturation?
No you don't need to use half the solution. The sugar used in super saturation doesn't displace the lab bacterias but simply binds with the water. So the amount of lab in a teaspoon of unsaturated is essentially the same as the super saturated.
@@BareMtnFarm Awesome, thanks for the quick reply. Happy friday 😁
Can we use all types of herbs, shrub and grass during this sort of composting
The grin at the beginning when you said Bokashi sounds like something else and you were scrambling to come up with a PG-rated example.. 😂
This is asome!! Question was the turkey seasoned with salt is that okay in this system?
Our food waste is fairly low on sodium and is diluted with the other liquids from fruits veggies etc. that are in the system.
We are working on getting rid of single use plastics as well. As alternatives come out and we vote with our dollars it will get easier!
Why can’t you use the poultry bones? I think this is the most in-depth resource of actually implementing bokashi that I have found, so thank you for this. Really helpful. I’ve just put in some spent chicken stock carcass and bones, and even before bokashi those are brittle enough to be crushed between fingers. I’ve been curious about what I can expect from those bones next month. I also have some pork ribs that are going through a bokashi ferment, so any details on what happens with and what you do with the bones would be greatly appreciated.
Hmmm @Kellen Chase regarding poultry bones I do run them trhough the bokashi system, same as all the other bones. However, after composting through the second phase I use pork and beef bones to char and make water soluble Calcium Phosphate and then discard the spent crushed charred bones to the garden like bio char. the poultry bones when I have enough I bury their remains like by rose plants under the mulch.
Thank you for your informative videos. One question: is the chlorine in tap water a problem with mixing LAB?
I think I have to let my tap water sit for a bit so the chlorine can escape.
Does the chlorine in tap water kill the bacteria?
I’ve heard that having a jar/bucket of water from the tap that is left 24 hours to “off gas” it’s fine. In other words leave your water in a bucket for 24 hours to air out
Hi would using warm tap water with chloride kill the LABs? should you use rain water?
Rainwater or ground well water works well. However, the chlorine and amines in city water can be neutralized by allowing the water to sit in a protect place open to the air for 1-2 days or until you don't smell it anymore. Same tip to use when making the rice wash mix to make LAB. Using chlorinated water out of the tap will kill the microrganisms.
If the bacteria need "space" and can't live in the liquid at the bottom of the bucket, how does the starter liquid survive?
The Lactobacillus bacteria (LAB) solution is kept refrigerated which slows its metabolism down to where it survives up to 6 months. When we apply the LAB to the food waste as we fill the Bokashi bucket we are cultivating LAB as the dominant bacteria which is pickling the food waste. During this process leachate and carbon dioxide are formed. If the leachate is allowed to saturate the bucket it will stop the LAB from being dominant and will allow other anaerobes to gain an upper hand. This disrupts the pickling process and causes putrefaction. Putrefaction in itself isn't bad and over the long term (think months) will also decompose the waste to a level its safe to use. Our goal is to use LAB to increase acidity to keep other anaerobes suppressed and quickly create a pickled food waste (roughly two weeks) that when the fermented bokashi is exposed to the aerobic bacteria in soil or a compost pile will decompose much faster than putrefaction or materials not treated via bokashi. The added benefit is this happens so much faster than either putrefaction or just burying food waste in the garden and doesn't attract animals.
@@BareMtnFarm Amazing detailed explanation, thank you.
Another question, what made you choose the liquid rather than the bran flakes?
We found that the liquid diluted in a spray bottle worked just as well. So we basically eliminated this interim step since we make our own LAB from scratch as needed.
Bare Mtn Farm that great but seeing that lab is alive and needs air, when u placed in spray bottle, there is no means for air. How do I explain that part, I was thinking of doing same but placing a 1/8 hole upper where handle is and to spray placing thumb on top.. however if this is not needed please advise thanks
@@brothersofjesus My guess is that when you store the solution in the fridge, it slows them down and maybe cause them to require less or no oxygen... just my guess, I don't really know :)
Hey Denise, hey Tony, we give in our bokashi-bucket some layers of biochar and so we dont have any liquid., but reloaded biochar! Do you know, if you give manganesesulfat or ironsulfat in your bokashi-bucket , so can your plants bether useably the manganese or the iron. Do you know the work of John Kempf and his team?
Best wishes from bavaria
Silke and Gunter
Hi @Silke Baumhauer we haven't tried the biochar in the bucket but it sounds interesting. we have experimented in using semi decomposed wood chips as a moisture absorbing method and it works well too. Since we use purely our own LAB and not any EM The pickling process in the bucket is predominantly Lacto fermentation. The dominant microbe will be LAB so I'm not sure what affect this may have of putting the sulfate compounds into solution such that the ions are absorbable by the biochar. Very curious...have you had any experience with this? On John Kemp we are fascinated by his approach although for small scale growers such as us Plant Sap analysis for us is pretty expensive. Love his podcast!
Activated charcoal? what makes it activated?
This is my favorite video on bokashi yet! Thank you for being so informative and thorough. I was wondering where do you acquire your Lactobacillus?
Thanks for watching! We cultivate the LAB using rice wash water and whole milk. We did videos on this just look under our KNF playlist.
Thanks for the reply! I found it and have already made my own! :)
Can I put it in my compost tumbler instead of the ground?
Yes you can put ferment Bokashi in the compost tumbler as long as there are other regular compost materials to mix well with it. Then just use your regular process for making compost. I would think you'd not want to go over 40% bokashi in any batch, first because of the acidity and second in most cases the Bokashi will act as a green.
I've got The perfect composting machines and they are happy friendly Goats ..
Yes they are! Our neighbors had goats cleanup a huge field of blackberries. Amazing!
Can you make "Gunnysack Fermentation" compost from JADAM.
Can I use LAB in the chicken coup to eliminate the order?
Hi @Carolyn Qammaz PA. Yes, LAB is excellent for controlling odors. Try at a dilution of 1:500 if things are really bad try 1:300. Try every 5-7 days.
Thank you for your simple and clear process! I have been doing Bokashi composting for about a year, using your method. I especially like the simplicity of preparing a solution, and storing a diluted version of it in a spray bottle in the refrigerator, and just spraying down each layer of material as I put it in the compost bin. All this has been very effective in delivering the desired results. I have a question, though. Given that the vast bulk of my food scraps are vegetables, why are the best LAB strains obtained by culturing the bacteria in milk? Wouldn't other strains specializing in vegetables be as effective or more effective? Since I make sauerkraut from time to time, I have been experimenting with mixing my LAB concentrate obtained through the method you describe with plain old sauerkraut liquid. I can't tell if this has had a good, bad or indifferent effect on my composting process. Do you have any thoughts on this? Why not just dilute sauerkraut liquid and spray it in the Bokashi bucket?
I guess the LAB made with milk is effective in generating a microbe dense whey solution that can be stored that has a low salinity level. The milk version has a higher lactose sugar content hence food source that allows the LAB to grow rapidly and out compete other spoilage bacteria. The Sauerkraut process is using LAB but it also contains a high salt level in the process. The salt is used to counter act other bacteria that are pathogenic but not as salt tolerant like LAB. However, using it should give the same pickling results in bokashi. I guess my concern would be eventual salt levels, however diluting the juice 1:30 with water probably solves this for the most part. Guess I'd try it out and see if its as effective alone. Interesting experiment! Thanks so much for the comment.
Interesting stuff. Question: On the part where you lay the newspaper down first: Is there any concern about the chemicals in the newspaper? Are they not containing things that transfer over to the plant? Thanks for the info.
Newspapers switched to soy based ink over a decade ago. It's all good.
Is your tablespoon 15 ml or 50 ml?
Thank you for your question. It is 15 ml per tablespoon. Thanks for watching.
@@BareMtnFarm thanks for answering,, can we use lactic acid by mixing it only with water to make the spray for bokashi, i mean without mixing it with molasses?
How does LAB differ from the typical bokashi Bran?
Typically traditional Bokashi Bran is made with EM1 fermented wheat bran. The bran is dried and is used the same as an LAB spray that is enough evenly to act as an inoculation. LAB is primarily Lactobacillus bacterium with a minor amount of yeasts. EM! contains specific strains of Lactobacillus, yeasts, and photosynthetic bacteria . However in a Bokashi bucket the Lactobacillus in the anaerobic environment quickly become dominant and primarily are what ferments the food wastes. So using a cheap homemade LAB solution accomplishes the same thing as the Bokashi Bran.
@@BareMtnFarm So one could use LAB to ferment the wheat bran instead of EM1? To make "Bokashi Bran"?
Is the extra sugar really necessary
Hi @Chris Zinck The brown sugar is used to supersaturate an LAB serum to be able to store the LAB at room temperature. If you store your LAB in the refrigerator it will keep fine for 3-5 months no problem and you don't have to use sugar to supersaturate it.
You were also sprinkling some BSugar onto food scraps in your bokashi bucket…….as well as spritzing with the super saturated lab? I was just wondering if that extra sprinkle of brown sugar was necessary? I really like the idea of just spraying the lab onto food scraps rather than making the bokashi out of wheat bran ( finding a place to dry it is always a challenge)
@@hobin1433 Right! The brown sugar was totally optional because I had a fair amount of paper towels in the scraps that were going into the Bokashi Bucket. I just did that to give the LAB a little extra food to juice it so to speak. So no if your scraps are really low in cellulose like the towels totally not necessary. Thanks!
Are you using well water ( nonchlorinated)
Why can't you use poultry bones as a calcium suppliment for the plants?
Can I add the leachate to a 55 gallon worm tea bucket? I have air going through the bucket with castings and leaf compost bags in the mix. Will it add or take away from the mix? I can't find the video where you feed this to the worms. I want to add the worm bin and the leaf compost pile this year. to be clear...you build out and spray a bucket till it's full then put it outside to ferment for 2 weeks then add to worm bin...correct?
Hi @Camp Davidson The Bokashi leachate is highly acidic, talking pH in the 4 range so it needs to be dilutes at minimum to 1:100 with water. The leachate contains a fair dose of LAB and depending on how long the leachate has been at ambient temps in may have begun to grow other anaerobic bacteria as well. It does have a fertility value when highly diluted and applied as a soil drench but I'm not sure it would add much benefit to the biology in your AACT brew. I have to say it might be worth an experiment but be careful on how much you add try to keep the ratio in that 1:100 zone maybe.
Ok then maybe !'ll just add to the leaf pile out back. Thanks for getting back. I also added some of the lab to bran grain, It's in a bag with no air and some molasses. When I dry that out in a few weeks I can save it in another bucket and it will last for weeks still alive? I have the rest of the lab in the fridge.
If the process is to be anaerobic then the holes on the bottom of the bucket defeats the purposes?
The gap between the holes and the bottom bucket is pretty air tight.
Wonder if the sugar from pop.drinks kills it...
I'm planning to try use my LAB ( rice wash and milk whey) on our white carpet. Do i still need to add sugar or molasses when I'm gettingg ready to use it? I store my lab in the refrigerator.
Hi @Jo Cox The process of making LAB room stable for several months is called super saturation. We use brown sugar instead of molasses. Molasses contains a fair fraction of water and will not drive the LAB into hibernation. The reason sugar is the most effective is that the sugar molecule has a stronger affinity to the water molecules than the LAB bacteria. In essence as we add sugar to the mix to the point where the solution will not dissolve anymore sugar the sugar is now out competing the bacteria for water. The Bacteria reacts the same as if in nature when its environment becomes extremely dry like in summer with no rain. Under extreme dry conditions the bacteria encapsulate themselves, slow their metabolism way down and in a sense hibernate until water becomes available again. Using molasses you can never get to this supersaturated condition. That being said the plain LAB in the fridge has lasted me 6 months. I usually use it all before then anyway😀
I recent discovered you on the No Till podcast interview you did with Jennie Love. Enjoying your videos and love the depth of information!! Question...to clarify, those items that normally cannot be put into the compost pile (i.e. onion and avocado skins, citrus peels, bones, nut shells, cooking oil) can be gathered and put into the Bokashi bucket? Can I assume that the Bokashi is done when there is no more liquid draining out? So excited to try this!! Really appreciate all the time you both put into these videos!!
Would small amounts of diluted LAB be dangerous for human or animal consumption? IE if spray gets into your eyes/mouth or if your dog drinks a bit of it?
If you're referring to the original LAB serum that comes from the whey in your original process of making LAB. That is okay in small amounts for animal consumption. But like anything you want to try to avoid getting anything like that in your eyes. It's like the same thing as saying well vinegar won't kill you but you definitely don't want to get it in your eyes. You can give LAB in the water for livestock or a dog or a cat at a dilution rate of about 1 to 300. And you can consume that yourself probably not more than a liter of it in a day diluted but I'm not going to give you any advice on that I'm not a medical person and of course everything always depends on your own personal situation and health. So before consuming anything like that for yourself you would definitely need to take that into account. But when you're making LAB the curds or cheese is also edible.
Now once you use the LAB in bokashi the leachate at the bottom of the bokashi bucket contains more than LAB and it should not be consumed or let animals consume it. This leachate contains minerals half digested proteins, some LAB, as well as other bacteria that may have grown in the leachate after it's drained to the bottom of the pail. I use the leachate in my aerobic compost piles straight it tends to quickly be consumed by the aerobic bacterias, fungi, and other life.
As always when you're making these things like bokashi or LAB you have to be as careful as possible not to get the stuff in your eyes and to use it in such a way that it doesn't cause any problems
couldn't you use that sugar in the next batch?
I just trimmed raw fat from chicken, can I add this to my Bokashi bucket?
If your tap water supply is chlorinated you need to let it sit and evaporate or filter out the chlorine.
As far as removing liquid, maybe just fit a small tap to the bottom and keep your buckets on a stand? be easier to just open a tap while holding a bottle to catch the liquid.
I do agree that a container with a tap does can work great. I have seen Bokashi bins for sale with that installed and they look great. I tried to install one on the Homer Buckets and found the gasket needed to seal plus the spigot was cumbersome for me to use and I kept damaging the buckets when moving them around. That's just me being clumsy I guess. Due to space constraints and since I have multiple buckets running simultaneously that I stack on top of each other I decided to stick with the no spigot method.
Thankyou for great info on this method. One query, I have seen others using rice husks or something similar between the layers of veg matter. It is supposed to help balance the moisture and the actual mix consistency. What's your view on adding the drier (carbon layer) between food scrap layers. Cheers
Adding carbon in the bin is a good idea whenever you think the material is way too wet. Take for example adding something like applesauce it would benefit well to add say shredded cardboard or the case you said rice husks. The other thing is that you want to be certain that you add more than enough LAB or (EM if you're using that method ) to inoculate the material well. There are some Folks who have had success in a one bucket system by adding to the bottom of their bucket enough shredded carbon materials to absorb leachate liquid. I think some folks think that carbon doesn't belong in a bokashi bucket but adding enough to balance excess liquid is fine.
Some people turn plastic into fuel. Watched a guy on an island do it. Impressive
Why can't you use bird bones?
Thank you for your time
1.proof the LAB can be 'drowned' bottom of the bucket 2.Proof the leachate is a good fertilizer? Show academic references.
Hi @A Nother There are quite a few studies that have been conducted over the last several years regarding Bokashi leachate and the compost itself. Although the leachate is quite acidic (in my own measurements I have seen Ph of 3.5-4) it also contains some LAB and some alcohols but also quite a abit of enzymes/metabolites, nitrogen and minerals like K, Fe, Mn that plants can use. However like anything what is exactly in your leachate will depend upon what you put into the fermentation bucket. Here is a sample link to a study done on the effects on growing corn/maize using food waste bokashi leachate:
www.google.com/search?q=bokashi+leachate+used+as+plant+food+academic+journal&client=firefox-b-1-d&channel=tus5&sxsrf=AOaemvKCbbnDgB_7uhS8BRGwD8EcOC7rjQ%3A1637474462290&ei=nuCZYe-fEaHA7gL40rT4Bg&ved=0ahUKEwjv5pzd46j0AhUhoFsKHXgpDW8Q4dUDCA0&uact=5&oq=bokashi+leachate+used+as+plant+food+academic+journal&gs_lcp=Cgdnd3Mtd2l6EAM6BwgAEEcQsAM6BAghEApKBAhBGABQ3wZYyUpg0l9oAXACeACAAeECiAHAIZIBCDIuMjAuNC4xmAEAoAEByAEIwAEB&sclient=gws-wiz
Apologize for the URL length and it is a PDF. This was published in the : Politeknik & Kolej Komuniti Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities, Vol. 4, No. 1, 2019
The result of this study showed a substantial positive difference in better plant height, stem thickness, # of leaves and leaf length then a control of no fertilizer. The leachate in this study that had the best results was applied at a 1:30 rate approx. Although you can find other studies showing in some cases negative impacts and some with no statistical differences at all. My personal experience in using food waste leachate at a 1:100 dilution on a 10 day rotation during the summer growing seasons in 2020 and 2021 on perennial plants such as boxwood and hybrid roses has been positive with stronger growth. I think the key here is what you put in the bokashi bucket and the right dilution rate and this may differ depending on the plants. Hope this helps.
This channel has such good content but yet again, whoever runs this channel cannot get the basics right. No sections, no links, no mini playlists. Channel so under optimized it is triggering my OCD 😂
Ha..never knew that smelly.garbage cans...about LAB that is...ALWAYS LEARN SOMETHING FROM U..I LOOKED into thisnaeveral years bsck and it wss just infomercials on selling me stuff...NO ONE EVER SAID IT LOOKS THE SAME!!! BUT IT WAS BROKEN DOWN????
EXCEPT THE BONES?
I THOUGHT U COULD JUST IMMEDIATELY PUT IT IN THE GARDEN!!!
I DONT.TURN MY.COMPOST.PILE...EVER...
@Sislertx The key here is that the materials are in essence pickled in a low oxygen environment with cheaply made LAB. Many folks try and sell you a system, fancy buckets with drains plus inoculated grains with EM1 or whatever. Fact is it is cheap and easy to do this at home. You can do several things with the Bokashi once it has fermented. 1). put it in an active compost pile and let nature take its course, 2.) Make an easy aerobic digester out of an old rubber maid tote, mix the ferment with lots of carbon 60% of the bin (cardboard , egg cartons, wood chips, dry leaves etc all work) let it sit for two weeks, no turning, then either feed it to your worms or put it in your garden. 3.) Dig a hole in your garden such that the materials are covered when dumped into the hole by 6-8 inches of top soil. Water it well & give it 2-3 weeks before planting over the spot to allow the acidity to dissipate and the soil biology to consume it. By the way the leachate always diluted 1:100 is an excellent low yield fertilizer for perennials such as roses