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This post series covers the many ways you can build fertility, create soil, cycle nutrients and take responsibility for โwasteโ streams on your property. These systems all integrate with one another to increase resilience, improve nutrition (for soil and humans) and save dollars. The posts are written from our own experience and are geared towards the DIYer, though options are provided for ready-to-go purchased systems as well. Check the link tree below or at the bottom of the post to explore the rest of the series!
Bokashi is an anaerobic method of fermenting organic wastes (i.e. pickling them) – as opposed to typical aerobic thermophilic composting that decomposes organic material. Bokashi systems in this sense are more a pre-composting method, as they do not yield finished soil, but instead microbially-rich fermented food wastes that are primed for incorporation directly into soil, thermophilic compost piles, or vermicompost systems (more on this below). Bokashi compost was developed at a commercial scale by Dr. Teruo Higa, a professor at the University of Ryukyus in Okinawa, Japan and founder of EMRO, a company that manufactures EM (effective microbe) products. Whether of not the word bokashi means “fermented organic matter” or not, it has become a household name in the West as means for producing exactly that.
Perhaps the most significant benefit of bokashi fermentation systems is that they are not as picky as other home composting systems as to what goes in them. In fact, bokashi systems can handle just about anything, save for perhaps gallons of used fry oil.
Bokashi fermentation buckets can accept all food wastes – even the types of the organic wastes that thermophilic pile and vermicompost systems typically cannot, such as;
Bokashi is a means by which to process all of your own food scraps where you live and turn them into a nutrient rich soil amendment that your garden will love.
Bokashi buckets also take up a very small footprint, and emit no noxious smells due to their airtight lids (the fermentation environment needs to be kept anaerobic to function properly). Even when you open the buckets to add new material the smell is not offensive – it smells like something being pickled or fermented.
Bokashi buckets yield an acidic liquid as the fermentation process progresses. This liquid should be drained from the buckets every 1-2 days, and is an excellent plant food! The liquid needs to be diluted 100:1 before applying to your garden. It can also be drained down the sink – the microbes within it will help to clear sludge from pipes and keep drains clear.
Another significant benefit of bokashi composting systems is that the entirety of the nutrient content of the inputs is still present in the outputs. Because the fermentation process is anaerobic, there is no off-gassing of carbon or nitrogen as can happen in thermophilic piles. What little liquid is produced and drained during fermentation can be added to your garden as a plant food.
Bokashi composting is very simple if you are purchasing pre-made inoculum. The process of making your own bokashi inoculum, while not difficult, does take time, and won’t fit into all lifestyles. The good news – a single bag of bokashi inoculum goes a long way, making purchasing pre-made inoculum quite affordable.
The pre-compost that comes out of your bokashi bucket after 14 – 21 days of fermentation can be used in a multitude of different ways.
Purchasing bokashi buckets can be rather expensive, especially if you have a household of 4 or more people – for which you’ll probably need at minimum three buckets to keep in rotation (one filling, two fermenting). Purchasing bokashi inoculum also represents an ongoing cost of this style of composting that some may wish to avoid. The good news is that you can make your own DIY bokashi buckets for 75% less than purchasing the pre-made version, and you can make your own bokashi bran on the cheap if you’re willing to put in a little extra microbe-tending.
We made our own bokashi buckets using (2) 5 gallon buckets, (1) fitted lid, and (1) bulkhead fitting and drain spout. They work the same as the pre-made buckets, though the drainage is not quite as complete and requires tipping the bucket to get more of the liquid out. One bucket has small (3/16″) holes drilled in the bottom at approximately 1 – 1.5″ spacing, while the other has a bulkhead and drainage spout mounted as low as possible on the bucket side wall. The bucket with holes drilled in the bottom is where the food scraps will be deposited, and will drain into the lower bucket with the drainage spout. Nesting the food scrap bucket inside the drainage bucket keeps the system air tight.
If you want to purchase a bokashi bucket system to get started right away with a system you know will work, there are many starter kits available – like the Bokashi Compost Start Kit from Bokashi Living (we use this in rotation with out DIY buckets). We have also used the Sunwood Life Bokashi system and the SCD Probiotics Bokashi system (both the same as Bokashi Living) – a way to get started with only a single bokashi bucket if you want to try it out without buying too much at the outset.
Create a resilient on-site nutrient cycling ecosystem on your farm or homestead – learn how this system integrates with the many others to save you money and create a synergistic integration of nutrient cycling systems!
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