The Essence of Bokashi

Bokashi would be little more than compost in a bucket without the inoculant mixture that is added to the natural waste products. The inoculant is primarily composed of wheat bran or newspapers, in addition to that there is water, molasses and E.M. (effective-microorganisms). The E.M. is the reason for the accelerated decomposition of the compost, the molasses serves as food for the microorganisms and the water and wheat bran/newspaper is a place to live, essentially the catalyst of the E.M.'s life. The proportions of these items are added in these proportions:

Ingredient	10lbs	50lbs	2000lbs
EM	4 Tablespoons	3/4 Cup	1 Gallon
Molasses	4 Tablespoons	3/4 Cup	1 Gallon
Water	10 Cups	3-4 Gallons	75-100 Gallons
Bran (carbon material)	10lbs	50lbs	2000lbs

After this mixture reaches the correct consistency it is stored in a large bin (in the case of wheat bran) where it ferments for up to a month which allows the E.M. to multiply as well as yeast to take root. At the end of the month the wheat bran should have white fuzz covering its surface, this indicates that the bran has fermented correctly and for the right amount of time.

So, you may have been wondering what is this E.M. thing; sure they are microorganisms that help the compost, but what do they do? First of all in bokashi composting there are three main types of microorganisms: lactobacilli, fungi/yeast and phototropic bacilli. These microorganisms need to eat. In the beginning the molasses is used as their source of food, when added to your compost these organisms eat up just about everything in there.

 Thats pretty cool but whats even cooler is that these microorganisms aren't all that special you can ferment your own E.M with three things; water, rice and milk.

Heres How

1. You begin with a mixture of 1 part rice to 2 parts water, you shake this vigorously and then drain. The liquid should have a milky color to it. 
2. Then pour the liquid into a container preferably a wide one like a mason jar, it should fill about 1/4 to 1/2 the jar. 
3. Lightly cover this with a cheesecloth or tea towel, this allows air in and out easily. 
4. Allow this to sit in a cool dark place for 4-8 days
5. Now you take that liquid and add it to a larger container along with 10 parts milk or skim milk.
6. Lightly cover an allow to ferment for around 14 days.
7. Finally strain the solids and follow the instructions for mixing with the wheat bran or newspaper, the concentration of microorganisms may vary from batch to batch so you will have to adjust the amount of E.M. liquid you add accordingly. It should be just right if you allow everything proper fermentation time.