For most of our lives we’ve warned people NOT to give us plants as gifts, knowing that it would be a death sentence for any plant, no matter how sturdy. One of us could simply look at a potted plant and it would curl up and die. Derrick even bought an artificial tree for the shop once, and within minutes of placing it in the spot he had chosen he noticed leaves starting to fall off. So, when he told me that he wanted to start creating rich, beautiful, nutrient-filled soil using a combination of Wonder Soil plus a revolutionary Japanese composting system known as Bokashi, I wondered what he was going to do with that soil. “Grow herbs and vegetables!” He told me. With the incentive of being able to teach people about Bokashi Composting, sell Wonder Soil kits and an elegant Bokashi system folks can use in their kitchens, combined with our friend Chris Wark’s amazing mini-greenhouse, the p-Pod, Derrick has become quite the gardener! I, of course, avoid even glancing at any of the plants, lest I destroy any of his good work.
We’ll do more stories about Wonder Soil and the p-Pod in upcoming articles. Today we’re going to focus on Bokashi and the TeraGanix Bokashi system.
From WikiPedia (so it must be true):
Bokashi is a process that converts food waste and similar organic matter into a soil amendment which adds nutrients and improves soil texture. It differs from traditional composting methods in several respects. The most important are:
- The input matter is fermented by specialist bacteria
- The fermented matter is fed directly to field or garden soil, without requiring further time to mature.
- As a result, virtually all input carbon, energy and nutrients enter the soil food web, having been neither emitted in greenhouse gases and heat nor leached out.
Other names attributed to this process include bokashi composting, bokashi fermentation and fermented composting. Read more on Wikipedia >>
HOW DOES IT WORK?
Reach And Teach now offers the TeraGanix Bokashi composting system in our shop.
With their countertop compost bin’s compact design and efficient composting process, the TeraGanix Bokashi system works like magic, transforming your food scraps into valuable compost in less than two months (total elapsed time).
You can turn all of your food scraps into compost – Easily process virtually any kind of food waste right in your kitchen! Simply scrape food scraps into the compost bin, including small bones, meat and dairy. Then sprinkle a layer of Bokashi bran on top of the scraps then close the lid. The Bokashi process creates a liquid runoff that you should drain every 2-3 days. The unique bucket design with a spigot makes this very easy to do in a mess-free way. Dilute the runoff liquid with water and use it to fertilize your indoor and outdoor plants or pour the undiluted liquid down the sink to unblock drains which it does very effectively and safely.
After the bin is full (about 2″ from the top of the bin), sprinkle a final amount of Bokashi Bran and let the bin sit for two weeks. You can then mix it into your soil and around three weeks later you will have the richest chocolate brown compost of your dreams. (The photo at the top of this post is the real final product that I produced with my first use.)
Bokashi composting really works for us because it is easy to do, odor free, and we can compost all year round. Order your own TeraGanix Bokashi Composting system here.
CRAIG SAYS: Derrick is actually having fun using the Bokashi system and growing tomatoes and a variety of herbs. We put one or two plants out on a table in front of our shop and they look so beautiful and healthy people buy them! We’ve sold several Bokashi systems, tons of Wonder Soil kits, and just sold our first p-Pod! Come by the shop and if you have a few minutes Derrick will happily show you everything. I’ll stay at the register to avoid even glancing at any of the plants so you don’t have to worry!
