Those little fooks are expensive and hard to find arent they? I got them from Midwest Worms, there weren't any I could find in SoCal. I had to order them twice, more than half were squished to death in the mail the first time....I contacted the company who gave great customer service and they replaced the worms right away. Sent from my SM-J700T using Tapatalk
Nice thats good idea looks like itd work great. Might have to make one myself. What did you use for the screen? Sent from my iPhone using Grasscity Forum
You ever hear of anyone using other microbial products for inoculating bokashi. I do not have EM1 but wondering if Photosynthesisplus from Microbe hydroponics would work its loaded with bacillus and a photosynthetic bacteria as well as a variety of mycorrhizae fungis. Sent from my iPhone using Grasscity Forum
I cut a bucket 8” from the top and another slice 4” down from that cut,then cut “hardware cloth” (it’s galvanized wire mesh) 3” larger on all sides circular then 12 cuts from the outside in 3”. Set the 4” ring on the mesh and bend the cut tails 90° up the sides of the ring then just push that ring down into the top bucket piece so it’s centered(that extra 3” of mesh will be trapped between both bucket parts) leaving a place on top for multiple sifters if desired and a place below if not using another bucket. I used hot glue to seal both ends and make it stay put,they’re solid and waterproof. Ace,HD or Lowe’s has it in 1/4”(common size) as well as 1/8” for a more pure product. Takes about 15 min. to make each one with the right tools.
You can make your own for pennies with this Lactobacillus Serum recipe from Gil Carandang. It actually incorporates indigenous lacto strains into your serum which is a plus.
Cool sounds interesting definitely going to check it out. Was just wondering about photo plus cuz i already have a bottle Sent from my iPhone using Grasscity Forum
I'm unsure if it would work exactly like the EM/AEM from Teraganix, but you could give it a try. About 8-9 years ago, it was quite popular here to use Bokashi and AEM to compost root balls after a run. This was way before the No Till paradigm and in fact it led into the ROLS (recycled organic living soil) movement. We were growing in #5 and #7 Smart pots and on the completion of a grow, would throw the root balls in a tote and wet them down with AEM. AEM (activated effective microorganisms) is an extended version of the EM-1 straight out of the bottle. We would use a 15:1 blend of water to EM-1 with molasses and let it ferment for a couple of weeks to cultivate the microbes. The inoculated root balls would break down all the roots and turn the used soil into rich humus that could be reused. This process took about 2-3 months IIRC. You might take a quart jar and add a 15:1 mix of water and your Hydroplex solution with some molasses and see if you can cultivate a serum with it. It will give off a sour smell in a couple of weeks if it works. Use a coffee filter in place of a jar lid with the ring to hold it in place. It needs to breathe and will build pressure if capped tight. Let us know how it's going and good luck.
Is this serum somthing you would dilute and do soil drench with? Would you recommend brewing the serum in an AACT? I use ROLS never heard the acronym though. I usually just chop my plants down leave the rootballs and only remove the main stock so that i have space to plant my seedlings. Before planting I usually just recharge my soil life with a tea and top dressing. The old cover crop gets mulched and new cover crop is planted(white&crimson clover). Sent from my iPhone using Grasscity Forum
Yes you want to dilute it for a drench. Around 10:1 was my go to. (1.5 cups AEM/ga water) Brewing defeats the purpose. It's a fermentation process which is anaerobic and using a brewer is aerobic. Here's a pretty good video to explain the process (thanks @wetdog )
Oh ok ive heard/read about korean farming techniques where they ferment and use anaerobic bacterias in vegetable gardens, apparently they have been doing this for centuries with great success . Always been little hesitant to experiment with anaerobic bacterias but im assuming that since the only bacteria involved in the fermentation are the beneficials from the EM theres probably nothing to worry about. One more question: are all bacteria found in a bottled product or dry powders/amendments technically anaerobic as there is little to no oxygen in the bottle or are there some species of aerobic bacterias present in these products that are in dormant state?
I really don't know the answer to this question. It's been years since I've acquainted myself with bottled bacteria products. When I discovered the results I got from top dressing my own VC were as good or better than any AACT, I began experimenting with SST and MBP enzymes and found the sweet spot for my personal grows without spending a fortune on microbes I can produce myself.
Yea see somtimes i feel i might be wasting money on some of these innoculants because my VC usually comes out rich and looks like its loaded with life. Never looked under a microscope but i know it stays alive in my totes because im constantly finding baby worms and little nematode looking things and even after sitting for a month stays moist. You think top dressing and watering in EWC does equally good job of a high quality ACCT? Do you ever use ACCT Sent from my iPhone using Grasscity Forum
I am at the point where I only use about 1/8 tsp VAM to inoculate seeds and that's it besides vmc. I did the whole AACT thing years ago and it worked great, but once I had a worm bin cranking, and homemade compost, it was just a lot of work to make AACT for the same results. I also think that if you have good living soil that's working really well, that an AACT may cause more damage than help, by throwing things out of whack in the rhizosphere, that the plant has been establishing on its own, exactly how it needs it to be. In other words, when I was VMC poor, and had a cup of castings to share between 6 plants it made since for me to do AACT. Once I had a stash of VMC, no more AACT. hth cheers os
Yea i got decent stash of EWC accumulated. Noticed ive been doin teas less and less its just such a hassle to clean the air stones and bucket and then u got a mess of sludge you gotta do something with. thats why sometimes i just use bacterial or fungal solution that you just mix with water and its ready to go. Kinda defeats my purpose of ditching bottles and other products. Might have to try a simpler approach after i use up the last of my amendments. Makes sense to let the colonies that are already present flourish rather than making them compete with new micro-herd your watering in with tea. Sent from my iPhone using Grasscity Forum
The same stuff you use in AACT (minus molasses) can be used in simple teas. Kelp and/or alfalfa in a jug of water that was left to sit for a day works wonderful. Easy clean up. Dregs go into the worm bin, or on top of the soil. cheers os
Post a couple of pics of your bins what you got going on in the worm department atm. I could use a few new ideas helps with pics especially.
What kind of sfuff would be the most helpful? The bins themselves, or bedding? I love talking about worms, ask anything. There is another thread here in the organic section called “Converting to Vermiculture Based Gardening”. It has a great description and some pics of what I do. I will give it a bump and bring it up front. Cheers Os