In the past, I used the Maze brand Bokashi EM1 solution to innoculate batches of my own mix so that I could make the solution last much much longer through the magic of molasses. I’ve written about how to do it. As a matter of fact, we have a whole bunch of information on Bokashi here on our Bokashi page.
Unfortunately, the Maze brand is no longer avilable locally so I switched to the Tumbleweed brand, easily available at Bunnings.
The Tumbleweed solution works well out of the spray bottle. It’s pretty active and for a while, just turning the nozzle to the open position produces a jet of spray withut even squeeziing the trigger.
In several tests though, I’ve tried to make up my own batch of solution and the results have never been as vigorous as the one produced by Maze was.
Not long ago, Deanna from Jaki Bokashi and I presented at the Joe’s Connected Gardens ‘scraps to soil’ composting workshop and saw that they have an EM1 solution of their own.
So, I decided to give the three brands a test to see which made the most vigorous culture. Deanna sent me a bottle of theirs and I bought a new bottle of Tumbleweed. Unfortunately, I can’t access the Maze locally but I have enough old stuff left in a bottle from a while back to give it a go.
Each had 10ml added to 1000ml of filtered water and mixed. Then 10 ml of sulphur free Molasses was mixed and added to it.
I put each into a 1.25 litre soft drink bottle, squeeze the sides in a little and and capped them. I press the sides in because as the microbes do their thing, they excrete carbon dioxide. This builds up pressure and pushes out the dents. It’s a good indicator of activity. These will be kept on top of the fridge (where it’s a pretty constant warmth) and checked every week for bubbles and other signs of life.
The results
After a week, I checked the bottles. There was no give in any of the plastic when I pressed, meaning that they were full of gas. Other 9nservstions were –
The surface of the Jaki Bokashi sample had lots of very fine bubbles and the beginning of white mould. Good signs. When shaken, the brew frothed up nicely.
-The Tumbleweed sample also frothed when shaken but there was no other sign of activity.
– The Maze also had small bubbles on the surface and frothed nicely.
– Opening the bottles, I was met with an encouraging hiss from the Jaki Bokashi, slightly less from Maze and the Tumbleweed was just perceptible.
– Tumbleweed had no odour, Maze was slight but Jaki was still strong.
– The Tumbleweed, though active in the bottle doesn’t seem to make a good culture. The Maze surprised me because it was only the remnants i the bottom of a bottle that had been in the shed for months.
After another 3 weeks, I checked on the colour of the brews. As the microbes in the EM1 solution eat the molasses, the colour of the solution lightens and turns a little orange. That’s normal and is a good indicator of activity. In all of these samples, the solutions had turned about the colour I expect. You can see this in the last pic. It’s not the best colour cast but I’ve used all the liquids and can’t get another pic.
The Jaki Bokashi solution is the clear winner. It is a commercial sample of the solution that they use for their own inoculations and not diluted down for retail. The odour of it is always encouraging and has become the standard by which I sniff out EM1.
