Collection: EM & Bokashi Composting

Turn kitchen waste into living soil food

Bokashi is a Japanese fermentation method that turns kitchen and garden waste into a dense soil food in ten to fourteen days, using EM (Effective Microorganisms), a blend of beneficial bacteria, yeasts and photosynthetic organisms developed by Dr Teruo Higa. Rather than rotting scraps in a heap, you ferment them in a sealed bucket. The result is a nutrient-dense pre-compost that keeps far more of the vitamins, enzymes and microbes that hot composting cooks off. If you are new to it, start with what bokashi bran is and how to use it.

Why bokashi beats a compost heap

• Everything goes in. Meat, dairy, citrus, cooked food, onions. Things a heap cannot handle.
• Two weeks, not two seasons. Fermentation finishes in a fortnight, then a short soil burial unlocks it.
• No smell. Sealed anaerobic fermentation smells faintly pickled, not rotten.
• Higher nutrient retention. The process runs cool, so nothing is cooked off.
• It inoculates as it feeds. Every application puts billions of beneficial organisms straight into the soil food web.
• No turning. The bucket does the work.

What is in this collection

• Bokashi Bran. EM-inoculated wheat bran in fully compostable packaging. Sprinkle over each layer of waste as the bin fills.
• EM-1. The original Dr Higa mother culture, for activating your own bran or making your own ferments.
• Unsulphured sugar cane molasses. The carbon food source the microbes need to multiply. Essential if you are activating EM-1 yourself.
• Grow-Kashi. A ready-to-use fermented top-dress for established beds and pots, if you want the benefit without running a bucket.

What to do with the finished ferment

Bokashi pre-compost is not compost yet, and it is acidic when fresh. Bury it in a trench or add it to a heap, wait two to four weeks, and then plant. Worked into a soil mix or used as a top dressing it adds organic matter and feeds soil biology directly, and there is more to it than the kitchen bin suggests: how to use bokashi bran in your soil.

If you want to take the biology side further, the microbial inoculants collection covers mycorrhizal fungi and microbial concentrates.

Common questions

How long does the process take?

Around ten to fourteen days of sealed fermentation, then two to four weeks buried in soil or added to a heap before you plant near it.

Can I bury it directly under plants?

Wait two to four weeks after burying. Fresh pre-compost is acidic and needs time to mellow before roots go near it.

Do I need a special bokashi bin?

Any airtight bucket with a tap for draining the liquid works. Dedicated bins make it easier but are not essential.

Is the liquid useful?

Yes. Diluted 1:100 it makes an excellent soil drench. Undiluted, it goes down the drain as a natural cleaner, which is a genuinely good use rather than a consolation prize.

Why does mine smell bad?

A properly fermenting bucket smells sour and pickled. A putrid smell means air has got in, or there was not enough bran. Press the contents down firmly, seal properly, and use more bran per layer.

Can I do this in a flat with no garden?

Yes, that is one of its advantages. The bucket is sealed and odourless indoors. You will need somewhere to put the finished ferment though: a large container, a raised bed, or a neighbour with an allotment.