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How to make your own EM-1 inoculant and Bokashi

JULY 14, 2012 AT 10:55 PM

REV SUMMIT

155 COMMENTS

rice water EM

Aloha thumbs and friends. I am back to give one of my biggest secrets away, it is my own homemade root inoculate or EM/BAM(beneficial active
microorganism) made with rice water, milk and sugar. There are many shelf bought version for ridiculous pricing, for those with the little know how to make
ones own. House & Garden makes Root Accelerator,Hygrozyme, Sensizyme, Advanced Nutrients Voodoo Juice are some of the high priced products that
my own home culture works as well as or even in some cases has even worked better. I know many growers that would not even think of culturing their own
or even would have the know how to, but I offer you my knowledge for your own frugal organic gardening purposes. Not to mention how I have talked about
recycling and composting with worms, now I will introduce you to the Japanese form of Bokashi Composting or fermenting and how to make your own home
made cheap alternative Bokashi Buckets and Bokashi mix.
Wikipedia:
Effective Microorganisms, aka EM Technology, is a trademarked term now commonly used to describe a proprietary blend of 3 or more types of
predominantly anaerobic organisms that was originally marketed as EM-1 Microbial Inoculate but is now marketed by a plethora of companies under
various names, each with their own proprietary blend. EM Technology uses a laboratory cultured mixture of microorganisms consisting mainly oflactic
acid bacteria, purple bacteria, and yeast which co-exist for the benefit of whichever environment they are introduced, as has been claimed by the various
em-like culture purveyors. It is reported[1] to include:

Lactic acid bacteria: Lactobacillus plantarum; L. casei; Streptococcus Lactis.

Photosynthetic bacteria: Rhodopseudomonas palustris; Rhodobacter sphaeroides.

Yeast: Saccharomyces cerevisiae; Candida utilis (no longer used) (usually known as Torula, Pichia Jadinii).

Actinomycetes (no longer used in the formulas): Streptomyces albus; S. griseus.

Fermenting fungi (no longer used in the formulas): Aspergillus oryzae; Mucor hiemalis.

The concept of Friendly Microorganisms was developed by Japanese horticulturist Teruo Higa, from the University of the Ryukyus in Okinawa Prefecture|
Okinawa, Japan. He reported in the 1970s that a combination of approximately 80 different microorganisms is capable of positively influencing decomposing
organic matter such that it reverts into a life promoting process. Higa invokes a dominance principle to explain the effects of his Effective Microorganisms.
He claims that three groups of microorganisms exist: positive microorganisms (regeneration), negative microorganisms (decomposition, degeneration),
opportunist microorganisms. In every medium (soil, water, air, the human intestine), the ratio of positive and negative microorganisms is critical, since the
opportunist microorganisms follow the trend to regeneration or degeneration. Therefore, Higa believes that it is possible to positively influence the given
media by supplementing with positive microorganisms.
EM Technology is supposed to maintain sustainable practices such as farming and sustainable living, and also claims to support human health and
hygiene, animal husbandry, compost and waste management, disaster clean-up (The Southeast Tsunami of 2004, the Kobe Earthquake, and Hurricane
Katrina remediation projects), and generally used to promote functions in natural communities.
EM has been employed in many agricultural applications, but is also used in the production of several health products in South Africa and the USA. [citation
needed]
(fuel additive products are no longer available).
A High School in Malaysia, Sekolah Menegah Kebangsaan Dato Onn Butterworth, Penang, are using EM to treat Greywater, minimise odour from Septic
Tank & remove sludge from drains.
This is a recipe I learned from a friend along time ago.

EM/BAM: this a trade secret!(lactobacillus culture)

1/4 cup rice
1quart Mason Jar
1 cup water
1 fine mesh strainer
80 oz milk depends on how much one is making
1 gallon container or jar
1 tsp. black-strap molasses
Procedure:
1. Place rice and cup of water in mason jar and shake vigorously until water is cloudy white, strain off rice kernels and discard into tour compost bin or cook
for dinner. I have heard of the Japanese adding a dash of nato to help ferment but not needed.

2. place cap on loosely and store in a cabinet or cool dark place for 5-7 days.
3. Sift off top layer and strain liquid (serum)
4. measure your rice liquid and now add a ratio of 1 part fermented rice to 10 parts milk, I would culture in a 1 gallon jar. let sit for 5-7 days.

Rice water and milk serum fermenting 3 days notice lid is only siting on top as to not build pressure.

5. sift off curd settlement and add to your soil or feed your animals it is good for their digestion, then there should be a light yellow serum left this is your
unactivated serum.
6. Add 1 tsp molasses to feed and keep your bacteria alive and refrigerate. should have a shelf life of 6-12 months.
7. to activate microorganism activities and to room temperature non-chlorinated water at a ratio of 1 part Serum to 20 parts water.
8. feed to plants either straight into soil or follicular feeding.

Bokashi compost

Store Bought Bokashi

Bokashi is a method of intensive composting. It can use an aerobic or anaerobic inoculation to produce the compost. Once a starter culture is made, it
can be used to extend the culture indefinitely, like yogurt culture. Since the popular introduction of effective microorganisms (EM), Bokashi is commonly
ma

de with only molasses, water, EM, and wheat bran.

In home composting applications, kitchen waste is placed into a container which can be sealed with an air tight lid. These scraps are then inoculated with a
Bokashi EM mix. This usually takes the form of a carrier, such
as rice hulls, wheat bran or saw dust, that has been inoculated with composting micro-organisms. The EM are natural lactic acid bacteria, yeast,
and phototrophic bacteria that act as a microbe community within the kitchen scraps, fermenting and accelerating breakdown of the organic matter. The
user would place alternating layers of food scraps and Bokashi mix until the container is full.

Bokashi is moderately easy and cheap to make and there are many online video walkthroughs, you tube being a great place for a beginner to get some help,
but here is a easy simple way to make Bokashi. Mostly made from wheat husks or wheat bran but I have heard of people using any thing from oats, barley,
wood chips and even unsalted peanut husks.
Bokashi Grain

10 & 50 lb mix)

10 lbs wheat bran

4 tbsp EM serum
4 tbsp Molasses
10-12 cups non -chlorinated water
______________________
50 lb wheat bran
3/4 cup EM serum
3/4 cup Molasses
3-4 gallons Non-chlorinated water
air tight containers such as buckets with lids or storage totes will work too.
Something to mix in or on.
Procedure:
1. Add molasses to water and mix well.
2. Add Em serum
3. put wheat bran in mixing container or on something to mix on if one is making large amounts.
4. add liquid slowly and mix vigourously till all liquid is added
and all bran material is dampened. Bokashi mix should be equally damp and slightly sticks to itself.
5. For my ferment I do 5 gallon buckets and trash bags. Once my mix is ready I line a 5 gallon bucket with 2 trash bags and start scooping my Bokashi mix in
side in layer, compacting and squeezing all the air out of my bran mix.(Keynote: Air will create the wrong bacterial culture and if you see black , green
or gray mold throw your mix away, white is OK that is yeast.) Tie off bags and place air tight lid on bucket.

6. Store for 14 days in cool dark area for fermenting.

7. open fermented mix(smell should be like apple cider sweet)and Sundry on concrete or on a tarp in the sun, time may vary depending on your location and
time of year for drying.
8. Place in container for your Bokashi composting needs, flush down toilet to clear septic tanks, feed to live stock to better digestion.
Well this is a couple cheap easy trade secrets that should benefit your organic medical gardens Thumbs. Be green and frugal it is best we do thing for
ourselves. If you feel the need to do more research look into organic farming with probiotics for plants.
Tags: Bokashi, cannabis, composting, diy, do it
yourself, EM, farming, fermenting, garnening, hawaii, inoculate,marijuana, microorganism, nutrient, organic, probiotics, Recipes, wheat grain

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155 COMMENTS
1.

Rick
March 28, 2013 at 3:44 pm
Hello
After I let the milk and rice water ferment for a week, I will skim the curd off. Now I have unactivated serum, do I
refrigerate
With or without molasses ? Does the molasses activate the serum? Or just unchlorinated water activates the serum?
Thank you.

2.

Edward
April 1, 2013 at 7:47 am
Yes,
Thank you for sharing your experiences.
I also have used lacto fermented EM1 in my bokashi with very positive outcome.
But at the same time still curious if my homemade methode mission out on some important bacterias ( phototropic ).
Thanks

3.

rev.summit
April 1, 2013 at 1:26 pm
Aloha Rick sorry for late delay, holiday weekend.
Your serum is to be refrigerated after straining and when you would like to activate it add your molasses to the serum.
The water does not activate the microbes but gives it a large environment to populate. Adding the activated lacto to in
chlorinated water with more molasses will stretch your lacto and create a higher rate of replication in microbes but at the
same time that activated water will now have a shelf life. This is why it is mixed right before being added to the wheat
bran in making bakashi. The water needs to be absorbed by the bran and the organisms piggy back water into the bran
start to ferment and then to a point become dormant again till added to waste and reactivated.
P.S. been getting great result by using 2/3 molasses and 1/3 Organic barley malt in the activation of a newer version.
Also experimenting with some brewers yeast versions

4.

rev.summit
April 1, 2013 at 1:38 pm
Experiment my brother! Make controls as no one said you have to use just these things. As I am experimenting with
Organic Barley malt and brewers yeast also in my serums with great results. As a farmer with one plant in one pot, each
plant can be a controlled experiment. I encourage growth in knowledge too. As our grandfathers used
ENVIRONMENTAL ORGANICS, meaning the harnessed and created out fertilizers and pesticides right out of there own
environments. Look into harnessing IMO or IMHO what ever you would like to label them and find whats best for you.
Humans wouldnt be alive if we needed a company or a magazine article to tell me what I need to grow a vegetable or
my meds. 1000 years ago my great grandad didnt need it and I dont need it today either. Just remember if you are
unwilling to do it yourself then you part the problem. Our DRIVE THRU SOCIETY is unfortunately to blame for no
farmers and GMO as not enough of a farming army to feed the masses but, we will blindly let a few feed us using
chemicals and machines. Keep the homeless starving and worse the masses struggling for jobs, let machines farm for
us, and lol maybe the matrix does happen and the farm us.

5.

Florence
April 3, 2013 at 7:07 pm
Dear Sir,
Can I check with you what if the rice liquid with milk being fermented more than 7 days, say 21 days, does it brings any
effect?
Hope you can revert. TQ

6.

rev.summit
April 8, 2013 at 8:17 pm
I have had some let it sit for longer, seems the cheese will start to firm food mold which isnt always good, but had one
patient make a batch and said let it stand 14 days and then sifted off the cheese and the mold and it never touched his
serum, and he had no ill effect, but I cannot say that it wont either. Thats why I make small batches as it has a shelf life.
If the serum is refridgerated the shelf life is longer as you may activate small batches of dormant lactobacillus.

7.

Dustin
April 9, 2013 at 4:56 am
Question for you do you shack the rice water and milk before setting it in a dark spot? Also, after your 7 days do take all
the curd off the top or strain it?
Thanks for your time Dustin from Michigan.

8.

rev.summit
April 10, 2013 at 3:51 am
Aloha,
Well up to you to shake or stir your milk when mixed, but only when first put together. As time and being in disturbed
helps the splitting process. And yes strain your cheese off and your serum is what u want not the cheese.

9.

Dustin
April 10, 2013 at 4:13 am
So I shouldnt have nothing in the bottom of the jar? Cause I didnt stir or shake the milk and the rice water(serum) when
I added the milk to it. Is this gonna be problem?
Thank you for your help and how to make the EM. This is very great and helpful!!
Dustin from Michigan

10.

rev.summit
April 10, 2013 at 6:54 am
Should be no problem, but realize you are adding infected rice water to milk at 10 parts milk to 1 part infected rice water,
and after sifting there will still be some cheese settlement this is fine as long as there is only small pieces.

11.

Dustin
April 10, 2013 at 7:18 am
Can you add the bokashi straight to the soil without any composted material, will this effect the plants?

12.

Rev Summit
April 15, 2013 at 11:45 pm
I have had some friends add the bolas hi grain straight to garden areasand have seen newer style bolas hi compost tea
brewers. I personally dont but I do use inoculated coco chunk in my newest soil mixes. The coco chunk is soaked in a
activated lactobacillus and hormone stew. Then layered on bottom of my pots instead of perlite and also mixed in my
potting mix at a 15%-20% ratio.

13.

Christine

April 19, 2013 at 8:02 am

Hi, how do I know if my rice water is well fermented and ready to mix with the milk? Thank you for sharing this great
hope for the planet.
Ive been using E.M. for almost two years: love it!

14.

jacopo
April 21, 2013 at 10:53 am
ciao, spero riusciate a leggermi in italiano.posso aggiungere acqua e zucchero al posto della melassa che non riesco a
recuperare?ho filtrato il mio siero finale e lo sto mettendo in frigorifero:devo lasciarlo in un barattolo chiuso
ermeticamente?grazie per le eventuali risposte.

15.

Jonathan
April 23, 2013 at 9:40 pm
Thanks for your generous sharing.
I have been using bokashi for a while and Im just about to run out, hence finding this site. Im wondering if the liquid
run-off from a previous composting is any use in creating a new batch. Intuitively it seems logical, but Ive not seen any
reference to it anywhere. Any thoughts?

16.

Diana
April 27, 2013 at 6:22 pm
Can you use something else instead of milk? I dont consume milk. Mahalo

17.

Rev Summit
April 28, 2013 at 12:38 am
It takes about 5-7 days to be ready and stinks like old dish water.

18.

Rev Summit
April 28, 2013 at 12:41 am
There are folks using the books hi juice or bokashi-cast stew for watering and also using bokashi brewers. I would try a
control but the need for the lactobacillus coming from milk cannot be skipped.

19.

Rev Summit
April 28, 2013 at 12:42 am
Cannot make lactobacillus without milk sorry. Lacto only is derived from milk.

20.

Rev Summit
April 28, 2013 at 12:47 am
From what my translator gave me let me reply. No water and sugar are not the same as molasses. Molasses are filled
with trace minerals which regular sugars have not as they are left in the molasses. Sugar is the final product in
processing and is not the processed material with the best qualities.

21.

allan
May 1, 2013 at 5:56 am

Water kefir has no milk and is full of LAB and yeast.

So milk is not required if you want any kind of lactic acid bacteria
Water kefir thrives on molasses n brown sugar

22.

Hope
May 4, 2013 at 3:16 am
RE: Define Milk
Does it matter if you use organic, raw goat or cow milk versus GMO pasteurized, hormone-laden cow milk?

23.

Hoan
May 11, 2013 at 11:52 am
Hi,
Im just wondering if pasteurized milk would contain lactobacillus? Would it be better to use raw milk or yogurt to ensure
the presence of this bacteria?

24.

Annie
May 13, 2013 at 4:25 am
Please can you teach me how to prepare EM-5?
Thank you

25.

Rev Summit
May 13, 2013 at 12:17 pm
Thank you for sharing Alan I didnt know that I will try a control batch! Cant wait!

26.

Rev Summit
May 13, 2013 at 12:19 pm
Aloha hope,
Well I have used all those types and all work wonderfully, but I do personally like 2% milk as seams to leave me with a
more serum.

27.

Rev Summit
May 13, 2013 at 12:20 pm
I use pasteurized and works fine.

28.

Rev Summit
May 13, 2013 at 12:23 pm
Annie aloha,
Look at my OHN or oriental herbal nutrient post, as the number 5 version is what I call OHN as it is certain ferments with
certain herbals, sugars and spirits like vodka.

29.

lawrence
May 14, 2013 at 7:30 pm
can i use pure sugar-cane in place of molasses?

30.

lawrence
May 17, 2013 at 5:44 pm
its so interesting but how to produce molasses locally?

31.

sandi
May 20, 2013 at 12:24 am
Aloha Rev,
I was wondering if you have heard of a recipe for making a type of Bokashi that is good for ponds. Im not sure what
medium to use. i.e. I dont want to add more nutrient to the pond, but I want it to be able to settle on the sludge and help
with its decomposition. Thanks

32.

mahsen
May 26, 2013 at 4:30 am
Can i use brown sugar in substitute for molasses, which is not available in our town.

33.

Michael
May 27, 2013 at 1:07 pm
Thank you,for this formula. I have been reading a lot of the positive effects of EM1. I have never used it and was going
to buy a bottle until I came across your Web page. I am going to make my own. I do have two questions . Is white rice
ok or is brown rice better. When I take the inactivated EM from the refrigerator and activate it does it need to set up for a
few days before I use it on my garden or plants or do I use it immediately .

34.

Hans Albert Quistorff, LMP Antalgic Posture Pain Specialist

June 17, 2013 at 8:25 pm
Suggest as an alternative to milk lactobacilis would be sourkrout. If you can find some unpasteurized it should make a
good starter culture. Most organic cabbage will have the bacteria on them naturally so you could make your own krout
and use the serum from it as compost starter. I have some in the back of my refrigerator so I am going to add some
water and molasses and see what happens.

35.

Pacifico Yap
June 23, 2013 at 5:52 pm
Is EM-1 safe for human consumption? If not how do you prepare one? Thanks

36.

Brandon
June 26, 2013 at 12:14 pm
Once you have your starter culture, how do you feed the starter to keep going?

37.

Rev Summit
September 5, 2013 at 12:43 am
What are you referring too the starter culture? The infected rice water or the lacto serum?

38.

Rev Summit
September 5, 2013 at 12:45 am
Funny I have a food allergy too food bacteria and have tried thE curd from the top which tasted like cottage cheese, and
I feed it to my animals and they love it. I have a friend that takes shots of his own lacto brew, so I would say yes if you
have done everything correct.

39.

Rev Summit
September 5, 2013 at 12:49 am
Yes there are some bacterial that might be used, but using water will not make lactobacillus as without the milk you
have no lactobacillus which is derived from the splitting of the milk. But I am not saying not to try and use the juice from
the sourkrout to see if it can create the splitting of the milk.

40.

Rev Summit
September 5, 2013 at 12:54 am
Aloha, I have used both brown and white rice to make my lactobacillus. And once you bring your inactive serum to room
temp you need to feed them with molasses and you will start to see your foam after shaking and will be active for few
days to weeks depending on how much molasses you feed those microorganisms, try adding some barely malt and
brewers yeast buds also to add a few more effective microorganisms and benefits to you or your garden.

41.

Rev Summit
September 5, 2013 at 12:55 am
I have never feed with brown sugar for this process, but I use it in my muddling of my ingredients for my OHN.

42.

Rev Summit
September 5, 2013 at 12:58 am
Make active serum and add into the pond and see what happens as I used it to clean the green Merck out my Oscar
tanks more than once and no ill effects to the fish actually they were healthier after, funny made one feeder get so big
that the Oscar refused to even bother.
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