Bokashi, bears and winter storage

Bokashi composting is an anaerobic process that converts food wastes into an amazing soil amendment.
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Cliffsidegardens
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Does the fermented foods attract bears? Bears go directly past my house on the regular, so I need to be very mindful. I'm nervous an outdoor vermicompost would attract bears, so bokashi first would be perfect for me if it removes the palatableness of my kitchen waste.

Also, the big drum for storing until use, I imagine doing that overwinter. Is it ok if it gets frozen/unfrozen several times outside during the winter? Does it need to be kept air tight and anaerobic as well, or it's just dumped in there until use? Similarly, can the leachate be kept outside in the elements for spring use?

Can garden plant matter with potential pests in it go into bokashi? Will the lactic acid destroy things like bug eggs and powdery mildew?

Is there anything that shouldn't go into a bokashi bin?

This is a fascinating topic, thanks for including it! Merch idea for you: a shirt that says "Do you even Bokashi?"
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Andrew
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Cliffsidegardens wrote: Sun 02-Jan-2022, 14:32 Does the fermented foods attract bears? Bears go directly past my house on the regular, so I need to be very mindful. I'm nervous an outdoor vermicompost would attract bears, so bokashi first would be perfect for me if it removes the palatableness of my kitchen waste.

Also, the big drum for storing until use, I imagine doing that overwinter. Is it ok if it gets frozen/unfrozen several times outside during the winter? Does it need to be kept air tight and anaerobic as well, or it's just dumped in there until use? Similarly, can the leachate be kept outside in the elements for spring use?

Can garden plant matter with potential pests in it go into bokashi? Will the lactic acid destroy things like bug eggs and powdery mildew?

Is there anything that shouldn't go into a bokashi bin?

This is a fascinating topic, thanks for including it! Merch idea for you: a shirt that says "Do you even Bokashi?"
The fermented food if stored properly will not attract bears and if hot composted properly will also not attract bears. If placed into the ground in the spring in an area lacking in biology it can take longer to break down however I've never seen it dug up. We are not in bear area however so I personally would be preserving it through the winter and then adding to my raised beds along with some compost worms so the bokashi gets converted quickly.

We will cover using bokashi in an upcoming video.

Re: big drum / storage -- yes its ok to freeze and thaw. You want it air tight. Even if there is oxygen introduced when filling a larger container, eventually it runs out as its consumed by the microbes and they switch back to anaerobic metabolism.

Re: leachate yes it can also freeze / thaw. Best stored with a lid.

Re: anything that shouldn't go in? This isn't a hard and fast rule, its a nuanced suggestion... Don't put in rotten food. The fresher the food the better. When you introduce a piece of food that has been rotting anaerobically you challenge the lactic acid bacterial population to overcome them which isn't always possible. Wilted, freezer burnt, etc.. totally ok. If it is really stinky rotten its best for the hot compost.

Bokashi will terminate any living thing that requires oxygen to live, and further the acidic conditions make it inhospitable.

Glad you're enjoying it!
PeasIntheRain
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It's really helpful to know that freezing is fine. Just like sourdough starter, yogurt, or any other microbial game, then :)

As far as bears, I'm not sure of your specific situation and vulnerabilities, but we have bears near us and regular compost piles have not been a problem. The first year my husband was here, a bear came into the yard to eat apples... but that was at a time when we weren't in the yard regularly, before we started composting and introduced chickens, etc. We certainly haven't had any other problems or any increase in bear activity with composting.
Cliffsidegardens
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Amazing, thanks Andrew!

Good to know Peas, I'll keep that in mind. Many bears have been killed in my town/neighbourhood because they've been too accustomed to garbage, people etc so we try to be extra bear smart. Bears destroyed our corn crop at a neighbours garden a couple years back, so I won't grow it anymore, it's too tasty for them apparently. Did you do anything to keep them out of your apple trees? I'm considering getting an electric bear fence for late fruiting season around my garden to keep them out, and possibly around the chickens once I get them too (they require it with the bylaw here)
PeasIntheRain
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Cliffsidegardens wrote: Wed 05-Jan-2022, 07:30 Amazing, thanks Andrew!

Good to know Peas, I'll keep that in mind. Many bears have been killed in my town/neighbourhood because they've been too accustomed to garbage, people etc so we try to be extra bear smart. Bears destroyed our corn crop at a neighbours garden a couple years back, so I won't grow it anymore, it's too tasty for them apparently. Did you do anything to keep them out of your apple trees? I'm considering getting an electric bear fence for late fruiting season around my garden to keep them out, and possibly around the chickens once I get them too (they require it with the bylaw here)
Hmm, sounds like your local bears are trickier. No, we haven't done anything to create a barrier for them. The time they came to the apple trees was a time when my husband was laid up with a couple of broken bones, so he wasn't out in the garden much at all, and I was working abroad. We haven't seen bear sign in the yard since that time, although they visit the creek at the back of our place (where salmon run in the autumn, and berries are abundant in the forest boundary, which we are trying to build up to at least 50 feet wide from the creek in all locations -- for the creek/salmon health).

I should say, there are partial fences with large, permanently open gates. Perhaps that partial barrier makes a difference. We are actually considering removing old fenceline remnants around the property to avoid possible elk entanglement, at the advice of the conservation district managers. (Yes, we have occasional visits by elk and deer. The deer like the strawberry leaves in the spring, but the strawberries still produced plenty later on. They have otherwise shared the garden well with us. We protect very young trees with a bit of wire. I notice so many people in this area gardening in what look like cages to keep deer and elk out.)

The bears here don't seem to be as accustomed to humans and certainly don't come into the yards and streets for rubbish. Chickens and ducks haven't been a draw. So... it sounds like we've been lucky!
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