Harvesting Microbes

[Homesteader]

This oak tree on my property is around 120 years old in my estimation and I chose it also because of the overall health is very high and the ground below is soft and rich (as soft and rich as Maine soil can be).

So I took this 2x4 box which has hardware cloth on the bottom (I use it to sift rocks out of my soil.)

I cooked down some white rice and layered the bottom of this box with a brown paper bag and put the rice on top and then covered with some leaf litter.
I then dug a small hole (6 inches deep) at the base of the tree and placed the box inside the hole.

Then I waited.....................for two weeks. You can see the blue and red bacteria growing at about that point as well as the webs of mycelium.

You can see the microbes have been attracted to the starch in the rice. (Wet and Warmer conditions will speed this up). I then transferred the rice/leaves/dirt to a 5 gallon bucket and added water 1:1. Seal the top and then wait...................
Burp every other day and you will see that it is a living breathing bucket. The bubbles will percolate and you can see currents of activity.

Once the microbes have the smell of baked bread, then you want to hit a 1:1 ratio of brown sugar. The sugars will put the microbes in a state of dormancy and allow you to keep in a cool dark place for the year.

 

[Homesteader]

I have to give this dude his due props as well as Dr Cho.

 

[Homesteader]

For application, I found it was best to inoculate the soil during mixing with about a cup or two in the soil before planting. I had two plants stress out a lot with an application to its roots so I stopped doing that but probably went to heavy with the amount.

If you have the time, follow Dr Chos recipe for IMO-3 and 4. I found I could skip those steps and go directly to my soil but I tend to take what I want with knowledge. I am sure step 3 and 4 are great but judst not the path I took.
NATURAL FARMING MANUAL
https://ilcasia.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/chos-global-natural-farming-sarra.pdf

 

[Organikz]

Awesome thread. I have loads of nematodes in my yard. Yard is loaded with nematode loving volunteer plants. Lady slippers only grow in the forest along little valleys and gullies where the nematode beds lie. They seem to always like a big fat white oak tree. Massive root systems that have been known to tear water pipes. I am thinking about digging those up and using the roots in a compost brew.

 

[Homesteader]

Are you digging up lady slippers roots for foliar tea? What would the roots do? I guess Im not following?

 

[Homesteader]

The starches will attract the microbes, Just put the white rice in a stocking (panty hose) and bury it in a small hole near the root for a week or two. ust realize that the pH is going acidic if I recall so dilution would be best.
I personally would never dig up a lady slipper, Im not sure if that is even legal in many states.

 

[jipp]

are micros in all soil? reason i ask.. i live in the desert, and our soil seems dead. laughs.. not looked at it under a scope tho.

chris.

 

[Homesteader]

Anthrax spores are in the desert I think, not really sure about that one but I think thats where they came from originally. I would assume its alive but not well, ready to pounce if something dead comes along .

 

[jipp]

Anthrax spores are in the desert I think, not really sure about that one but I think thats where they came from originally. I would assume its alive but not well, ready to pounce if something dead comes along .

we do have this stuff we call desert fever, valley fever, ( lots of terms i guess ) pretty much everyone who moves here gets it.. you get sick as fuck.. its from the mold in the soil.. i got it once, almost put me in the hospital. but wont get it again..
so what the hell.

chris.

 

[GT21]

Desert microbes are protected by a thin crust that forms over the soil.... theyre there.. just not as big a population.

 

[Organikz]

@Homesteader I haven't tried digging up lady slippers but I can only imagine the nematodes and mychorizal fungus attached to the roots. OK bag of rice it is. I wasn't aware of it being illegal.

 

[VERMONTSKUNKS]

I have to give this dude his due props as well as Dr Cho.

You ride their asses here and run your lips to them but your using the info they shared! Lmao classic!! My gawd your fucken extra extra

 

[Homesteader]

Something constructive to add? I take all info and filter for myself. What's your story? Just trolling from the 802? Trolling confuses me sorry if I didn't get it.

 

[shaganja]

This oak tree on my property is around 120 years old in my estimation and I chose it also because of the overall health is very high and the ground below is soft and rich (as soft and rich as Maine soil can be).
View attachment 688631
So I took this 2x4 box which has hardware cloth on the bottom (I use it to sift rocks out of my soil.)

I cooked down some white rice and layered the bottom of this box with a brown paper bag and put the rice on top and then covered with some leaf litter.
I then dug a small hole (6 inches deep) at the base of the tree and placed the box inside the hole.

View attachment 688633

Then I waited.....................for two weeks. You can see the blue and red bacteria growing at about that point as well as the webs of mycelium.

View attachment 688634 View attachment 688635


You can see the microbes have been attracted to the starch in the rice. (Wet and Warmer conditions will speed this up). I then transferred the rice/leaves/dirt to a 5 gallon bucket and added water 1:1. Seal the top and then wait...................
Burp every other day and you will see that it is a living breathing bucket. The bubbles will percolate and you can see currents of activity.
View attachment 688632

Once the microbes have the smell of baked bread, then you want to hit a 1:1 ratio of brown sugar. The sugars will put the microbes in a state of dormancy and allow you to keep in a cool dark place for the year.

Did the same with our maple tree. But I use pantyhose and rice. She sits half in mowed lawn, and half in the bush. I used the bush side, because your tree should be in the woods. So many different colors of microbes in my rice

 

[Homesteader]

Looking like fruity flavored rice....Love your property. So wish I had a river in my backyard, at least until it floods but it looks like your property sits well above it. Nice work by the way.

 

[legitness]

How day know there good microbes
What is the red one I was told if it looks angry throw it
That scares me especially when I say it harms roots I did it to
I buy microbes n fungi they say roll the roots in it and they explode nuts. They double in size in days
So always have been curious to how to I’d good v bad when doing microbe farming or day just hope for the best

 

[Xhale]

How day know there good microbes

Hi,

I use Bokashi Bran to recycle all my kitchen waste, and plant a bucket in my garden every 6-8 weeks. it comes with friendly microbes:)

https://bokashiliving.com/

Bokashi composting is a process of fermentation that quickly and easily converts food waste into highly productive compost. It is rapidly becoming many gardeners favored approach to building healthy and productive soils. The key to the bokashi process is fermentation. Through fermentation, bokashi composting generates garden friendly microbes, yeast and fungi. These microorganisms are vital building blocks of a healthy and productive soil structure.
Bokashi composting eliminates many of the challenges associated with 'traditional' composting. Also, the majority of the process is completed conveniently right in one's own kitchen. While traditional back-yard composting works on select food scraps only, bokashi composting works on ALL food scraps. Cooked foods, dairy, meat, grains, pasta, fruits and veggies, the lot of it. This is key to its popularity.

It's so simple! Transform ALL of your food scraps to compost in just 4-6 weeks in four easy steps. Find out more.

 

[Homesteader]

How day know there good microbes
What is the red one I was told if it looks angry throw it
That scares me especially when I say it harms roots I did it to
I buy microbes n fungi they say roll the roots in it and they explode nuts. They double in size in days
So always have been curious to how to I’d good v bad when doing microbe farming or day just hope for the best

I don't think the colors of the microbes are really an indication but I don't think you are going to get bad microbes this way either. When you say bad microbes....not sure if plants see it that way ...could be more of a shock if all introduced at once but, looking at soil bacteria it's more of danger to the lungs on the human. More microbes could present more of a danger there but for the plant, as long as pH is stable, I don't see microbes doing much bad. The pH may spike or drop though using microbes imo so that's why I would add slowly

 

[shaganja]

Looking like fruity flavored rice....Love your property. So wish I had a river in my backyard, at least until it floods but it looks like your property sits well above it. Nice work by the way.

And flood she did. So I had to put this drain in.

 

[ImpulsiveGrower]

Every run after shaking off all the soil I put my root ball in a bucket and spray it with water and then work it around in the bucket. Then pour the foamy water back into my recycle soil bin to keep a lot of the mycorrhiza fungi. You could also apply the water directly to your vegging plants. I seen a video about this before tho that’s amazing.