Vent: Bokashi bran vs. traditional layering - which one actually works?

I've been apartment composting in Chicago for about 8 months now, and I keep seeing people swear by bokashi bran for zero smells. But every time I tried it, my bin got this sour vinegar stink that made me gag. Then I switched to just layering scraps with dry leaves and sawdust, and suddenly no smell at all. Am I missing something with the bokashi method, or is traditional layering just way more forgiving for small spaces? Has anyone else had this problem with bokashi in their kitchen?

3 comments

3 Comments

leow902mo ago

Whoa, maybe your bokashi needed more time to ferment before you mixed it in.

theawest2mo ago

Oh yeah, "more time" sounds like the magical fix for everything in gardening. Guess my patience is just as rotten as my compost was.

oscarb712mo ago

The only thing worse than bad compost is waiting months just to find out you still made bad compost. Sounds like your patience got tested and failed the soil test. Next time try burying it in a separate corner of the yard and forget about it until next spring. Out of sight out of mind works better than staring at a bucket waiting for magic.