Johnson-Su BioReactor Compost AMAZING RESULTS

[Well_Well_Well]

This poor guy accidentally sprayed one side of his Chestnut tree, so the chestnuts on that side grew 2-3 times the size as the Chestnuts on the unsprayed side that same year.

Note: This is a no-turn compost, so it’s a lot less of a headache. You just water it once (or, depending on conditions–eg, Summer months–more than once) daily.

Dr. David C. Johnson has a mind-blowing presentation, called “Static Pile Fungal Compost”, on YouTube.

Static Pile Fungal Compost Presentation

You make it yourself, so there’s nothing being “sold” here.

Anyhow, I thought it would be helpful if we could share information on making the stuff–what we’ve learned to do and not to do.

[Well_Well_Well]

Another titillating image from when the doctor (Dr. David C. Johnson of NMSU) tested his compost with cotton on University grounds.

Note about Chico State University’s “findings” on Jo-Su Compost: I called the doctor (to ask for advice), and spoke with his wife, and she confirmed my suspicion that the reason they (CSU) found, essentially, “against” using the compost was because no one was following his instructions. They had a register of people making the stuff, where they listed their materials and methods they were using, and NONE of them were following instruction. They just didn’t really care, I guess, because their livelihoods didn’t depend on it working. They thought they should all be “inventive”. She said farmers are better to work with. I observed that their livelihoods depended on the stuff working, so they followed instruction, and she concurred.

I really wish the North Koreans could start using this stuff. I emailed them about it. I hope they use it so they won’t have any more of those terrible famines.

[Well_Well_Well]

For the pallet, you really want to make sure to use one that has lots of wooden boards across it, not the sort that has only a few–or just hammer a few more boards across it–because the compost will sag into those gaps, and you’ll have areas that are full of water, which, according to Dr. Johnson’s wife, Su, are not going to foster the growth of the good bacteria you’re looking for (this is more of a “drowning” area for the beneficial bacteria).

[Well_Well_Well]

For the substrate, just use deciduous leaves. In my area, there are a lot of pine trees, and, since the doctor mentioned pine needles, if processed correctly, could be used, I thought it wouldn’t be a big deal if I used plenty of pine needles.

Well, not really.

I mowed over the pine needles until they were a range of pieces between 1/4 to maybe 1 inch, and A LOT of these pine needles do not appear to be degraded much at all. Moreso toward th top of the pile, actually, though (tended to dry out more often–during the time I didn’t know it needed much more than the recommended gallon daily).

Just use deciduous leaves. If you have a really nice mulcher that can mulch the pine needles very finely, then go ahead and use them, too, I guess. It’s just another variable I wouldn’t (and don’t), from my experience, want to deal with. I’ve had this BioReactor working for (going on) two years, and the pine needles are STILL not satisfactorily degraded.

[Well_Well_Well]

Does anyone else here make this stuff?

[Well_Well_Well]

I can’t answer for precisely how the Chestnut Tree grew those large Chestnuts after having been sprayed, but I do recall Teraganix says their formula (which is to be applied as a foliar) has beneficial microbes that create energy (photosynthesis, if memory serves) and feed it to the plant, so maybe that’s what’s going on with the Jo-Su.

[alan]

The method needs to be widely tested in different soils to verify its general efficacy. I assume if it is half as useful as indicated here, it is only a matter of time. Farmers learn from each other and if one farmer in an area is getting superior results and heavier crops than other farmers… well, word tends to get around. You can’t survive in the business if you aren’t getting competitive results in terms of input (labor, fertilizer, pesticides) to output (crop).

[rubus_chief]

It is a passive composting system that requires an irrigation drip and worms (and the 4” PVC pipes for aeration) - takes 9 months+ to finish and probably longer in colder zones (z5 here)

The advantages include no turning, no nitrogen needed and higher microbial content (esp fungal)

Has it been shown to increase yields over other compost esp hot compost (Berkeley method)? I have not seen that but would be curious if it did

I would rather hot compost much more quickly, esp in our colder climate. VT has mandated composting and I can tell you passive takes forever in a cold climate (and bears seem to like all the compost, they have been one of the biggest beneficiaries looking for food scraps)

How is it better than hot compost?

[alan]

I’m in no hurry. Once you’ve waited one cycle you are in the same place as if you were a hot composter.

Differences in the final product should be minor, in any case. I don’t think the nitrogen lost to heat is reflected much in the final product.

Fruit trees don’t generally rely on slow release N as something required as a supplement through compost. An organic mulch is like cold composting, anyway. If the soil is deficient in nitrogen releasing OM, mulch should compensate for that over time.

[JustPeachy]

@castanea might have conniptions reading this.

[Well_Well_Well]

Input/output is addressed in the presentation.

Static Pile Fungal Compost Presentation

This compost has saved farmers from insolvency.

As far as “word gets around”, you’d be surprised how stubborn farmers can be–“This is the right way” they’ll protest, all the way into bankruptcy.
In Australia, farmers using this method reportedly are buying up their neighbors’ lands. You’d think people would get a clue.

Also, in his presentation, he covers the nuts and bolts–it’s not empty talk, there’s actual science behind it all.

And then there are the results–I don’t know another compost that yields these results.

[Well_Well_Well]

Well, that’s one speculation… but speculation should progress to actual investigation before it can be treated with equal trust as investigation that has already been done, I think (eg, the taxonomic assays displaying the biodiversity in this compost).

[Well_Well_Well]

Not sure if it’s helpful, but he addresses N in the presentation (eg, Nitrogen fixing bacteria proliferate in the compost).

[Well_Well_Well]

So, my own testimony with this stuff FWIW:

1. When I was first starting out, I couldn’t wait the year, and I wanted to inoculate leaf-bath with it, so I bought some online. It didn’t work wonders. Judging by CSU’s Registry (has since been taken down apparently), though, NO ONE LIKES TO FOLLOW INSTRUCTIONS, so, in addition to the science shared in the presentation, I was not deterred.

2. I found a pocket of the clay-like compost in my composter (the rest was too dry, and/or not the right substrate, at the time), and applied it with some mixed results:

A. Pine : The Pine in the front yard basically immediately stopped being preyed upon by aphids–you can tell bc car windshield wasn’t being drenched–and, within a week, or so, the car windshield wasn’t showing new spots.

B. Trumpet Vines: Three Trumpet Vines grow on the West side, and, bc of shade (Pines shade the until midday–there’s one that’s been large, then a medium, then a tiny, depending on how much shade they’ve gotten), only one has had enough energy to grow to where it can get Sun later in the day (after Sun has passed to the other side of the fence), so only it has produced flowers… the first year I gave them BEAM compost, they ALL produced flowers, and the bigger one that has always produced flowers produced them like never before (5 here, 7 there-- dozens and dozens), and we had lots and lots of hummingbird visitors on account of this, and the neighbors enjoyed it all!

C. Blackberries: I can’t say for sure, but I’d find it hard to believe if I didn’t apply it to the Blackberries, yet I saw basically no difference… Now, the difference is these get a lot more Sun (both Pine and Trumpet Vine soils “enjoy” a lot more shade), and are a lot more thirsty by nature, and I’m still learning how thirsty these guys can be even during Winter. I had them dry up on me during two Winters, already, so I was very diligent about watering them this Winter. We’ll see what the fruit does this time. Actually, I think there was a difference–a very noticeable uptick in flower production, but I still remember not being happy with fruit production (maybe because I just kept thinking about all the floricane length that had died that Winter from underwatering).

D. Apricot: in past times, I just remember a lot of these flowers falling off when I have gone to hand pollinate, but, this Spring, maybe one (out of a thousand?) fell off during pollination? There’s a different quality to them altogether. That said, they haven’t gotten TONS of care, so maybe a LITTLE care went a long way.
ALSO, the frost has basically killed all the hand pollinated flowers, so probably no fruit this year. We have to graft late blooming Apricot (eg, Hoyt Montrose) onto these branches.

[Well_Well_Well]

BEAM vs Berkeley

I tried saying this compost is superior to Dr. Ingham’s (ie, Berkeley), but Su (Dr. J’s wife) stopped me, and said they hadn’t investigated that, and, so, couldn’t comment on it… but it’s interesting that Dr. Ingham has begun recommending air shafts in her compost method (to me, these resemble BEAM method).

[rubus_chief]

why would you say it is superior? and superior how?

[Well_Well_Well]

Well, in all Dr. Ingham’s presentations, I didn’t see any taxonomical assays, but, in Dr. Johnson’s compost, the biodiversity keeps growing over time–and, though it is a different process (so it may work differently–hers may have biodiversity earlier), Dr. Ingham’s compost doesn’t go for very long, so I don’t know that it has the same biodiversity.

My speculation is that, because the pile collapses (the air columns diminish), this creates a new environment, wherein new species of beneficial microbes will flourish, so that is why there are new populations. There is also this idea that the new stuff can’t grow without the “quorum”, and the synergistic genetic expressions, of the diverse populations of the beneficials. Perhaps an example of this, from the presentation: in Australia, in field rows where BEAM was applied, native grasses thought to have been extinct reappeared!

But, also, I don’t recall anyone saying they accidentally sprayed a Chestnut tree with Ingham’s compost and got Chestnuts twice the size that same season.

[rubus_chief]

I guess like Dr Su, I am skeptical more microbial diversity will show a demonstrable difference in crops vs hot compost

You have a research project and can test my null hypothesis (there won’t be any difference between the 2 composts on plant growth and production)

[Well_Well_Well]

I do not have a project. I’m happy speculating, and letting others do that. I don’t have the time or money. I’ve seen the presentations and the results. They’re both good, but, until I see someone spray their tree with an extract of Ingham’s compost and double the size of the fruit in the same season I’m not going to be bothered.

[Well_Well_Well]

With hot composting, you gotta turn it, thus destroying all the infrastructure, so the tiny “civilization” has no time to become advanced, they have to start all over again–meanwhile, the “civilization” in the no-turn BEAM compost, left unperturbed, can continue developing into a space-age civilization (eg, they have beneficial microbes that go up into the atmosphere and seed rain!).

This stuff is covered in the presentation.