HOW TO MAKE EM MUDBALLS
There are several ways to make the EM Mudballs.
- Simple EM Mudballs Recipe
- EMRO's Recipe
- EM Mudballs With Seeds Recipe
Simple EM Mudballs Recipe
How To Make
EM Mud Balls
to bioremediate polluted waters
Mud Ball Materials
- 8 parts dirt* (example, 13 quarts)
- 2 to 4 parts bokashi* (example, 3 quarts)
- total materials 10 to 12 parts (total 16 quarts)
1 quart of Activated EM per 16 quarts of material
Add more Activated EM (or water) if not enough liquid to form mud balls.
Let mud balls air-dry and ferment for at least 2 weeks before using.
A white mold-like coating should form on the mud balls (may not always happen, which is okay).
Target at least 1 mud ball per square yard at the bottom of the
polluted water (ponds, lakes, bays, inlets, shores, rivers, etc.)
- * dirt, soil, clay-like soil, sludge, or including partial sandy materials, or a combination.
Preferable that the material is as dry as possible. - * bokashi = fermented organic matter, such as, fermented bran (wheat bran fermented with
EM, Effective Microorganisms), fermented leaves, fermented saw dust, etc.
PDF version of the Simple EM Mudballs Recipe (click here).
You can play around with the type of bokashi materials (fermented wheat bran, fermented leaves, fermented wood shavings, fermented coffee husks, fermented brewery waste, etc.) and combine them in order to make your perfect mudball.
The mudballs should be fairly solid after fermenting and drying and not fall apart so easily. And you also don't want a mudball that's too hard and takes awhile to soak up water and sink to where they are most effective. In a flowing waterway, mudballs that float too long may be taken elsewhere.
EMRO's EM Mudballs Recipe
Source: (see below)
EM Mudballs are made of dried mud into which EM Bokashi and Activated EM-1 (Activated EM) have been kneaded. They are used to clean up bodies of water such as rivers, lakes, and oceans where there are concentrated deposits of sludge and slime.
How to make EM Mudballs
- Basic Materials:
- Dirt. Is is usually best to use clay-like dirt that can easily be formed into balls.
- Activated EM-1 (AEM).
- Molasses (At 10% the volume of the Activated EM-1. For example, 7 tablespoons of molasses for 1 liter (quart) of AEM.)
- EM Bokashi.
- EM-X Ceramics Powder. (In Japan, EM Super Cera Ferment C or Terra C is used.)
- How to use EM Mudballs
- Use EM Mudballs in river bottoms and mud flats where slime has accumulated. Use one EM Mudball for each square metter of surface area.
- Use EM Mudballs once each season until results are seen.
- Cleaning up oceans, rivers, lakes and ponds requires the application of EM into the water through a variety of methods. It is recommended that Activated EM-1 also be regularly applied into the water to supplement the use of EM Mudballs.
- Ratio of materials
- When using dirt only: 10 parts dirt + Activated EM-1 (AEM) + EM-X Ceramics Powder (optional).
- When using dirt and EM Bokashi: 8 parts dirt to 2-4 parts EM Bokashi + Activated EM-1 (AEM) + EM-X Ceramics Powder (optional).
- 8 parts dirt to 1-3 parts EM Bokashi + Special EM Bokashi for EM Mudballs + Activated EM-1 (AEM) + EM-X Ceramics Powder (optional).
- When using dirt and mud from mud flats: 5 parts dirt to 5 parts mud flat mud + Activated EM-1 (AEM) + EM-X Ceramics Powder (optional).
- When using dirt and mud from mud flats and EM Bokashi: 9 parts dirt to 9 parts mud from mud flats + 1 part EM Bokashi + Activated EM-1 (AEM) + EM-X Ceramics Powder (optional).
- Note:
- Since the water content of the dirt and mud used will vary, the amount of Activated EM-1 (AEM) will vary as well. As a feneral rule, though, if for instance you produce 3.5 - 4 gallons of material, you will need approximately 1 liter (quart) of Activated EM-1 (AEM). Always be sure to have enough Acitvated EM-1 (AEM) on hand in case it is needed. If you use it up, you can add extra water instead (don't be afraid to use a lot of Activated EM-1).
- The amount of optional EM-X Ceramics Powder will be between 0.5-1.0% of the total amount. For example, for 2.5 gallons of material, this will equal 3.5 - 7 tablespoons of EM-X Ceramics Powder.
Source: http://emrojapan.com/about-em/em-products/activated-materials/howtomakeballs.html
Mudball search results for emrojapan.com (you can also use their database located on their webpages).
Mudball search results for apnan.org (Asia Pacific Natural Agriculture Network)
Mud ball search results for apnan.blogspot.com
EM Mudballs With Seeds Recipe
Certain seeds may work better than others if dispersed in EM Mudballs. Such seeds may go through a fermentation cycle of its own before it can germinate. Research and investigate for each seed type before making your mudballs with seeds.
For seeds that may not work if placed inside a mudball:
- 1st, make the mudballs without seeds and let the mudballs ferment for about two weeks; make the mudballs smaller (e.g. golf-ball size).
- 2nd, add a fresh layer of mud, but without any fermentative material (no bokashi, no EM), adding maybe 1/2 inch of mud, and then insert your seeds into that freshly added layer of mud; let dry for 3 or more days before using.
You can use the simple EM Mudballs recipe (above) to make the mudballs. The microbes and bokashi should benefit the seeds in nutrients, as well as, to help the seeds germinate once they've been applied and the mudballs get wet and start falling apart.
If you want the mudballs to have more nutrients for the seeds, then you can make the EM Bokashi with various materials, for example:
- Your main material could be wheat bran, but if you can get it, use rice bran, which provides greater amounts nutrients.
Then add from 5% to 10% or more of the total amount of bran, the following two items (example): - Fishmeal (brown powder or cake) - rich in nutrients and high in protein; used as a high-quality organic fertilizer; made from ground down and dried fish parts (bones, organs, entrails).
- Oil cake (press cake, powder) - rich in minerals and protein; the leftover substance after certain oily seeds have been pressed to extract its oil and liquids; oil cake can come from a variety of foods (olives, peanuts, coconut flesh, grapes, apples, soybeans, flax seeds [linseed], sunflower seeds, etc.)--be aware that certain kinds may be toxic, but their toxic components are usually removed before pressing.