FERMENTED FEEDS...anyone using them?

[amyandkids]

Hey bee, I thought u needed a little water on top of the f.f.? See I'm still learning from you! I missed that info from u, I learned to submerge it from somewere, but fooey I'm doin it ur way!

 

[ak rain]

Can you see my PVC feeder?

 

[Beekissed]

Hey bee, I thought u needed a little water on top of the f.f.? See I'm still learning from you! I missed that info from u, I learned to submerge it from somewere, but fooey I'm doin it ur way!

I know...

Someone got it in their heads it had to be submerged and then wrote that on a blog site and then it spread to another blog site and pretty soon it was gospel. But...it's not true.

They reasoned that it was an anaerobic process and that this couldn't happen if the feed was exposed to the air, but they don't realize that the actual fermentation is an anaerobic process on a cellular level, so exposure to the air is not a factor. (Let me check with PasturePets a moment...is this correct? If not, Wikipedia needs you to go and correct it!)

If being submersed in water was a way of making it an anaerobic process, then what about all the oxygen in the water molecules themselves?

When you first add the feed and water, it is necessary to have the fluid over the mix so that there will be enough to absorb well into all the feed, but it doesn't have to STAY over the feed at that point. Mine is normally about 4 in. or more below the top of the feed. As long as the fluid was adequate for absorbing into all the feed and you stir it in each day to keep the top moistened, it's all good.

 

[Beekissed]

Can you see my PVC feeder?

Sure can! Nice! I really need to switch to PVC but I priced it and it made me choke...so unless I can get free that I can recycle, I won't be switching anytime soon.

 

[ak rain]

Mine I picked up at dump cost - a bike ride
Ak rain

 

[Beekissed]

I've got my eyes open for some...just keep looking and looking. Pretty soon I'll see some and I'll dumpster dive for it! I love a good dumpster dive or trash pick.

 

[suncatcher]

I've got my eyes open for some...just keep looking and looking. Pretty soon I'll see some and I'll dumpster dive for it! I love a good dumpster dive or trash pick.

You would think there are some cracked ones out there somewhere! Maybe try a craigslist ad.

 

[amyandkids]

Lol thanks bee! I wish u was near me I have plenty of pvc.

 

[Beekissed]

Been doing a little research....and will quote some of the things I've found. The microorganisms in our fermented grains are alternately called bacteria and/or yeasts/fungi/molds, depending upon the information sourced. The SCOBY, or film, on the top of our FF is comprised of all these...bacteria, yeasts/molds. So, referring to the SCOBY on our FF with the terminology of molds/yeasts/bacteria are all correct...because the SCOBY contains yeasts(molds) and bacteria all at the same time.

One can understand how a lay person such as myself can get the terminology confused, so let's put this to rest as PasturePets didn't come back to teach us anything about microbiology and I had to rely on what I could glean from several sources on fermentation and the organisms involved in it. I still can't say I'm exactly clear on it all, but suffice to say when I talk about good molds vs. bad molds, there are definitely yeasts/molds that are considered beneficial vs. molds that are considered harmful...and the beneficial ones are the wild yeasts that are drawn into our grain mixture and start this fermentation process.



So, it appears that the good organisms in our ferment are a bacteria and not exactly molds but are a type of bacteria.

Yeast, on the other hand, are types of mold or fungi....and are also in our FF.

microorganisms classified in the kingdom Fungi, with 1,500 species currently described[1] (estimated to be 1% of all fungal species).[2] Yeasts are unicellular, although some species with yeast forms may become multicellular through the formation of strings of connected budding cells known as pseudohyphae, or false hyphae, as seen in most molds.[3]

the sugars extracted from grains, which produces alcohol and carbon dioxide

- also called Mycoderma aceti (a New Latin expression, from the Greek μὑκης (fungus) plus δἐρμα (skin), and the Latin aceti (of the acid)[2] - is a substance composed of a form of cellulose and acetic acid bacteria that develops on fermenting alcoholic liquids, which turns alcohol into acetic acid with the help of oxygen from the air. It is added to wine, cider, or other alcoholic liquids to produce vinegar.

product made by a long fermentation of dough using naturally occurring lactobacilli and yeasts. In comparison with breads made quickly with cultivated yeast, it usually has a mildly sour taste because of the lactic acid produced by the lactobacilli.

 

[Beekissed]

Lol thanks bee! I wish u was near me I have plenty of pvc.

Me too! I'd be beggin' for some!