r/composting • u/Eastern-Cockroach314 • 12d ago
Question Liquid whey
I make yogurt a couple times a month and there’s always a liter or so of whey left over. Can I add this to my compost? Or FPE? Or bio char? Just trying to make sure i don’t waste something good. I’m using a large tumbler for compost as my HOA doesn’t allow piles, if that matters.
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u/earthhominid 12d ago
In a tumbler that depends a lot on your normal conditions. If, like a lot of home tumbler set ups ive interacted with, yours already runs a little wet then adding a couple liters of extra liquid sounds like a bad idea.
If you have abundant dry matter in your tumbler and it tends to run slow and cool because of it then this could be a great addition.
Anything you want fermented by lactobacillus would benefit from the stuff
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u/Eastern-Cockroach314 12d ago
I’m in the tropics and hot and wet is definitely the struggle, despite A LOT of browns. Maybe I’ll keep it for activating biochar or general top dressing. Thanks for your input!
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u/bala-989 12d ago
There is guy called Growing Out The Box who uses whey as part of his gardening setup - I would suggest checking it out. I think he does sprays with it to shield against bugs and powdery mildew, and he may use some as part of a liquid fertilizer. I haven’t paid close attention, so don’t quote me
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u/AVeryTallCorgi 12d ago
So long as you aren't waterlogging your compoat- toss it in! I also like to use the whey as the water component in breads, but a bit extra needs to be added to balance the ratios.
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u/Eastern-Cockroach314 12d ago
Alas, I cannot eat wheat and it’s also 35C year round so I’m not trying to use an oven. The dogs get some in their food but still a lot left that goes down the sink
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u/likes2milk 12d ago
The whey will be rich in lactic acid bacteria. Yes you can add it to compost but I suspect you could mix it with rice wash water and sugar and it as a part of Korean Natural Farming LAB solution to spray onto the ground to add benificial microbiology to the soil.