Following is a list of changes made to the document.
The procedures detailed in this document borrow heavily from past innovators. In particular, the research done by a company in Seattle Washington called Psylocybe Fanaticus is instrumental to the viability of this innovative and elegant procedure for the novice cultivator.
Psylocybe Fanaticus sells a Technology Report for $10.00 called the PF Tek. It is still sold in its paper form. Normally, growing Psilocybe mushrooms is next to impossible for a beginner. However, the PF process is a break through and virtually guarantees that the beginner will succeed.
The PF Tek. is the foundation for this document. The main purpose for this document is to detail the various ways the PF Tek. can be adapted to various needs of the home cultivator.
Please treat this document as you would 'shareware software'. Try it out, and if it works for you, send $10 and a thank you note to:
PSYLOCYBE FANATICUS
PO BOX 22009
Seattle Washington 98122
USA
The procedures detailed in this document are a mixture of mandatory and optional steps. The core document describes the basic procedure in its simplest form and at various points there will be possible adaptations that can be incorporated. In general, the adaptations will summarize what is required and the benefit to the cultivator in the event the adaptation is implemented. You should read the entire document before you attempt to implement the procedures described in it.
The first time you use the process you should follow the directions exactly and resist the temptation to innovate. Innovation without experience is the primary cause of failure. If you must innovate because you can not find a particular item or for some other reason, first check with someone that has experience to make sure you are not doing something crazy.
It is our intent to provide the first time cultivator with the knowledge to make informed decisions about the growing process for Magic Mushrooms. The cultivator can select some adaptations that are felt to be worthwhile and reject others that don't have sufficient merit for him. It's his choice, but he is still guaranteed that if he follows the directions he will produce a crop of mushrooms.
This guide is published as a single document to make printing easy and simplify acquiring a copy to your local machine. There are several GIF files that it references in the directory that you found this document. You need these also. You might want to check and see if there is a file called MMGG.ZIP or MMGG.TAR in the directory you found this document. If so, you can just get this one file and it will contain everything you need to obtain a local copy.
If you wish to examine an adaptation, simply click on it. When you're done looking at it, there will be two links. One back to the table of contents and one back to where the adaptation is used in the procedure.
One last note. A terrarium is required to complete the growing cycle.
You can perform the steps to inoculate the culture jars and over the next
few weeks build your terrarium. It takes time for the cultures to grow
and this should provide you sufficient time to make a suitable terrarium
if you are in a hurry to get started.
In order to grow mushrooms, a suitable substrate must be inoculated and colonized by the fungus. This step requires sterility because the substrate contains no preservatives and can be overrun by any mold or bacteria that is present. This first step takes place in canning jars prepared in your home's kitchen. It uses brown rice flour and vermiculite which are both readily available. A substrate is prepared, placed in the canning jars and sterilized with heat. After the jars cool, they are inoculated with a spore syringe. This phase of the cycle can be completed for less than $25 and will produce enough substrate to yield many ounces of dried mushrooms.
After the substrate is inoculated, you wait until it is colonized completely by the fungus. Once the substrate is colonized completely by the fungus, sterility is less of a concern because the fungus is pretty much able to fight off invaders and the rice cake substrate can be removed from the jar. This typically takes between two and three weeks to complete. At this point, the substrate is placed in a terrarium where high humidity is available to the fungus. While waiting for the substrate to colonize completely, no effort is required.
The terrarium is kept at around 90% humidity and the carbon dioxide that is produced by the fungus is constantly eliminated. Within a week of being placed in the terrarium, the rice cakes will start growing mushrooms. Within several weeks of being placed in the terrarium, the cultivator will have numerous mature mushrooms ready for consumption. The cakes continue to produce mushrooms until either the nutrients in the rice cake are used up or the moisture in the rice cake is depleted. Depending on how the cultivator chooses to implement the terrarium, more or less attention is required at this phase in the cycle. With the fully automated terrarium setup described later in this document, attention is only required every few days. Mostly, this involves picking mature mushrooms and adding water to the humidifier used in the setup.
It is very likely that the mushrooms will be produced faster than they can be consumed by the home cultivator once the cropping phase of the cycle starts. It is fairly easy to dry the mushrooms and preserve them for many months. In fact, some people prefer the dried mushrooms to their fresh counterpart. Being the master of understatement, let me state that they do not taste as good as mushrooms available in the grocery store.
Occasionally, a sterile spore print from a mature mushroom needs to
be generated if the cycle is to continue. This is used to produce a spore
syringe to inoculate new culture jars. It is a little bit of effort and
requires very careful, sterile procedures to be successful generating a
spore print. Of course, this can be circumvented by simply ordering a new
spore syringe. A 10 cc. spore syringe should be sufficient to inoculate
a dozen jars of substrate. It is the cultivator's choice which path to
follow for successive generations.
For each 1/2 pint jar mix 2/3 cup vermiculite and 1/4 cup brown rice flour in a mixing bowl. Adaptation-23 When these ingredients are well mixed, add 1/4 cup of water for each 1/2 pint jar you plan to prepare. If you are using 1 pint jars you need to double the recipe. Mix all of this stuff up well. This mixture is the substrate material that the fungus will consume and use for growth.
Shake the syringe. Make sure the spores are mixed well within the syringe. This can be accomplished more easily if you pull the plunger back on the syringe to get a little air into the syringe.
Remove the tin foil from each culture jar as you prepare to inoculate it. Insert the needle of the syringe as far as it will go into a hole in the lid of the culture jar and get the needle to press against the glass. Examine the next figure for a simple diagram of how things should look. Inject 1/4 cc of solution at a site under each hole in the lid. Adaptation-4 A total of 1 cc of solution for each jar. Adaptation-5
A 10 cc spore syringe is sufficient to inoculate a dozen jars if you inject slightly less than 1 cc in each jar.
As the time goes by, the fungus will spread throughout the jar. Eventually, the entire surface of the glass will be covered with fungus. Typically, the bottom of the jar is the last area to be colonized. Be on the look out for any contamination.
Any odd colors that might appear are contamination and the jar must be thrown out. Do not take any chances. If you think the jar might be contaminated, throw it out!. Some molds and bacteria produce toxins that can kill you. Just because a mushroom is growing on the opposite side of the cake from the contamination does not mean you are safe. The mycelium network carries nutrients and moisture to the mushrooms from far away and can easily pick up the toxins and bring them to the mushroom. The fact that you are using this guide means you are not an experienced mycologist. You do not know which molds and bacteria are deadly. Do not take a chance.
The one exception to the previous statements is the mycelium will some times change from a bright white to a very pale yellow if it has water droplets touching it on the side of the glass. It is very unusual for any area that is colonized by the mushroom fungus to become infected while in the jar. The uncolonized areas of the substrate are usually significantly more prone to infection.
The above pictures show a typical germination and colonization cycle. If your spores are old, or the temperature is not optimum, or you did not mix the substrate very accurately you can easily add a week to the above time frames.
The cake must stay in the jar until the entire surface area is covered with mycelium. As the substrate gets more colonized, the growth slows down. This is a result of CO2 building up and less oxygen being available for the fungus to consume. Adaptation-7
The cakes can not be taken out of the jars while there is still uncolonized
substrate. Adaptation-8
Step 12:
Once a rice cake is fully colonized, it can be taken out of the culture
jar. Adaptation-9
At this point, there are no areas on the substrate that can easily be infected
by competitor molds and bacteria. Once the mycelium is established, it
can usually prevent other organisms from gaining a foot hold and destroying
the rice cake.
Adaptation-10 Unscrew and remove the lid from the canning jars. Scrape all the loose vermiculite on the top of the substrate into the garbage. Take care not to gouge into the substrate material as this can leave areas open to infection. You do not need to get all the vermiculite off of the cake. In fact, the only reason to remove any of it is to keep the terrarium neat and orderly. Turn the jar up side down and slam it onto a table top. The rice cake should slide out of the jar. The rice cakes will typically shrink a little during the colonization phase of the process and will come out of the jars easily with a little tapping on a table top.
You can handle the cakes but remember that the less you handle them and the more gently you handle them, the better off they will be. Also, you should wash your hands thoroughly and be sure to rinse with water just as thoroughly to remove any soap before touching the cakes.
If you have disposable sterile gloves available, it isn't a bad idea
to use them. You can get away without using them, but they are a good idea.
Contamination is the mycophile's worst enemy.
Back to table of contents.
The Growing Cycle.
Construction of the
Terrarium.
There are four different setups described in this document. The first one is a very simple, minimal terrarium that works well, but can only handle one rice cake. The second two are based on work done by Psylocybe Fanaticus. They will hold more cakes than the first terrarium, but they still require attention several times a day.
I encourage you to choose the last option. This one uses the same growing chamber as Psylocbye Fanaticus developed but an ultra-sonic humidifier is introduced to keep humidity up. It requires very limited maintenance and works very well.
The first terrarium, the "Poor Man's Terrariu" requires no humidification. It relies on a very small volume of air and the fact the terrarium is sealed very tightly from the outside environment.
All of the last three of the terrarium setups require the same growing chamber. The difference is the strategy for keeping the humidity high inside of the growing chamber. If you want, you can start with one of the simpler versions and switch to a different setup later if you are unhappy with it. Note that if you start with the ultra-sonic humidifier version, we don't expect that you will want to switch to one of the other two.
Remove a section of the bottle using the razor knife. The cut on the lower part of the bottle is not very critical. The top cut is more difficult to do correctly. It needs to be right at the point where the bottle is starting to decrease in diameter. This is because the top part of the bottle is going to be inserted into the bottom part of the bottle and the two sections need to seal tightly.
The best thing to do is start lower than the diagram indicates and cut small sections off until the top piece of the bottle fits snugly and easily into the bottom section. Once you locate the correct place to cut for the type of bottle you are using, you can simply cut at the same place and make multiple bottles to handle as many cakes as you wish to fruit at any time.
The cap for the bottle must be screwed on tightly. A damp paper towel can be placed on the bottom of the bottle to help raise the humidity inside the bottle. Twice a day the bottle should be opened to allow new air to be available for the rice cake to consume. It is best to fan the rice cake to insure new air is surrounding the cake before sealing it back in the bottle. This is the major draw back to this terrarium. If you have a dozen cakes it can become a burden to exchange the air twice a day.
Next, if you are going to use the hand sprayer method of adding humidity, a drip shield needs to be installed. If you are using a fish tank bubblier or an ultra sonic humidifier, it is optional but still a good idea. As moisture condenses inside the terrarium, this protects the rice cakes from being 'rained' upon. Any moisture that forms on the lid of the cooler can drip and will be stopped by the drip shield from hitting the rice cakes. Any moisture that forms on the bottom side of the drip shield will form beads and run down to the side of the terrarium where it can drip harmlessly. If you use a piece of plexi-glass that is textured on one side, put the textured side pointing up. You want a smooth surface on the bottom side of the drip shield so that moisture can easily run down to the side of the terrarium.
The drip shield is held up by several bolts sticking through the side of the cooler. Depending on what size canning jars you use and the height of your wire mesh, you will need to figure out where to put them. You want the drip shield to be at as steep of angle as possible to make water run down it easily, but you want it high enough that your mushrooms have room to grow without touching the drip shield. The drip shield needs to fit well. You need a small gap on the edges to let air circulate, but keep it small. About 1/4 inch is good. In other words, the drip shield should fit pretty well to the inside of the cooler, but it is not supposed to be air tight. Also remember when shaping the drip shield that you can not go to the very top of the cooler because the lid will recess into the cooler a little ways.
If you are using a Styrofoam cooler, you should use washers on the bolts on both the inside and outside of the cooler. This will allow you to tighten the nuts on the bolts snugly to keep the bolts from tearing up the cooler as you move the drip shield during normal maintenance.
The procedure is this: At least four times a day the terrarium needs to have humidity injected into it via the spray bottle. At least twice a day the CO2 that has built up needs to be eliminated. Once a day you need to eliminate water from the bottom of the terrarium that has condensed and formed there.
Once a day, you need to remove the standing water from the bottom of the terrarium. You can use a turkey baster to suck the water out, or you can gently remove each cake and turn the terrarium up side down to drain the water out. If you remove the cakes, be very gentle. Any place you touch the cakes will not fruit. You should pick up the cakes in the same place every time.
Twice a day, the CO2 that has accumulated in the chamber needs to be removed. One method is to remove the drip shield and fan the inside of the cooler with the cover for 10 or 15 seconds. Another method that works well is to have a hair dryer next to the cooler and use it. Simply lower it into the terrarium with the exhaust jet pointing up and out of the terrarium and turn it on. It will suck all the existing CO2 out of the chamber. Be sure not to hit the rice cakes with the hot exhaust air. It will damage them. If your hair dryer has a 'cool' setting, use that instead of 'hot'. Incidentally, one cultivator recommends using a vacuum clean instead. He would simply suck the stale air out of the terrarium.
In order to create humidity in the terrarium a spray bottle that is capable of generating a fine mist is used. There are a lot of different products for use in the kitchen that have an adjustable spray nozzle, but if you choose to recycle one of these, make sure it produces a very fine mist. What ever you use, make sure it is entirely clean of the original chemicals. Let's make this perfectly clear. Make sure the bottle is clean and does not contain anything that will damage the fungus. The safest thing to do is go to the hardware store and buy a high quality spray bottle. These typically produce a finer mist than most kitchen type spray bottles. The problem is that you would not be using a spray bottle if you had a little extra cash so we are telling you that you can use a kitchen spray bottle if you are careful. In order to create the necessary humid environment in the terrarium, the nozzle is slipped under the cover of the cooler and sprayed at the center of the top side of the drip shield. See the following diagram:
After spraying for 5 seconds, pull the spray nozzle out of the cooler and let the lid quickly close, sealing in the vapor. The small water drops will dramatically raise the humidity of the chamber. The rice cakes can not ever be sprayed directly. The mycelium is very fragile and doing that will damage it. The terrarium needs to be sprayed at least 4 times a day. More is better.
This setup and procedure will work and is very inexpensive, but that is the only good I have to say about it. You become a slave to your terrarium. If you miss a couple sessions, your fungus will most definitely suffer because of it. Also, you can only support a few growing mushrooms at a time using this procedure. The mushrooms pull a lot of humidity out of the air and this method doesn't provide much excess.
This method is inexpensive and allows the terrarium to exist without your constant attention. It's major limitation is that depending on how it is implemented, it can only raise the humidity by 15% over ambient. The minimum acceptable amount of humidity needed by the fungus is 85%. If ambient humidity is going to be less than 70% during the growing cycle, you will experience problems even with a fully optimized setup. If you have more than a few mushrooms growing, it is possible this system will fail to keep the humidity high enough. You still need to hand spray the terrarium occasionally to boost the humidity above what the bubblier can do. Several times a day is sufficient.
All of the materials needed can be obtained at any pet store or pet department in a department store.
A second method to implement this strategy is to put the air pump inside the terrarium. This way the same air is constantly recirculated, constantly increasing its humidity. This can increase the humidity to close to 15% over ambient. This implementation has several disadvantages. First, the key to getting the higher humidity is recirculation of the same air over and over again. This means no hole can be placed at the bottom of the terrarium to allow water and CO2 to escape. You will need to eliminate CO2 at least once a day. The second disadvantage is the fact that the air pump generates some heat and can warm the terrarium by over 10 degrees F. This may or may not be acceptable. One point needs to be noted. The air pump will create some vibration. It is best to suspend the air pump from a rubber band to absorb this vibration. A stiff piece of coat hanger wire can be suspended from one side of the terrarium to the other and the air pump hung from it. Instead of the air tube going through the side of the terrarium, the power cord for the pump goes through the side. Also note that the positioning of the stiff wire to hold the air pump is not critical. It may be better to rotate it 90 degrees from what is shown in the following diagram so that it is easier to remove the drip shield when servicing the terrarium. Also, the power cord and air tube should have some slack in them so that are not being pulled on as the pump vibrates. The ideal scenario is to tie wrap them to the supporting wire. See the following diagram:
A steam humidifier is not easy to integrate into this terrarium setup.
First, the vapor it emits is too hot and will kill the fungus. The second
reason is they typically run full blast. They do not have a control to
throttle them way back like the ultra sonic humidifiers do.
This setup uses the ultra sonic humidifier to produce air that is close to 100% in humidity. The air flow out of the humidifier is limited by the fact that it has to travel through the 7/16 inch vinyl tubing. That is OK, because we want to limit the amount of air we feed into the terrarium. The humidifier will generate very humid air, but the air will also have many suspended water particles in it. Any time one of these water particles touches another water drop, they will merge. We don't want moisture forming on the rice cakes, so limiting the number of suspended water drops we allow into the terrarium is a big step towards this goal.
Even so, the air must be dried further. Adaptation-21 The air is passed through several stages where it is allowed to swirl and condense. Each one of these stages is comprised of an empty 2 liter coke bottle or some other suitable container. These stages are connected together using the 7/16 inch vinyl tubing.
Every time a piece of vinyl tubing is used, it needs to be fluted. This means it is not cut off square, but rather at a very sharp angle. This is necessary to help moisture that condenses inside the line to drip out once it reaches the end of the line. Otherwise, it will form a big drop and eventually plug up the line. At that point you have no humidity entering the terrarium.
Drill a 7/16 inch hole in the center of the exhaust lid for the humidifier. Insert a grommet. Apply a bead of silicon glue to the slit through which vapor normally exits. You want to plug this slit up. The only exit for vapor should be through a piece of vinyl tubing that will be placed inside this grommet.
Remove the labels on the coke bottles. Any large plastic container can be used but the 2 liter coke bottles are real nice because they allow you to see inside. Adaptation-24 This is useful to determine if the terrarium is running correctly later. Also, you will be able to see if moisture that has collected in the bottle needs to be emptied out of it.
Heat up the threads on the 3/8 inch bolt using a propane touch or burner on a gas stove. A cigarette lighter will work, but it will take a long time. Hold onto the bolt with the pliers. When the bolt is hot, quickly and neatly poke two holes in each 2 liter coke bottle. Adaptation-15 See the following diagram for details:
The bolt that is used is deliberately a little smaller than the hole that needs to be generated. The hot bolt will melt the hole a little bit bigger than it is when it pokes through the plastic bottle. You may need to insert the bolt a second time into the hole and let it touch the sides to expand the diameter of the hole. Some times little chunks of plastic stick to the side of the hole. Use a sharp knife to clean up the edges and insert a grommet. Check the fit of the vinyl tubing through the grommet. It should be very snug and air tight, but it should not collapse the inner diameter of the tubing very much.
Connect a piece of tubing from the humidifier to the first coke bottle. Flute both ends of each piece of vinyl tubing. Connect the this coke bottle to the next. Do this until you have all four coke bottles connected. The picture shows 3 coke bottles because that is what is normally required, but for now connect in all 4. Now connect the last coke bottle to the terrarium. You will need to poke a hole in the side and insert the tubing. The tubing should be blowing humid air into the part of the terrarium that is above the drip shield. It should be setup as follows:
Set the humidity level at the minimum setting. This is still more than you should need. Adaptation-19 After you give it time to stabilize, you should see that each stage of the coke bottles has less fog in it than the preceding stage. Usually, 3 bottles is the right amount, but depending on your humidifier and ambient humidity, it could be more or less. You want the last coke bottle to just have the slightest hint of fog in it. Add or delete stages as necessary.
The humidity in the terrarium should stabilize at about 90%. The ideal
amount of humidity is as much as you can get without moisture forming on
the rice cakes. Keep in mind that most humidity meters you get at department
stores are not very accurate.
Once you place a fully colonized rice cake in the terrarium it just needs several things to grow mushrooms. It needs high humidity, temperatures below 85 degrees F. and a little light. Once the mycelium network has gained access to enough nutrients the cake can initiate mushrooms if conditions are right. The initiation of mushrooms requires some light and temperatures in the mid to upper 70's F. The mushrooms can grow at higher temperatures, and in fact grow faster at higher temperatures. But the fact remains that the temperature range is fairly narrow to start new mushrooms. Normally, it takes about a week for pin heads to form if the rice cake was removed from the culture jar as soon as it was 100% colonized. It can happen after just a couple days if the mycelium network is well established, or it can take several weeks if things aren't just perfect for the cake.
If you keep the terrarium's temperature in the mid to upper 70's F. you will be constantly initiating new mushrooms (pin heads) while providing a good environment for the growing mushrooms to mature. This is the simplest way to grow if you can arrange for this to be the case. Adaptation-16 If you deviate outside of this temperature range, you will still get a few mushrooms, but the fungus will initiate new pin heads only occasionally. You will spend a lot of time waiting for a mushroom to form.
The rice cakes need a small amount of light to initiate pin heads. Mushrooms are not plants and do not need light to grow. However, P. cubensis is a phototropic mushroom. This means it needs light to trigger a hormonal response in order to form mushrooms. If you can see the rice cakes, there is enough light for this to happen. Many mycologists believe the reason light is important in the growing cycle is because it provides a reliable clue to the mycelium that it has reached the boundary of the substrate in which it is growing. In nature, P. cubensis often lives in a pile of cow manure. Once it has grown through the entire substrate and reaches the edge, light hits it and provides the mycelium with the information that if it forms a mushroom there, it can release spores into the air for distribution. It is not productive to form a mushroom inside the substrate because the spores can not be distributed in that case. Any normal spectrum of light that you have available will work. Sun light, fluorescent or incandescent are all fine and will work. A few minutes of light a day is sufficient but an hour or two will guarantee that pin heads form if everything else (temperature, humidity, the mycelium network is well established, etc.) is right. Be careful not to heat your terrarium too much if you use artificial light near the terrarium.
The rice cakes will have a very bright white appearance when they are first placed in the terrarium. Soon, they will be coated with a thin layer of fluffy mycelium. If the cakes refuse to fruit but continue to form more and more fluffy mycelium this is an indication that the humidity is too high and needs to be adjusted downward. For people using a humidifier in their terrarium setup, this is the single biggest cause of failure assuming they get the rice cakes colonized successfully.
When pin heads form, they will look like a short section of a common pin. Hence, the name. The end of these pin heads will soon grow dark brown. This is the cap beginning to form. When the rice cakes are fresh, the small mushrooms will start adding bulk rather than grow longer. They will form balls the size of a marble. Then, they will start to thin out and grow long, adding bulk the whole time.
If the mushrooms have mycelium growing on the caps, it is an indication that your humidity is too low in the terrarium. In this case, you have just enough humidity to allow the cakes to fruit, but you are right on the edge of failure.
You should avoid the temptation to grow the mushrooms as large as possible. Significantly more psilocybin is produced during the early periods of growth. By letting the mushroom grow too large you are simply consuming nutrients and moisture from the rice cake for no purpose. Also, the mushrooms taste increasingly bad as they get larger. Lastly, the mycelium network in the cake can only provide so much in the way of nutrients and water to maturing mushrooms. If you let the mushrooms grow too big, they will hurt the development of other mushrooms on the cake. The mushrooms should be picked just as the veil underneath the cap is starting to tear away from the stalk.
On the average, you should expect to get between 4 and 6 average size mushrooms per 1/2 pint cake. On the average you should expect each cake to produce 1 mushroom a week but this number can vary in either direction greatly.
As the cakes get older, they will produce
less and less and it will be more difficult for the mushrooms to grow.
Adaptation-17
This is a result of the moisture in the cake being consumed by the
earlier mushrooms. You will eventually see mushrooms form and start to
grow but never bulk up during the initial phase of development. These mushrooms
will seldom get big enough to develop caps. You can harvest these mushrooms
but it is an indication that the rice cake is about exhausted.
There are several ways to dry them, but we will only cover the best way. What ever you do, don't use heat to dry them. Heat is very harmful to the psycho-active compounds. You will drastically reduce the mushroom's potency if you use heat to dry them.
Materials needed:
The drying chamber needs to have a space at the bottom for water to collect. This allows the calcium chloride to function well for extended periods of time. As it pulls moisture from the air, it drips to the bottom of the chamber. The calcium chloride is held above the water by a circular section of the 1/4 inch wire mesh with a wash cloth spread out on it. See the following diagram for details. The wash cloth keeps the calcium chloride from falling through the wire mesh but any water that forms can drip through it to the bottom of the chamber.
The calcium chloride should be spread out evenly. If you use too large of a Tupperware bowl, you may have to add some structural strength to the screen in order for it to support the calcium chloride. You can simply lay a stick or ruler underneath the mesh and use tie wraps to secure the mesh to it.
Cut another circular section of mesh so that it fits above the calcium chloride and leaves a nice air gap. The mushrooms will be placed on this mesh in order to dry them. Make sure the calcium chloride is not touching the bottom of this screen. There should be an air gap between the top of the desiccant and the bottom of the screen. You do not want your mushrooms to touch the calcium chloride while they are drying because some of it will dissolve into the mushroom if this happens.
After the mushrooms have been in the drying chamber for three days, they can be moved to a zip-lock bag for long term storage. Remember that the dryer the mushrooms are, the longer they will keep. Adaptation-18
The reason this system works so well to dry the mushrooms is the calcium chloride is a good desiccant. It has a very strong affinity for moisture and can pull almost all the moisture out of the air. Eventually however, liquid will start to collect in the bottom of the drying chamber. Mushrooms are 92% water by weight. This moisture has to go somewhere when the mushrooms are dried, and it will eventually find its way to the bottom of the container.
When moisture starts to collect in the drying chamber you can simply
drain it out and continue to use the old desiccant. The chamber will continue
to work as long as there is sufficient calcium chloride in it. You should
be careful not to contaminate the sides of the container or the top screen
with residue from the desiccant. You do not want your mushrooms to touch
the residue. For one thing, it tastes terrible, but in addition to this,
the mushrooms will not dry completely. The residue will attract moisture.
Whenever you empty the moisture, it is best to wash the Tupperware container
completely.
OK, you've decided that your going to dose. After all, why did you grow these little devils if you weren't going to trip? The most important question to answer is how hard do you want to trip? If a 170 pound person had never done alcohol before, this is the advise I would give him. Dosage could be anywhere from 1 beer to 12 beers. 1 beer is just enough that you might feel something, but everything will be pretty normal. 4 beers is enough you will have a strong sensation of what alcohol does, but you will be in complete control. At 6 beers, you will start to be drunk. At 12 beers, you are pig drunk and may pass out. I would recommend 4 beers the first time out. This would give you a good feeling for what alcohol is about, but still keep you out of trouble.
These mushrooms will be fairly consistent in potency. They are all grown on the same medium under the same circumstances. If you take 4 average P. cubensis mushrooms, that will put you at the same relative spot on the spectrum as 4 beers. But remember that psilocybin is more powerful than alcohol. What you experience will be more intense than 4 beers. However, on the spectrum of what is possible, you will still be on the low side. What are average size mushrooms? Mushrooms are like snowflakes. No two are the same. I would call a mushroom that has a stalk 3 inches long and a cap 1 inch in diameter average.
Drying the mushrooms as described in this document will have minimal impact on their potency. Many sources claim that dried mushrooms are significantly less potent that fresh ones. If you use the method to dry the mushrooms described in this document, you'll find that claim is not true. It's your choice whether to eat them fresh or in their dry state. Some people have strong feelings one way or the other because of their taste. Most people agree that these mushrooms will never win any culinary awards. Try some each way. Find out if one way or the other is better for you.
Some people find that these mushrooms cause some nausea. AN165023@anon.penet.fi suggests the use of digestive aids available over the counter at any pharmacy. This will make consumption of the mushrooms a lot easier on you if you are susceptible to nausea. Also note, that most people should avoid consumption of alcohol while using these mushrooms. When the mushrooms are mixed with alcohol, even people with cast iron stomachs can loose their lunch.
If you find the taste of these mushrooms particularly distasteful, you can always bury them in a burrito or peanut butter sandwich. If you do this, it will slow the onset of the effects some what. Some people just chew them up and wash them down with orange juice.
Some people dislike the taste so much, they are willing to go to extraordinary measures to disguise the taste. Several popular recipes follow. With the exception of the first recipe, these recipes all suffer from a common problem. They use heat. Heat will cause some of the psilocybin to break down and as a result you will need to use more mushrooms for the same effect than if you had ingested them directly. This fact in and of itself is not too big of a deal. After all, you can grow as many mushrooms as you need. A 25% to 50% loss of efficiency is not ideal, but it may be worth it to some people in order to avoid the nasty taste of these mushrooms. The real problem is it is impossible to predict how strong the effect is going to be. It depends on how hot you heat them when you do the preparation and how long they are hot. Use caution!
A 500 mg vitamin C capsule can be added and will make the juice more tart which is beneficial in masking the mushroom taste.
Obviously, some of the people that grow these mushrooms are going to be looking for a 'mind melting' experience. Bad trips on mushrooms are rare, but they do happen. One of the most common reasons for bad trips on mushrooms is taking a high dose of mushrooms that have grown on cakes that also have contamination growing. Toxins get absorbed by the mushrooms growing on these contaminated cakes and as the dosage gets higher it starts to become an issue. Care should always be taken to avoid contamination but if you plan to dose on the high side, it is absolutely mandatory. Think about it. How fun would it be to have a nasty allergic reaction to some toxin while tripping hard. The email I've received on the subject suggests it is not very pleasant. Throw out any cake that is contaminated and any mushrooms that were grown on that cake even prior to when the contamination was noticed.
One final note. If you ever find that you have dosed too heavily, just
remember that 90 minutes after ingestion will be the peak experience. Things
will start to settle down after that. The good news is that medically you
can't overdose on psilocybin. If you remember these things, and believe
them, they can help ease you through a high dose experience.
In order to use the process detailed in this document, you need a sterile, viable spore syringe. The spores should be Psilocybe Cubensis spores. Preferably, they should be of the Amazonian strain. The Amazonian strain has wider parameters for fruiting and is more tolerant of mistakes. However, any Psilocybe Cubensis strain will work. There are several ways to get started. The easiest way to get started is to order a spore syringe but alternatively, you could obtain a spore print and use that to prepare a spore syringe.
Once you have grown some mushrooms, it is worth while to learn how to generate your own spore prints so that you can produce spore syringes when ever you need one. Currently, you don't have to do this if you choose not to because the spores are still readily available from mail order suppliers. Many people believe the day is coming when this will not be true. Many of the sources of psilocybe spores have quit selling to the public and others have destroyed their cultures because of mandates given by the DEA. If you have a sterile, viable spore print, you can eliminate your dependence on these suppliers.
If you are outside the United States, there is a $10.00 shipping charge. All their packages are shipped in a discrete manner. However, be aware that outside the US, a customs sticker with the description "mushroom spores in blunt-tipped pipette" is stuck on the box.
If you wish to minimize the paper trail, you can send cash to Psylocybe Fanaticus. They are totally reliable and you will get what you order. Psylocybe Fanaticus advertises that they do not keep customer files and by sending cash, you can distance your self from any records of the transaction.
If you learned about Psylocybe Fanaticus here on the Web, please mention it when you order. Currently, Psylocybe Fanaticus doesn't believe much business comes their way because of the net. We would like for that to change.
Psylocybe Fanaticus
1202 E. Pike #783
Seattle, Wa. 98122
In Europe, there is a very cost effective spore seller, Smart Botanics. They also sell dried mushrooms if your country will allow them to be imported. They only charge $8.00 for a spore syringe and $3.00 for shipping. You can place an order through the mail or directly from their web page.
Also of interest is the fact that this supplier can provide you with either the standard strain of Psilocybe cubensis spores or 'Gulf Stream' Psilocybe cubensis spores. The 'Gulf Stream' strain is slightly more tolerant of heat and fruits a little easier in warmer temperatures. The standard strain is more appropriate for cooler climates. Simply specify which one you prefer when you place your order.
Check, Diners Card and American Express are accepted.
Smart Botanics
P.O. Box 158, 2800 AD Gouda
The Netherlands.
Organic Traveller Headquarters
343 Richmond St.
Suite #101
London, Ontario Canada N6A 3C2
Phone: (519) 432-HEMP
Fax 433-7725
E-mail: nypdgreen@hotmail.com
http://pobox.com/~hemp
Hemp BC
324 West Hastings, Vancouver BC
ph (604) 681-4620
fax (604) 681-4604
On the net they have a site: WWW.HEMPBC.COM
Spore
Syringe from Hemp-BC.
Order
Information
The best place in Canada, or perhaps the world for that matter, to order
online remains the SporeLab, located near Vancouver, BC. Check out their
website at
Mostly, this section is included just for completeness. In the event
you can not obtain a spore syringe for some reason, you can get a spore
print and use that to make a spore syringe.
The following information was pilfered from the mushroom FAQ on Hyper-Real.
Materials needed:
Fill a coffee mug with water and place a shot glass inside the coffee
mug. Make sure the shot glass is completely submerged. Place the coffee
mug in the microwave oven and get the water to a full boil for 10 minutes.
It does not need to be a violent boil. Adjust the heat level of the microwave
oven to keep too much water from being lost if necessary.
Remove the shot glass and empty the excess water out of the shot glass.
Place another glass over the shot glass. This will keep air born contaminates
from settling in the shot glass while you wait for the shot glass and water
in the spore syringe to cool.
Fill the syringe with hot water from the mug. Eject the hot water and
repeat several times. This will insure the inside of the syringe and the
needle are clean and sterile. This is especially important if you are using
a syringe from a previous crop. When the needle is inserted into the substrate,
it is possible to get nutrients up inside the needle and for contamination
to grow. The last time you fill the syringe with hot water, do not purge
it. Let it sit in the syringe until it is cool. This is useful for two
reasons. First, the continued heat from the water can still work to eliminate
any remaining contaminates. Secondly, once the water is cool it can be
used as the sterile water needed to fill the syringe. Make certain that
nothing touches the needle of the syringe.
The Psilocybe mushroom spores will be killed if they come in contact
with anything too hot. You need to wait until the shot glass and spore
syringe are at room temperature. When it is safe to proceed, use the cigarette
lighter to flame sterilize the X-Acto knife and the needle of the syringe.
Let the blade of the knife cool, but make sure it does not touch anything.
When it is cool, carefully open the spore print and scrape a fleck of spores
into the shot glass. A fleck 1/4 inch by 1/4 inch is more than sufficient
for a 10 cc. spore syringe. Use the needle of the syringe to stir the spores
into a few drops of water. Usually, there will be a few drops left over
in the shot glass from when you emptied it. Otherwise, you can get the
drops from the syringe. Stir the fleck of spores until they are well broken
up and 'dissolved' into the water. Purge the water out of the syringe into
the shot glass. Pull the water back into the syringe, being sure to suck
the spores in also. Do this once or twice more to make sure the spores
are well mixed in the spore syringe. Often, it takes several tries to get
the spores fully broken apart and well mixed.
If the spores in the print have been dried and are not fresh, it is
best to wait six hours to use the spore syringe. The spores need to rehydrate.
If your in a hurry, the spores can still rehydrate in the culture jars.
Sterility is key. Adaptation-25
Be careful not to do anything that will compromise the sterility of your
spore print. The typical procedure is to cut the stalk off of a mature
mushroom very close to the cap. A sterilized knife or razor blade is used
to do this. The cap is then laid on a sterile piece of tissue paper or
card stock and a small glass set over it. The glass is needed for two reasons.
First, it keeps the spore print insulated from airborne contaminates. Secondly,
it helps keep the humidity high so the mushroom cap can continue to live
and drop its spores. One note of caution. Some humidity usually needs to
be allowed to escape. You want the environment inside the glass to be slightly
less humid than the environment in which the mushroom was grown. If you
have problems getting a cap to drop its spores, try using a piece of paper
for the print that fits entirely inside the glass and spreading out a wash
cloth flat on the table. Let the edge of the glass seal to the wash cloth
instead of the paper. This will usually allow enough humidity to escape
to cause the cap to drop spores.
If everything goes well, after a day or two the cap will drop its spores.
Adaptation-26
There will be a purple-brown dust underneath the cap. These are the spores.
Once you have a spore print on the paper, remove the glass and cap.
Fold the spore print in half and seal the edges so air can not get in.
A piece of scotch tape on each side will do nicely. The spores will stay
viable for 18 months if they are kept in a cool, dry and dark spot. If
you place a small amount of desiccant in the bottom of a film container
and place a cotton ball on top of the desiccant, you have an ideal container
to keep the spore print. The cotton ball will keep the desiccant from touching
the spore print. Seal the spore print in the canister and place the canister
in your refrigerator until you are ready to use it.
Note that if you want to be self sufficient, it is a good idea to have
multiple spore prints and store them separately. You just never know when
you are going to be surprised with a massive contamination problem or thermal
death. The safest thing to do is have a couple viable spore prints so it
is easier to recover from disaster. A spore print is typically viable for
about a year if it is stored in a cool, dark location. As a print ages,
germination gets slower and this process becomes more prone to contamination.
If it is your intent to use a mushroom to immediately generate inoculant
for a successive crop, you can eliminate some of the above steps and reduce
the risk of contamination.
Poke a small nail hole in the cap of a wide mouth jar. Cover the nail
hole with a piece of electrical tape. A 1/2 pint canning jar similar to
that used for the cultures is fine. Sterilize both the jar and the lid.
Place the harvested cap in the sterilized, wide mouth jar. Seal the
top with the lid and wait until a spore print has been generated on the
bottom of the glass. Open the jar and remove the mushroom cap. Add 3/4
cup of sterilized water. Seal the top of the jar with the lid and shake
the jar. The spores need to be mixed well into the water. This procedure
elements the need to transfer spores from a print to some container to
make the solution. The spore print is generated inside the container and
the only extra step is adding water. It also has the benefit of making
a large amount of solution that is easy to use.
Now, any time you need inoculant, you can shake the jar and peel the
tape back to expose the nail hole in the lid. Simply insert the needle
of the syringe into the inoculant and pull some into the syringe. The syringe
needs to be sterile or you risk contaminating the entire jar of solution.
The solution will keep longer if you refrigerate it. You still should keep
some spore prints on paper because it is possible to contaminate the entire
jar of inoculant if you make a mistake.
I never was around people that used psychedelics much. The few times
I had the opportunity, I was unable to find out enough about the source
and quality to put my ignorant self at ease. It seemed like I was never
going to get to have a psychedelic experience.
Well, I was surfing the net one day and decided to test the reach of
information contained on it. I was trying one exotic topic after another
in Yahoo. I was amazed at the knowledge contained on the net. I decided
to push it to the limit. I asked about psilocybin. To my amazement, a few
indexes to documents came back. I quickly down loaded them and started
studying them. I was astonished to find out that the spores for Psilocybe
mushrooms could be mail ordered because the spores did not contain any
controlled substances. And best of all, there was no overdose for psilocybin.
It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out what I was thinking!
The net contained bits and pieces of information. I was able to learn some
of the basic concepts for growing shrooms but there was a lot of uncertainty
and contradictions in the information I had. I kept increasing the depths
of my searches on the topics. It eventually became obvious that my best
chance of success lay with Psylocybe Fanaticus' method. I promptly ordered
their Tek Notes and a spore syringe.
I followed their directions and had cultures well under way soon enough.
But, I was frustrated with their humidification techniques. They did not
work for me even though I experimented like crazy. My job involves doing
research and development at a high technology computer company. I was determined
to solve the problem and make it easy for others with access to the net
to succeed. I found a few people on the alt.drugs news group that had vast
mushroom growing experience and they helped me with advice that got me
over some of my initial problems.
I was going home in a few months on vacation to visit old buddies. I
told them I thought I was going to be able to bring some shrooms so we
could all trip together. They freaked with joy. I have a basic personality
flaw. Anything worth doing, is worth doing to excess. I didn't know how
many shrooms I would need so I figured I had better grow a couple pounds.
I worked out the problems I was having and simultaneously ramped production.
I had a couple pounds of dried mushrooms by the time I headed north on
vacation.
We were at a friends cabin on the lake when the time was right. I broke
out my stash of shrooms as we prepared to go out on the lake fishing. Of
course I offered some advice about what I thought was a reasonable first
dose, but then I made the mistake of trying to comfort them with the information
that it was impossible to overdose on psilocybe mushrooms. My friends have
my same basic personality flaw about doing things to excess as I do, except
worse. The closest I can figure, I ate about an eighth of a cup of crushed,
dried shrooms and they all ate about twice that. My first dose was significantly
higher than the Dosage section of this document recommends. Just because
I got away with it, doesn't make it a smart thing to do!
Being the scientific type, I grabbed my camcorder just in case we needed
to document anything and we headed to the boat to go fishing. The first
25 minutes seemed pretty normal, but then I started to feel myself coming
on. I had done enough research to know that the peak experience was a good
hour away. I kept fishing. Soon I had to put down my fishing pole and just
watch my buddies. I just had way too much stuff going on to be holding
my fishing pole.
I had heard that the most basic visual experience was how colors became
vibrant while tripping. I kept looking for this, but never noticed it.
I was wondering if we dosed high enough or if I had gone to all the trouble
to grow these damn things and eat those awful tasting shrooms for nothing.
I started to feel a little down. I just stared at the seat where one of
my buddies was sitting.
Suddenly the seat was alive. I became mesmerized by how the grain in
the wood seats of the boat would not stay still. Every time I looked at
the seat, it would ebb and flow. Too cool! The surface of the water was
even more intense. The patterns formed by the little ripples and waves
were unbelievable. I was frying big time. Even though my buddies dosed
way higher than me, they seemed unaffected. They just kept fishing and
cracking jokes. I was still 30 minutes from peak.
I was looking across the lake at the far shore. There were lots of clouds
blowing across the sky. I was enjoying just watching them. Then it happened.
It became obvious to me which clouds were going to break apart into little
clouds and which little clouds were going to combine to make bigger clouds.
I spent a lot of time trying to figure out if I was just imagining this
ability or if I could really do it. I just kept watching the far shore.
Eventually my buddies noticed my fascination with the far shore and I became
the focus of their jokes. They still didn't seem like they were tripping.
I told them about my new found ability. That only encouraged them to make
more jokes. I challenged them to predict which clouds were going to break
apart and which ones would combine. They admitted that would be impossible.
When I told them I thought I could do it, the jokes really started.
Naturally, I had to prove I wasn't making up this ability. I started
pointing and telling my buddies which clouds were going to do what. They
were real skeptical at first, but finally I convinced them. One of them
realized that we ought to get this on the camcorder tape or nobody would
believe this had happened. It was a little work to get the camcorder setup
because we were so fucked up, but I got about 5 minutes of this on tape.
This was real valuable in making me a believer that psychedelics really
can expand your mind and give you insight that you never had before.
Later that day, everybody commented on how they thought they were the
only one affected by the shrooms until the cloud incident happened. We
were all having a good time, but nobody recognized that the others were
tripping hard. I was only at 1/2 the dose my buddies were at, so it's not
too hard for me to believe they were really looped.
The next day, everybody wanted to trip again. I gave them some advice.
I told them that a person's tolerance builds quickly to psilocybin and
that they would have to dose significantly higher to get the same effect.
Interestingly enough, they all thought they wanted a little less of an
experience. The first trip had tired everybody emotionally and intellectually.
Strangely enough, that day, straight or tripping, I was unable to repeat
my cloud predictions. It seems to have been a one time experience. Yet,
I know and have proof I was able to do it that one time. It turns out the
real life value of being able to predict cloud behavior is pretty small,
but the important point is that psychedelics can give you insight you would
not have had otherwise.
When we got back to town, all my buddies wanted me to teach them how
to grow shrooms. My buddies are not very scientifically minded people.
I have been trying to get them to use computers and get on the net for
a long time with no success. I did not think I could just explain the steps
and have much probability of them succeeding. I thought about this problem
for a little while. I wanted to write a comprehensive guide for the people
on the net and I wanted to get my buddies on the net. I could kill two
birds with one stone. I told them that if they figured out how to get on
the net, I would have a simple guide there for them to follow.
This section is for the mycrophile that has some experience and desires
to cultivate a large crop of mushrooms. This section is intended for someone
that has already grown several crops using the PF Tek procedure detailed
earlier in this document. This section assumes a certain amount of experience
and expertise. Please do not attempt this technique without first gaining
the experience; you will most likely fail if you do so.
The procedure detailed earlier in this document is the best one known
for making it possible for a first time cultivator to succeed. But it is
very inefficient and the culture jars take a significant amount of time
to manufacture and colonize. If you desire to grow a large quantity of
mushrooms, you will find it is not practical for your needs.
The following procedure is an adaptation of the traditional mushroom
cultivation techniques. It assumes you have some experience and don't need
to be warned about this and that. The following description of the bulk
growing procedure should be sufficient for an educated person to follow.
There are many fine books on the subject and rather than compete with them,
I suggest you get one if you start having difficulties The
Mushroom Cultivator However, if you are careful, these directions should
get you a truck load of shrooms.
There has been such a demand for instructions to accomplish growing
on a bulk substrate, the author has decided to help. But the following
process has not been 'idiot proofed' yet. You will need to use common sense
and adapt as issues arise. Please note that this process depends on sterile
procedures being in place. If you fail, it will most likely be because
you introduced contaminates.
Materials needed:
The first step in the process is to generate several spawn jars. Place
2/3 cup of Rye in each canning jar. Add 3/4 cup of water to each jar. Loosely
screw on the caps and sterilize the jars in the pressure cooker. 45 minutes
at 15 PSI is usually good. Note that a pressure cooker is necessary for
several reasons. First, bulk grain is more difficult to sterilize. Secondly,
in order to get the grain to absorb as much water as possible, pressure
is required.
As the Rye cooks, it will expand and all of the water should soak into
the rye. Let the jars cool to room temperature. The rye should be loose
and break apart if you rotate the jars. That is the main reason rye is
used instead of some other grain. This will be important later.
At this point you need mycelium to inoculate the grain. You will need
a clean food processor and set of blades for it. If you can sterilize it
in the pressure cooker, this is best. If not, throw it in the dish washer
with lots of soap. Don't open the pressure cooker or dish washer until
you are ready to use it.
If you are using a mushroom, perform the following steps. Sterilize
1/4 cup of water. Let it cool. Put the water and the mushroom into the
food processor and turn the mixture into a slurry. Don't mix the slurry
more than you need to. You are creating small fragments of mycelium by
chopping up the mushroom. The more you chop it up, the more damage you
do to the small pieces of mycelium.
Open each spawn jar and place 4 or 5 cc's of the prepared slurry in
the jar. Close the lid and rotate the jar so the Rye kernels tumble and
mix inside the jar. The idea is to get as many kernels as possible to have
mycelium fragments on them. Loosen the lid and place the jars in a warm,
dark location.
There are several reasons why tissue from a mushroom is preferred to
spores for the inoculation of the spawn jars.
The cleaner your environment the more likely you will get through this
stage without introducing contaminates. This is the most likely place to
induce failure.
Loosen the lid and place the jars in a warm, dark location. In 3 or
4 days you should see isolated spots with white mycelium growing. Check
the spawn jars periodically. When you see large areas of aggressive growth,
tumble the Rye to mix things up. Rotate the jar enough to thoroughly mix
the kernels. The idea of mixing the Rye is to get kernels with mycelium
growing on them scattered throughout the jar. Ideally, no kernel should
be too far from a kernel with mycelium growing on it. Repeat this process
every 3 or 4 days when the mycelium growth has been aggressive for a while.
Once there is mycelium growing within 1/2 inch of every other location
no further mixing is needed. At this point just let the mycelium expand
outwards until it is every where.
Once every kernel has mycelium growing on it, leave the jar sit undisturbed
for a week. The idea is to let the mycelium grow as fast as possible.
Sterilize more jars filled with rye and water. Let the jars cool.
Most food processors have a plastic blade that comes with them for the
purpose of mixing things instead of cutting things. Use this if possible.
Make sure your food processor and blade are clean. Empty the contents of
a colonized spawn jar into the food processor. Turn it on until the Rye
kernels are all broken apart. Add some of the freshly cooked Rye to the
food processor. Depending upon your confidence and the sterility of your
environment you can add anywhere from 4 to 20 times the amount of grain
in your spawn jar. The less you add, the less likely you will have problems
with contamination. The more you add, the faster you can create substrate.
Initially, you should stay on the low side. Turn on the food processor
and mix the freshly cooked Rye with the colonized Rye from the spawn jar.
Place this material in a container that can be loosely covered. This
material should be treated exactly as the earlier spawn jars were treated
except you should see quicker growth of the mycelium patches. The amount
of spawn you have can be compounded again and again until you have enough
to inoculate massive substrates.
Once you have sufficient spawn colonized and available for your substrate,
lay it out in a deep cake pan to a depth of 1.5 inches. Attempt to keep
the surface even. If you have a very clean environment, you can perform
a mass expansion and lay out the uncolonized grain instead of waiting for
it to colonize in the jar. This will save several days and a little effort,
but in general it is not worth the risk.
Cover the pan with a sheet of plastic wrap. Do not seal it absolutely
tight, but make sure that very little air is exchanged. Note that some
air does need to be exchanged to keep the CO2 level from getting too high.
But air exchange increases the likelihood of contamination. Keep it to
a minimum.
This is one of the big benefits to bulk substrate growing. Whatever
grain is not used to prepare a substrate can be used as spawn for new jars.
When you get to this point in the process, you can easily be preparing
a new bulk substrate every couple of days. You just make sure you never
use all of the colonized grain as substrate. You hold back some to use
as spawn for the next set of jars.
Wait a few days until the freshly laid out substrate is showing aggressive
growth. Laying out the grain breaks up the mycelium networks, and it takes
several days for the mycelium to recover.
Step 9
Casing the substrate is the next step. Various recipes are available
but the simplest one consists of course ground vermiculite and water. Course
ground vermiculite is a requirement because the fine ground vermiculite
packs too tightly and seals the substrate.
Soak the vermiculite in water. Wring it out, but leave it fairly damp.
Later versions of this guide will have exact measurements but for the moment,
you will need to adapt. If any of you think you have an optimum mixture,
please post it in the alt.drugs.psychedlics and rec.drugs.psychedlic newsgroups.
Lay out the casing material to a depth of 3/4 of an inch. Try to keep
it smooth because this will result in the mycelium poking through everywhere
at the same time. Cover with plastic wrap and wait. Typically, it will
be about a week for the mycelium to break through the surface of the casing.
Step 10
Initiate fruiting. Take the plastic off of the pan and place it in your
terrarium. Make sure you have the temperature at about 75 F. Have some
indirect light available. As pins start to develop, use a hand sprayer
to mist the casing and keep it moist. But be careful. Do not saturate it
to the point of being wet and having water drops that will not soak into
the vermiculite.
Step 11
After the first flush, you can get a smaller second and third flush
if you let the substrate rest for a while. There are a lot of factors affecting
this. One particularly important factor is home much of the first flush's
moisture came from the substrate and how much came from the casing. If
you can mist your casing several times a day, that will help the longevity
of your substrate.
If you can not find an ultra sonic humidifier, you can use other humidifiers.
Don't get too hung up with this item. The big problem to watch out for
is heat. If you get forced to use a humidifier that is not ultra sonic
make sure it does not put out a warm mist of air. Any ultra sonic humidifier
can be made to work. This statement is not true of other humidifiers.
Prices vary dramatically, but a big bag of it with several cubic feet
of vermiculite usually runs less than $10.00. Much smaller bags are available
and sell for several dollars.
If you can't find vermiculite in any of the well stocked garden centers
in your area, you can call Piedmont Pacific. They are a large supplier
of vermiculite. Their phone number is 1-770-725-6853. You can ask them
for the name of a store in your area that sells vermiculite.
Back to preparing the
substrate.
If you have a suggestion, you can get it to the author of this document
by posting it to these same newsgroups. If you have something you only
want the author of this document to read, please encrypt it with PGP and
post it to the above newsgroups. I will see it. My PGP key is:
You may notice mushrooms trying to grow inside the jar before the substrate
is 100% colonized. This is not ideal because you are using up moisture
in the cake for something that you won't consume, but it is a fact of life
using the 1 pint jars. It is normal.
Back to preparation and
colonization of substrate.
One caution. Do not release the pressure until the unit is fully cooled.
The substrate in the culture jars will be at 250 F. If pressure is released,
moisture will boil out of the substrate.
Back to preparation and
colonization of substrate.
If you are doing twice as many jars as will fit in your terrarium, pack
half of the jars very tightly.
Back to preparation
and colonization of substrate.
The main reason why this is sometimes worth while has to do with contamination.
By far, the most likely spot for contamination to enter the culture jar
is at the site of the inoculation. If you have a spore syringe that may
not be entirely free of contamination, you can increase your probability
of keeping the culture free of contamination by only inoculating one site.
Note that commercial spore syringes are typically very sterile. If you
do nothing to change this fact, it is best to inoculate at four sites in
the culture jar.
In order to illustrate the point, assume that the spore syringe has
slightly 'dirty' contents but is still viable. Assume any given injection
site has a 50% chance of becoming contaminated. If you inject only one
site, the culture has a 50% chance of becoming contaminated. If you inject
four sites, the culture has a
Back to preparation
and colonization of substrate.
If you inject 1 cc of inoculate at each site, you will get many germination's
and the cake will colonize significantly faster. You should place the beveled
side of the syringe needle against the glass so that the inoculate is coming
out of the syringe and heading towards the glass. It should form a thin
puddle of liquid between the glass and the substrate. 1 cc of inoculate
should produce a puddle several inches in diameter.
Back to preparation
and colonization of substrate.
There are several easy ways to accomplish this. If you have a floor
heater with a pilot light and it is summer time (so the heat is not going
to come on), you might be able to put the cakes in a shoe box and set them
on the unit. The top of your water heater might be a good candidate. You
can fill a cake pan half way with water and put a submersible fish tank
heater in the water set to 80 degrees. Then simply put the jars in the
cake pan.
However you choose to do this, make sure the temperature does not get
above 90 degrees. Check out the heat source before you subject your cakes
to it.
If you plan to have your terrarium at normal room temperature, then
colonizing at 80 degrees will help you initiate a massive flush of mushrooms
when you place your cakes in the terrarium.
Back to preparation
and colonization of substrate.
The second reason you will want to avoid doing this is the initiating
of the fruiting process is triggered by three things. A drop in temperature,
a drop in the CO2 level and light. You may confuse the fungus and inhibit
a massive flush when you take the cake out of the jar. You will still get
a crop, but it may take longer to consume the cake.
Back to preparation
and colonization of substrate.
Secondly, the process assumes that when the cake is removed from the
jar it has sufficient networks in place to provide the nutrition needed
for the fruiting process. If you take the cake out too early, this may
not be the case.
Back to preparation
and colonization of substrate.
Back to preparation
and colonization of substrate.
Back to preparation
and colonization of substrate.
Back to construction
of basic growing chamber.
Check all the gauges on the shelf. Most likely, some will deviate greatly
from the rest. You want to pick one that seems to be accurate! Bare in
mind that usually there are several different brands of gauges available.
Check and see what various gauges from different brands are reading. Use
some common sense to eliminate the obviously inaccurate gauges. Even so,
you are making the assumption that at the high end of the humidity spectrum
the chosen gauge will be accurate. Remember that absolute accuracy is not
so important as knowing the relative conditions inside you terrarium over
time. Even if you gauge is off a little bit, it will tend to be off in
the same direction all the time. The easiest way to use a gauge during
the growing process is to know what it used to read during previous growing
cycles and keeping close to that reading. If a problem does develop, it
will provide a clue which direction you need to move.
Back to construction
of basic growing
Back
to Method 2, Using a Fish Tank Bubblier.
Back
to Method 2, Using a Fish Tank Bubblier
Back to construction
of Ultra Sonic support system.
Back to the Growing
Cycle.
Back to Growing
Cycle.
Back to Drying
and Preservation of Mushrooms.
Note that this adaptation is mutually exclusive with Adaptation-21.
If you try to combine them, it won't work.
Back
to Method 3 of Terrarium Construction.
A reservoir for moisture can be built into the cake while packing the
jars with substrate material. Start with an empty jar and tamp 1/4 inch
of substrate material in the bottom. Next, position a magic marker or some
other object with a cylindrical shape and a diameter of about 3/4 inch
in the center of the jar. Fill the jar as normal. Next, remove the object
and fill the bore with damp vermiculite. Lastly, pack 1/4 inch of substrate
material over the entire jar, sealing the damp vermiculite inside the cake.
The damp vermiculite can be mixed separately from the substrate material.
Use about 1 cup of vermiculite and 1/3 cup of water. This should produce
enough damp vermiculite for a dozen 1/2 pint culture jars.
After the cake has fruited, occasionally inject water into this reservoir.
The easiest place to inject is the position of the cake that used to be
at the center of the bottom of the jar. Just insert a syringe filled with
sterile water and inject water until it is full.
In case you are wondering, the substrate material can't be injected
with water directly. The rice flour and vermiculite form a very tight seal
and it is next to impossible to inject water. Even if you do manage to
inject water, it doesn't spread through the cake. Having this reservoir
filled with damp vermiculite gives the mycelium network access to a lot
of moisture.
The easiest way we have found to implement this adaptation is to cut
the bottom off of a 10 cc syringe and press the bottom of the syringe into
the wet vermiculite several times. This will load the syringe with wet
vermiculite. Then place the syringe in the culture jar and pack the substrate
around it. Use the syringe's plunger to hold the wet vermiculite stationary
while you remove the syringe. Tamp an additional 1/4 inch of substrate
material over the entire surface of the jar.
Back to preparation
and colonization
This document used to recommend using a timer that gives control on
a minute by minute basis. These timers are becoming increasingly difficult
to locate and more expensive. To accomodate this, there has been a strategy
shift on this adaptation. Find a timer that lets you limit the 'On' cycle
to 15 minutes. Intermatic makes two version that sell for under $15. They
are model numbers SB811C and TB811C. They are available in the electrical
section of Home Building Centers. You may also find them in the hardware
section of a department store.
Since the shortest amount of time the timer can switch on is 15 minutes,
it is important to make sure the cakes do not get water droplets forming
on them in this much time. In general, the condensation filter chambers
should be set up identically to the normal humidified chamber setup. You
just may not need as many filter stages since the humidifier will not be
running steady.
The other parameter you need to set is how tight to seal the chamber.
You need to make sure the chamber's humidity does not drop too far during
the 'Off' cycle of the timer. Typically, the 'Off' cycle is at least an
1.25 hours. (On the Intermatic timers, this coresponds to every third switch
being up.) Ideally, you want the humidity to fall to 85% by the end of
the cycle. (If your chamber seals tightly, you may be able to go every
fourth or fifth switch).
Back to Building
Terrarium with ultra-sonic humidifier.
Rather than use brown rice flour available at a health food store, you
can grind your own from long grain brown rice. Simply put the dried rice
into a coffee grinder or a blender and let it chew the rice into a chunky
flour. You will need to increase the water from 1/4 cup per 1/2 pint jar
by 1 and 1/2 tablespoons. The chunky home ground flour absorbs a little
more water than the normal flour.
Also, the home made brown rice flour seems to yield much more consistently
and produce slightly more mushrooms per cake than store bought flour.
Back to preparation and
colonization of substrate.
Back to preparation and
colonization of substrate.
Back to construction
of Ultra Sonic support system.
Back to Making
a Spore Print.
Back to Making
a Spore Print.
Sources for Spore Prints
In the event you wish to start with a spore print instead of a spore
syringe, this section provides a few places you can obtain suitable spore
prints. In general, the first time grower really ought to start with a
spore syringe because it eliminates many of the sterility issues. The one
benefit to starting with a spore print is you can make close to fifty 10
cc. spore syringes from a single spore print. However, this is really a
moot point. Once you have grown a crop of mushrooms, you can generate as
many spore prints as you want. One spore syringe is guaranteed to produce
a crop if you follow the directions in this guide.
Homestead Books P. cubensis spores ($25), kits ($70), and
P.O. Box 31608 books/videos about growing.
Seattle, WA 98103 (Phone: +1-206-782-4532)
Pacific Exotic Spora Panaeolus cyanescens and Coplandia cyanescens
P.O. box 11611 spores. Very expensive, $40-$75.
Honolulu, HI 96828
The Shroom King Str. cubensis print and a book for $25, above
P.O. Box 17444 above plus compost and agar for $35.
Seattle, WA 98107 (Phone: +1-206-784-9328)
SYZYGY $15 + $1 (S&H) for a Str. cubensis print
P.O. Box 619 on a slide.
Honaunau, HI 96726
J.L.F. Supposedly sells some rare species ready
P.O. Box 184-SC to and lotsa weird stuff. Free catalog.
Elizabethtown, IN 47232 (Phone: +1-812-379-2508)
How to Make a Spore Syringe
Sterility is key. If your spore print is contaminated or you introduce
contamination into the spore syringe, you will have difficulty later in
the process. Ideally, there should be no fans blowing or drafts of air.
You should clean the area where you will be working carefully and make
sure that everything is tidy.
Several things need to be accomplished. First, we need to sterilize a shot
glass to easily mix the spore solution and we need to sterilize a syringe
to hold the solution. We also need some sterile water in which to suspend
the spores. The following procedure will accomplish all of this.
How to Make a Spore Print
Once you have a mature mushroom, you are in a position to make a spore
print and use it to continue cultivation of mushrooms. The cap should be
harvested when the mushroom cap has become flat or is starting to invert.
Combination of Spore Print and Preparation of Inoculant
This excellent idea is from: AN165023@anon.penet.fi
The Author's First Trip
OK, some of you experienced druggies are going to get a chuckle from
this. This is a description of my first trip. I grew up in a real conservative
environment. I always wanted to hallucinate but I was real scared of LSD.
After all, it causes chromosome damage and a lot of the people that trip
on it either jump out of windows or end up in a permanent psychosis. Some
of the lucky ones that make it through the trip ok suffer from uncontrollable
flash backs for the rest of their life. Pretty scary stuff.
Bulk Substrate Growing
Step 1
Step 2
If you are using a 100% colonized culture jar, perform the following steps.
First, the culture jar should have been 100% colonized for at least a week.
This lets the mycelium grow into the cake and results in more of it being
available for the inoculation. Birth the cake, and place it in the food
processor. Turn it into little pieces smaller than a pea. Dump the sterilized
rye into the food processor and turn it on just long enough to mix things
up well. Place the contents of the food processor back into the jar and
cover it loosely.
Step 3
Step 4
Step 5
Step 6
Step 7
Step 8
Where to find Difficult Items
Brown Rice Flour
Ultra Sonic Humidifiers
Vermiculite
10 cc. Syringes
Back to Terrarium
Construction.
Back to table of contents.
Providing Feed Back and Getting Questions Answered
Type Bits/KeyID Date User ID
pub 2047/B9182FE9 1996/08/24 MMGG Author
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Index of Adaptations
Adaptation-1 Using
bigger culture jars
Adaptation-2
Using a pressure cooker to sterilize the substrate
Adaptation-3
Slowing colonization by packing the substrate
Adaptation-4
Lowering contamination risk by inoculating 1 site
Adaptation-5
Speeding colonization by using more inoculant
Adaptation-6
Speeding colonization by using optimum temperature
Adaptation-7 Speeding
colonization by providing more oxygen
Adaptation-8 Removing
the rice cake before 100% colonization
Adaptation-9
Waiting to remove the rice cake
Adaptation-10
Checking out the terrarium before use
Adaptation-11
Use of a higher quality cooler for terrarium
Adaptation-12
Use of a humidity gauge in the terrarium
Adaptation-13 Use
of a tank heater when using fish tank bubblier
Adaptation-14 Use
of plastic wool to produce finer bubbles
Adaptation-15
Extra terrariums when using ultra sonic humidifiers
Adaptation-16 Use of
ice-pak to help initiation of pin heads
Adaptation-17 Adding
moisture to the rice cake by injection
Adaptation-18
Continued drying of shrooms while being stored
Adaptation-19
Circuit modification to ultra sonic humidifier
Adaptation-20 Adding
moisture reservoir to cake during substrate preparation
Adaptation-21 Use of a
timer to control water droplet Water Droplets and Stimulate Fruiting
Adaptation-22
Use of home made rice flour to speed colonization
Adaptation-23
Lowering of contamination rate by Presterilization
Adaptation-24: Using
a 2 1/2 gallon water jug for filtering
Adaptation-25: Producing
contaminate free mushrooms for generating spore prints
Adaptation-26:
Producing a clean spore print from a questionable cap
Back to table of contents.
Adaptation-1: Use of Big Substrate Jars.
Normally, 1/2 pint canning jars are used to prepare the rice cake cultures.
It is possible to use 1 pint canning jars instead. In fact, in some parts
of the country you may have a difficult time finding the 1/2 pint size.
Advantage:
The main benefit to using the larger 1 pint size is that more substrate
can be growing mushrooms in your terrarium. The terrariums described in
this report typically will hold 6 or 8 cakes. If you want more substrate
growing mushrooms, one way to accomplish the goal is to use bigger cakes.
Disadvantages:
There are several disadvantages to using bigger cakes. First, it takes
several weeks longer for the fungus to colonize the entire cake. Another
disadvantage is that if you suffer from contamination, you will be throwing
out more substrate material. Lastly, you need to make sure when you construct
your terrarium that you leave a few more inches of space under the drip
shield for the cakes to reside. Since they are taller, they will require
the drip shield to be placed higher.
Back to table of contents.
Adaptation-2: Use of a Pressure Cooker to Sterilize.
Normally, most people will elect to use a large kitchen pot to sterilize
the culture jars. A pressure cooker can be used instead. Instead of letting
the substrate jars sit in boiling water for 1 hour, you can place them
in a pressure cooker set to 10 or 15 P.S.I for 20 minutes.
Advantage:
If you use a pressure cooker, you can sterilize the jars quicker and with
more certainty.
Disadvantages:
Pressure cookers cost money. If you already have one, there is no disadvantage.
You may as well use it!
Back to table of contents.
Adaptation-3: Tight Packing of Substrate to Slow Colonization.
You can slow the colonization of a jar dramatically by simply packing
the substrate material very tightly in the culture jars.
Advantage:
Normally, people want the substrate to colonize as quickly as possible.
In the case where more culture jars are being prepared than can fit in
the terrarium, it is good to space out the colonization of the jars so
that some of the early rice cakes are consumed and spent before the last
jars in the batch are ready to be placed in the terrarium. This technique
allows you to space out the colonization of your jars so you can prepare
more of them at one time and harvest them later than usual.
Disadvantages:
The substrate material will compress a little bit when packed tighter.
You may have to mix up a little extra substrate material to fill the tightly
packed jars to the proper level.
Back to table of contents.
Adaptation-4: Injection at Only 1 Site
You can inject only one site instead of the usual four sites in the
culture jar.
Advantage:
There are two advantages to doing this. First, you use significantly less
inoculate. Generally it is not worth while for this reason. The inoculate
is not very expensive if you purchase spore syringes. It is virtually free
if you prepare your own spore syringes.
Disadvantages:
It will take significantly longer for the jar to become 100% colonized.
Back to table of contents.
Adaptation-5: Large amounts of Inoculate.
You can speed up the colonization of a jar dramatically by simply injecting
the substrate material with more inoculate.
Advantage:
Normally, people want the substrate to colonize as quickly as possible.
This will help accomplish that goal. Also, the sooner and more fully the
cake gets colonized, the less chance there is that contamination will get
a foot hold and destroy the cake.
Disadvantages:
This adaptation requires extra inoculate. If you are producing your own
spore syringes it is not a factor. A single spore print can produce many
(close to 50) spore syringes. If you are purchasing your spore syringes,
you may wish to wait the few extra days to avoid the extra cost of using
more inoculate.
Back to table of contents.
Adaptation-6: 80 Degree Colonization Temperature
The culture jars can be colonized at a temperature higher than room
temperature. 80 Degrees F. is ideal. Slightly higher is OK.
Advantage:
Colonizing the substrate at 80 degrees F. is the ideal temperature for
several reasons. First, the mycelium will grow faster and the substrate
will be colonized in the shortest amount of time. Secondly, when the cakes
are removed from the jars, initiation of fruiting is enhanced by shocking
the cakes with a temperature drop, lower CO2 levels, and light.
Disadvantages:
None.
Back to table of contents.
Adaptation-7: More Oxygen for Colonization
The culture jars can be given more oxygen during colonization. This
is done by inverting the jars so that the lid is down.
Advantage:
As the CO2 builds up, growth of the fungus slows down. Indeed, the mycelium
benefits from increased CO2 during its vegetative growth stage, but eventually
it gets too high for optimum growth. If you invert the jars, the CO2 can
drain out and is replaced by fresh air. This will speed the colonization
of the substrate.
Disadvantages:
There are several disadvantages to this. First, the rice cakes normally
shrink a little bit while in the jars and when you invert the jars they
will slide down a little bit. This will create a vacuum and pull some air
into the jar. This air could have contaminates that get a foot hold in
the uncolonized portions of the cake.
Back to table of contents.
Adaptation-8: Taking the Rice Cake Out of the Jar Before it is 100% Colonized
The partially colonized substrate can be removed from the jar if the
uncolonized portions of it are cauterized. Remove the cake from the jar
and heat a nail head red hot using a propane torch or burner on a gas stove.
Brand the entire uncolonized area.
Advantage:
Nothing will grow on the uncolonized, cauterized portions of the rice cakes.
If you need to remove a cake early from the jar this will keep contamination
from having a place to get a foot hold. There are very few good reasons
to exercise this adaptation. The reason the authors have included it is
sometimes growing cycles overlap and you want to start a new culture in
every jar you have. If you birth the rice cake early, you have an extra
jar to prepare cultures in. One other reason for doing this is travel.
If your leaving on a trip (one where you will be out of town) and your
cake will be overly colonized by the time you get back, you can use this
adaptation to birth the cake early and move it to the terrarium.
Disadvantages:
This is dangerous. It is asking for trouble. First, you are assuming that
you can inhibit growth of contaminates on the uncolonized portion of the
cake. The bigger the area that is uncolonized, the more risky this assumption
is.
Back to table of contents.
Adaptation-9: Waiting to Remove Rice Cake From the Jar
The colonized substrate does not need to be removed from the culture
jar immediately after it is 100% colonized. You can wait until primordia
form on the substrate.
Advantage:
There are a number of reasons why you might want to delay the 'birthday'
of the rice cake. You may not have room in the terrarium or be planning
a trip where you won't be around to maintain the terrarium. Also, waiting
gives the mycelium more time to fully develop its network throughout the
substrate and can result in larger flushes.
Disadvantages:
The continued development of the mycelium network will take place at a
slower rate in the jar than it would with lots of oxygen available.
Back to table of contents.
Adaptation-10: Checking Out Terrarium Prior to Removing Rice Cake
The terrarium and its life support systems can be checked out prior
to removing a rice cake from the culture jar. Make sure everything is 100%
functional before removing the rice cake from the jar.
Advantage:
If you have any problems, you get a chance to fix them before you destroy
a rice cake.
Disadvantages:
None.
Back to table of contents.
Adaptation-11: Use of a Coleman Cooler instead of a Styrofoam Cooler
A fancy, nicer, plastic cooler can be used instead of a Styrofoam cooler.
Advantage:
The nicer, plastic coolers typically have more space in them so they can
hold more rice cakes. Also, it is nice to have a cooler with a hinged top
that simply flips up and allows access easily. Lastly, the plastic coolers
are more durable than Styrofoam coolers. If you plan to use the terrarium
a lot, go ahead and use a plastic cooler from the start.
Disadvantages:
Cost is one disadvantage. Another disadvantage is the plastic coolers are
more difficult to modify for use as a growing chamber than the Styrofoam
coolers.
Back to table of contents.
Adaptation-12: Adding a Humidity Gauge to the Terrarium
A humidity gauge can be added to the terrarium. Especially for Styrofoam
coolers, it is easy to cut out a window in the side of the cooler and insert
a combination humidity/temperature gauge. The gauge should be put below
the drip shield so that it is showing the actual conditions where the mushrooms
are growing. In reality, the conditions will not vary much inside the terrarium,
but there is no reason to add inaccuracy. The gauge can be glued in place
with silicon glue. Make sure the vents in the gauge are only open to the
inside of the terrarium and not the outside world. The combination gauge
can be got very inexpensively at any department store.
Advantage:
A humidity gauge is very helpful during the growing cycle, but it takes
up valuable real-estate inside the terrarium. This gets it out of the way
inside the terrarium and makes it easy to see the state of the terrarium
with out messing around inside the terrarium.
Disadvantages:
None.
Back to table of contents.
Adaptation-13: Use of Fish Tank Heater to Raise Humidity.
If you are using the fish tank bubblier system to create humidity in
your terrarium, you can use a submersible fish tank heater to help raise
the humidity. You can place the fish tank heater in the water and use it
to raise the water's temperature 10 or 15 degrees F. over ambient. This
will make it easier for the air bubbling through the water to absorb moisture,
thus raising the humidity. The higher you set the temperature of the heater,
the more humidity you can get. You should be careful not to allow the inside
temperature of the terrarium to get above 80 degrees F. In order to effectively
use this adaptation, your terrarium will need to be in a cool location.
Advantage:
You will be able to generate an extra 5% of humidity over ambient by using
this adaptation.
Disadvantages:
You will increase the temperature inside your terrarium some by doing this.
You can minimize the temperature increase by using a container to hold
the water that is well insulated. You want the water warm, but you don't
want heat leaking any more than necessary into the terrarium.
Back to table of contents.
Adaptation-14: Use of Angel Hair to Raise Humidity.
If you are using the fish tank bubblier system to create humidity in
your terrarium, you can place angel hair or anything else that will slow
the bubbles rise in the water container. Simply pack it into the container.
This will increase humidity by several percent. Ideally, you want to slow
the bubbles but also split them into smaller bubbles. Some plastic versions
of steel wool for use washing dishes work well. Steel wool would work well
except that it will rust and get nasty.
Advantage:
You will be able to generate an extra 1% or 2% of humidity over ambient
by using this adaptation. The smaller the bubbles are and the more time
they spend in the water, the greater the benefit.
Disadvantages:
None.
Back to table of contents.
Adaptation-15: Supporting Extra Terrariums with the Ultra Sonic Humidifier
First, build an extra Growing Chamber. Then on one of the 2 liter coke
bottles, poke an extra hole. Insert a grommet and make this bottle the
last stage for drying the air. Even the most basic ultra sonic humidifier
can feed more than one terrarium with sufficient quantities of humid air
to keep everything in the ideal range for the fungus.
Advantage:
You get twice the growing area for your mushrooms. Your crops can be twice
as big. Alternatively, you can use one terrarium for older cakes. Older
cakes are significantly more likely to become contaminated and pose a threat
to the other cakes in the terrarium. Moving older cakes to the second terrarium
drastically reduces your chances of a crop failure.
Disadvantages:
You need to build an extra Growing Chamber, and it takes up a little space.
Back to table of contents.
Adaptation-16: Use of an Ice-Pak to Initiate Fruiting.
You can keep the terrarium's temperature between 80 and 95 degrees
F. If you have a terrarium setup that uses an ultra sonic humidifier, you
can place a reusable, frozen Ice-Pak in the Terrarium. This will cool everything
down and let the rice cakes slowly shift through the fruiting temperature
range. Note that everything else must be right. The rice cake must have
a fully developed mycelium network and there must be light. The Ice-Pak
should be placed between 1/4 and 1/2 inch from the rice cakes. A flat Ice-Pak
will work, but if you have the option, get one that is designed to slip
into the center of a six-pak. It will have circular indents molded into
each side and it will conform to the shape of the rice cakes better. If
everything was ready, you should see pin heads develop 3 or 4 days after
you perform this adaptation. If you don't see any develop after 3 or 4
days, you can repeat this operation again. The networks may not have been
developed full enough and the few days since the last attempt may have
been enough time to change this fact.
Advantage:
You can still initiate prolific flushes with the terrarium above the normal
temperature range. The optimum temperature for growing mushrooms is higher
than what is necessary to initiate new mushrooms and is between 80 and
90 degrees F. This adaptation can let the cultivator grow at the maximum
rate, and still produce new mushrooms on the cakes.
Disadvantages:
The Ice-Pak will lower the humidity in the terrarium. Mostly, this is an
issue when you have mushrooms on cakes that are part way through the growing
cycle and not ready to harvest. They will usually survive the bad growing
conditions for the six hours it takes the Ice-Pak to initiate fruiting,
but they will suffer for it. You need to have an ultra sonic humidifier
setup on your terrarium. Nothing else will be able to keep the humidity
high enough. You can turn the humidity control up a little, but you will
have to continue to adjust it down as the Ice-Pak loses its cool. If too
much moisture forms on the cakes, it will prevent the initiation of pin
heads and that was the whole purpose of this operation.
Back to table of contents.
Adaptation-17: Adding Moisture to the Rice Cake.
After a cake has produced several mushrooms you can add moisture to
it. Flame sterilize a 3/16 inch drill bit. Let it cool. Use it to drill
a hole at the center of the cake. You can do this by hand. You do not need
a drill. Do not go all the way through the cake, but drill a deep reservoir
into the cake. Cut a plastic straw to 4 inches in length. Insert the straw
1/2 inch into the hole. The straw should fit tightly in the cake. Straws
from McDonalds are larger than most and work well. They seal well and hold
more water. Fill the straw with water daily. A 10 cc. syringe works well
to fill the straws with water. You should wait to drill the hole until
the cake has produced some mushrooms because the inside of the rice cake
is not colonized as quickly as the outside. Also, there is sufficient moisture
in the cake at the start so there is no need to add water immediately.
Advantage:
The rice cake will produce many more mushrooms than it would have without
adding moisture. Using this adaptation allows the nutrients in the rice
cake to be almost totally consumed before the cake is exhausted.
Disadvantages:
Care should be taken when drilling the hole because there is no way to
monitor for contamination inside the hole. Also, you will need to add water
on a daily basis.
Back to table of contents.
Adaptation-18: Continued Drying of Mushrooms During Storage
You can place a small glass with a small amount of desiccant in the
long term storage bag to continue to extract moisture from the mushrooms.
A shot glass with 3/4 of an ounce of desiccant is sufficient to keep the
humidity very low in the long term storage bag. A larger glass that is
more stable might be a better choice in order to avoid an accident of spilling
the desiccant inside the bag.
Advantage:
The mushrooms will continue to dry and their preservation is enhanced.
Disadvantages:
You will need to be careful not to knock the glass over and spill desiccant
in the storage bag. This is only suitable if you can leave the bag in a
stationary location.
Back to table of contents.
Adaptation-19: Reducing Output Of Ultra Sonic Humidifier
The output of the ultra sonic humidifier can be reduced by changing
the circuitry. Almost all ultra sonic humidifiers use a 5 K-ohm or 10 K-ohm
potentiometer to control the output. By adding a 5 K-ohm or 10 K-ohm resister
in series with the potentiometer, the original 'low' setting becomes the
new 'high' setting. The humidity output can be turned down even lower than
originally possible. Simply cut the wire going to the potentiometer and
solder a similar sized resister (available at Radio Shack) in series. You
may need to set the humidity control above the minimum setting once you
make this modification.
Advantage:
This drastically reduces the suspended water particles emitted by the humidifier.
However, the big advantage is that the humidifier uses significantly less
water. It is possible to fill up the humidifier and leave on a trip for
10 days without having to add water.
Disadvantages:
Complexity is the major disadvantage. The above instructions are deliberately
technical. If reading them doesn't give you enough information, don't attempt
to do this. Find someone to help you. It is very easy and straight forward
for someone that is handy with a soldering iron to accomplish.
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Adaptation-20: Providing a Moisture Reservoir in the Substrate
Advantage:
This adaptation will dramatically extend the longevity of the cake. The
cake's yield are normally limited by the amount of moisture in the cake.
This procedure allows you to replace moisture as it is consumed by mushroom
growth. In general, you will double the total output of the cake compared
to not implementing this adaptation.
Disadvantages:
It is a little bit of extra work to prepare the jars this way. Also, there
is a need to be careful to use sterile water when injecting moisture during
the growing phase. There is no way to check for contamination introduced
inside the cake by injecting water.
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Adaptation-21: Use of a Timer to Control Suspended Water Droplets and Stimulate
Fruiting
The ultra sonic humidifier can be placed on a timer to control the
amount of suspended water droplets that are released into the terrarium.
Because the humidifier is turned on and off the humidity in the growing
chamber will rise and fall. There is starting to be some evidence that
this helps stimulate fruiting.
Advantage:
There are several advantages to using a timer.
Disadvantages:
Cost and availability are the major disadvantages.
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Adaptation-22: Use of a Home Made Brown Rice Flour
This idea is from: AN165023@anon.penet.fi
Advantage:
Cost is one benefit, but that is not the reason this adaptation is useful.
Using home ground flour will speed the colonization of the substrate. It
has been reported that a 1/2 pint jar can be 100% colonized in 11 days
if fresh spores are used and the jar is kept at 85 degrees F. during colonization.
Note that this is the current record, and most jars will take a bit longer,
but overall, the colonization time period is reduced.
Disadvantages:
Extra effort.
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Adaptation-23: Lowering the Contamination Rate by Presterilization
The raw ingredients of the substrate can be sterilized separately to
eliminate nearly all of the contaminates. Spread the vermiculite and rice
flour evenly into separate cake pans and bake in a preheated oven at 300
degrees F. for 20 minutes. While these are baking, boil a large bowl of
water in for 10 or 15 minutes. Use these materials to mix the substrate.
It is still necessary to sterilize the jars filled with substrate.
Advantage:
Nearly all of the possible contaminates in the raw materials will be eliminated.
The sterilization of the substrate after you mix and prepare the substrate
will only need to address any new contamination that you added during that
process. The sterilization of the mixed substrate will be much more guaranteed.
You should experience a lower contamination rate. This adaptation is particularly
useful if you are not using a pressure cooker to sterilize the culture
jars. Boiling the culture jars only gets them up to a temperature of 212
degrees F. This adaptation provides an opportunity to eliminate contaminates
that require a higher temperature to kill them.
Disadvantages:
Extra time and effort.
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Adaptation-24: Using a 2 1/2 gallon water jug for filtering
This idea is from 'Dangerous Dan'. A large, 2 1/2 gallon water
jug from store bought water can be used instead of 2 liter coke bottles.
These large jugs can be used for all stages of the filter, but if only
using one, it should be the first one after the humidifier.
Advantage:
Using these water jugs provide a few advantages.
Disadvantages:
The worst disadvantage is the fact that these containers are typically
not transparent and if used for all the stages it is difficult to see how
much fog is in the system.
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Adaptation-25: Insuring the Sterility of Caps Used for Spores
If you are going to use a cake to generate spores, you can insure that
the caps stay free of contaminates. When you birth the cake from the culture
jar, set it on a clean wash cloth in the terrarium. Place a large glass
jar over it and seal it to the wash cloth. A large peanut butter jar is
usually perfect. You need to have enough room inside the jar for the mushroom
to grow to maturity. Humidity will be able to leach through the wash cloth
and surround the cake, but air currents will not be present and the cap
should be relatively free of contaminates. This setup assumes the floor
of the terrarium has a wire mesh to support the cakes.
Advantage:
A much cleaner cap will be available for making prints. This will lower
the chances that contamination is introduced into the process.
Disadvantages:
Extra effort. Extra space in the terrarium.
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Adaptation-26: Producing a clean spore print from a questionable cap
Setup everything the way you would normally to generate a spore print.
Keep an eye on where in the process the cap is. After a cap has been dropping
its spores for three or four hours, you can change the plate on which the
spores are being deposited. Simply discard the initial plate. The new plate
will be contain a much cleaner spore print than would have been possible
with only one plate.
Advantage:
A much cleaner print will be generated. If contaminates get on the gills
of the mushrooms, as the cap starts to drop spores, the first spores contain
most of the contaminates. By discarding the initial spores, you will end
up with a cleaner spore print.
Disadvantages:
You need to catch it at the right time.
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Future Optimization:
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Advantage:
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Disadvantages:
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