A few ?'s that I have

Started by K20A2, April 17, 2004, 09:50:45 AM

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K20A2

Anno-
Last night I packed and sterilized the first 6 of 12 jars. I have some questions about differences in minor aspects of things. Im going to do the next 6 today.

What method of a lid have you had the best results with and which would you recommend to me. Use the lid that comes with the jar and poke holes, and cover with tape? If so, what kind of tape do you use? Use three layers of foil? This is what I did last night.

For sterilization I have a large pot with a metal grate to keep the jars off the bottom while boiling the water. I find differences of opinions of how tight to have some sort of lid on. I used foil last night and I pressed it down to make a decent seal and boiled on med for 1 1/2 hours. Jars and still in pot as of now.

My incubator is holding a steady temp. Im very happy with that, but how should I stack the jars? Upside down or rightside up? Use foil lids or the real lids?

Thanks for any help.  

anno

I use foil lids, I have the feeling the jars are better ventilated that way and they colonize faster. If you have the option to try different things, try them out, ultimately you will find your tek.

I wouldn?t use tape if you use a lid, but rather use one layer of foil over the holes.

The lid  of the pot should be on as tight as possible so you get a nice, steamy environment for the jars.

I stack the jars rightside up.

K20A2

ANNO-
My Incubator temp. is at 86. Im assuming its hotter in the jars, should I turn the heater down?
As of last night, the first 6 jars are all starting to colonize. These jars have 3x foil layers as lids as recommended by you.  I dont want to have the temp. to high and dry them out and make the growth stop.
I'll keep this thread updated as I progress. Thanks for all your help.  

anno

I would go down with the temperature sa few degrees just to be safe.

K20A2

Ok, as of today (5/2) my jars have been incubating for 2 weeks. I did 12 jars total, but a slight difference between them. Six of the jars have 3 layers of foil as lids, and the other 6 have the actual jar lids with holes poked for innoculation. A single layer of foil was put on top of these jars. The 6 with 3 layers of foil as lids are colonizing way faster then the others. No contams in any of the jars as of now.
The foil lid jars are completly white all across the outside. Im planning on letting them stay in the dark for another week to make certain that the middles are done.  
Opinions on this? I dont want to rush them considering its only been 2 weeks.
Next weekend would you reccomend taking them out of the incubator and keeping them in the dark with some light exposure every day? I read of some people shining a light directly onto the cake, up close, for a few minutes and then leaving it just sit in indirect light for a little while longer, to insure lots of pins. Any truth to that?
Thats all I can think of at the moment. I appreciate the direct help you offer here. There is so much information out there, but I like to be able to hear your personal thoughts on all of this. Thanks again.  

Jopo

Yes and maybe while answering K2OA2's quetions i have a few of my own! When doing a Grain tek how do you get the colonized subtrate out of those mason jars with the sholders?  Also when casing in the tin foil cases, what would i cover the top of it with?  Would a mushroom with a split in the top of the cap matter if wanting to clone it?  Also are the mushrooms suppose to be shedding layers of mushroom skin under the beggining of the cap on the stem to create a cap...i have never seen this happen and was wondering if anyone was familiar with this?  

anno

>The 6 with 3 layers of foil as lids are colonizing way faster then the others.
Yes, they have more air.


>The foil lid jars are completly white all across the outside. Im planning on letting
>them stay in the dark for another week to make certain that the middles are
done.
You can expose them to light as of now.

>  leaving it just sit in indirect light for a little while longer, to insure lots of pins.
>Any truth to that?
I don't know about more pins, but some  light is deffinitely good to trigger pins. I prefer natural light, natural cycle(if feasable).
 

anno

> When doing a Grain tek how do you get the colonized subtrate out of those mason jars with the sholders?
You either shake the grain up so it's loose, or you scoop it out with a spoon.

> Also when casing in the tin foil cases, what would i cover the top of it with?
Plastic foil?

> Would a mushroom with a split in the top of the cap matter if wanting to clone it?
No.

>Also are the mushrooms suppose to be shedding layers of mushroom skin under
>the beggining of the cap on the stem to create a cap...

No, they aren't supposed to, but it happens sometimes, I'm not too sure as to why, it has something to do with the humidity.

Jopo

#8
When the cakes are blueing do to humidity what would be good, raising the humidity or lowering it?  Because on 1 of my cakes they had stopped growing as pins and havn't been growing more, is there a way to help them or would i have to do something with humidity and pull those out to start new pins?  Would i have to dunk and do pins over again?  Also when misting, do i have to mist and let the cakes catch some tiny droplets on them or just have the terrarium misted?

K20A2

Anno-
Last SAT (5/8) I removed the jars from the Incubator and placed them on a chair in front of a window. They recieved direct sunlight for the next five days until I realized that this may be a very bad idea. I thought everything through to this point but failed to connect direct sunlight with the possibility of a lot of heat. There are no signs of any pins as of today (5/15).  Im having thoughts that I may have killed the jars by exposing them to the direct sunlight. What are your opinions on this? They are still sitting by the window but the blinds are closed so all they recieve is just light, nothing direct. Should I just go ahead and birth the cakes into the terrarium without pins or give them another week in the jars? Assuming I killed them, is there any way to tell so I can just toss them and start over?
Thanks for your help.

anno

> Should I just go ahead and birth the cakes into the terrarium without pins or give them another week in the jars?

I think you should do this, since some strains do not easily pin inside the jars.

>Assuming I killed them, is there any way to tell so
Hard to judge. As long they look normal, they are probably OK.

K20A2

#11
Heres an update. I birthed seven cakes yesterday. Two jars I am going to case because they have no pins and one more I am going to wait a few more days to put it in the terrarium. I tossed two because they stopped colonizing a while back. My terrarium setup is a rubbermaid, perlite and an airstone. Cakes are sitting on foil with a layer of moist verm underneath and on top for added water. The rubbermaid is sitting in front of a window with the blinds closed but they still recieve plenty of indirect light on a regular day/night schedule. I have no humidity guage but there is a decent amount of condensation all over the sides.
I waited to long to birth the jars so the pins turned into mini mushrooms.
Only time will tell now.
Anno, or anyone, any suggestions, comments?
Thanks for all your help thus far.

anno

I think you are doing just fine, it should be in no time till you have your first mushrooms.

K20A2

HOLY MUSHROOMS!!!!!!!!!!
The one question I thought I would never ask myself..... WTF do I do with all these mushrooms!!!
They are everwhere!
Im going to go pick them now (5/21). Thanks for all your help, im going to eat them tomorrow (5/22) and I will report back how it goes.

K20A2

Anno-
I need your opinions on this. I took my first flush of mushrooms, roughly 25-30 and decided to dry them by placing them on a paper towel and under a black shirt with a clip up desk lamp shining down on the shirt. I read about this method on the shroomery. After two days they went from being huge to very very small and thin and black. I have bought dry mushrooms before and they looked a lot healthier. After looking at tons of pictures on the shroomery and comparing them to mine I think they might of rotted. I dont have a digi cam so I cant take pics. I grinded them all up into powder in my coffee grinder. The powder is a dark green color.
Is it safe to use the powder still?
I was planning on making some tea this weekend and finally having a real trip. I ate some fresh ones last Sat. but undershot my dose and didnt reach the place I wanted to go.
I have six more mushrooms drying with a fan blowing over them now. No dessicant though.
What is your preferred method of drying?
I may just suck it up and buy a food dehydrator. I hate to come this far and then ruin all of my work because I cant get them to dry properly.
Thanks for your help.

anno

>What is your preferred method of drying?

Deffintely the fan drying method.

>two days they went from being huge to very very small and thin and black

Do they smell like they were rotten or do they smell just like dry shrooms? I think they might simply have blackened due to the heat.

K20A2

When you say fan drying, do you mean a fan blowing over the mushrooms with some dissicant under them in some sort of container?

I dont have much experience with mushrooms but to me they smell fine. Nothing repulsive, I would still eat the powder. I just wanted to make sure that it was ok since it was a green/black color.

I have some more drying under a fan and the light as I type this. I will let you know how they turn out with the addition of the fan blowing on them.

Thanks.  

anno

>When you say fan drying, do you mean a fan blowing over the mushrooms with
>some desiccant under them in some sort of container?

No, just a fan blowing over them, room temperature air.

Then, after 24-48 hours, when they are already dry and hard  you can place them in a sealed Tupperware containing some desiccant in order to get them extra dry. This step is optional.

K20A2

I just had great success drying some of my latest mushrooms with a fan. Im going to just stick to this method and save the money I was going to spend on a food dehydrator.
I ate about 25 grams wet weight last night for my first real introduction to the world of mushroom. It was a great experience to say the least.
The rewards are well worth the research and work required to grow these things.  

K20A2

Anno-
I have been drying my mushrooms by sitting them on a paper towel in front of a small fan. The temp in the room is about 80 degrees. They turn out extremely thin and almost black. Is this right? Is the temp in the room to hot? Regardless, the mushrooms still work. Im just wondering if I am possibly destroying some of their potency. When I use to acquire mushrooms before I took it upon myself to grow them they looked much healthier. They basically looked white with some blue and then a brown cap. Any recomendations on how I can get them to dry out this way?
Thanks.