93 replies to this topic

[Sidestreet]

Oh yeah, not too soon.  That's why we tag it--so we can search "archive material" later after the dust has settled on the thread.

 

And I will do agar, probably by this summer.

[ipc]

I really need to get some jars like those. I've had a little anxiety thinking about ordering plates all the time... So wasteful :D So we dont need filters or anything added? Good to know :D

[peacefrog]

Yea purchasing per-sterilized agar plates can get to you after a while. Which is why I stopped pouring years ago. The jars will last for very many PC cycles.

And no need for a filter really. But if you feel more comfortable modifying the lid for one, by all means it won’t hurt anything. I never use filters because I never did with Petri dishes either. So I just figured it was the same concept. Works very well every time.

Oh and, Sidestreet you will find agar is sooo easy, you’ll kick yourself for not using it earlier lol.

My 2 pennies.

Edited by peacefrog, 02 March 2018 - 02:30 PM.

[CatsAndBats]

Alright, I need y'all to imagine some things in this video/gif. I've been meaning to "film" how to grab myc and slice it into new agar. In this footage I need y'all to imagine that I'm wearing gloves like we should always do. I'm not wearing them here because I can't hit the record button and put my gloves on and make this vid/gif short. I also need y'all to imagine that I'm slicing that wisp of myc into a new (blank) agar plate.

 

So I took the blunt side (but still the tip) of my scalpel, dragged it through the desired myc (I had already grabbed the myc I wanted before recording this, so here I grabbed lower for educational purposes ) and then sliced it into the agar as if it were a new plate.

 

 

Understand rubber band?!

 

 

 

I posted this here to show newer agar enthusiasts how I grab myc with a scalpel.

 

It should be noted that one should grab a much smaller piece if possible, but here I want the viewer to see the wisp so I dragged the scalpel more than necessary.

Edited by CatsAndBats, 04 March 2018 - 01:18 AM.

[peacefrog]

Nicely done, brother. I need you to teach me about these gifs lol.

[CatsAndBats]

Nicely done, brother. I need you to teach me about these gifs lol.

 

 

Thank you my main man peace!

 

I just record with my phone's regular video and then use an android app to convert video to gif (free in the play store), upload it and here we are. The only real challenge is to make it short/small enough to be a reasonable size. I don't want to kill mycotopia's server space/bandwidth, but I also don't want to leave a youtube "footprint", so I convert it to a gif. 

[CatsAndBats]

"just the tip"

[peacefrog]

Thank you, I need to look into this. I feel so old lol. But I’m not that old really haha.

Do you ever find that not taking more agar with you during the transfer can allow the transferred peice to dry out before it takes hold? I only ask cause I have had that happen in the past.

A very nice post and a great way of advocating and “democratizing” agar work to the masses! Keep um coming, you agar head.

You da man!

Edited by peacefrog, 04 March 2018 - 02:09 AM.

[CatsAndBats]

Do you ever find that not taking more agar with you during the transfer can allow the transferred peice to dry out before it takes hold? I only ask cause I have had that happen in the past.


 

 

No I do not. I suspect that I've never noticed that happening because I do 3-5 transfers per desired result.  So if I throw out four plates per five tries then I'm still "successful" (that was hyperbole, I usually only throw out a couple jars per twenty or so). I employ a numbers friendly technique.

 

When I do an agar night, I blast through 15-20 jars, so if one or two don't take, I barely notice, those jars go to the compost pile without a second thought.

[peacefrog]

Law of averages works every time IME. Nice dude.

[CatsAndBats]

Law of averages works every time IME. Nice dude.

 

 

The extras just become inoculant. :biggrin

[ipc]

wait do you actually throw out these "plate" jars or can we generally reuse them - minus like trich and stuff ?

 

Also, thanks for the gif :D

Edited by ipc, 04 March 2018 - 04:16 PM.

[CatsAndBats]

wait do you actually throw out these "plate" jars or can we generally reuse them - minus like trich and stuff ?

 

Also, thanks for the gif :D

 

Noooooooo, I just throw out the agar inside the jars and wash them. As soon as I have 15 empty, I do another batch.

 

Oh and you're welcome!

[peacefrog]

Yea as Cats said no need to throw the entire jar out. They can easily be cleaned and reused.

[scott_1971_h]

Hey Cat, do you know if your agar produces better results than plain old dog (or cat) food agar?

[CatsAndBats]

Hey Cat, do you know if your agar produces better results than plain old dog (or cat) food agar?

 

Let's be clear, agar is an open ended tool that one can use however one sees fit, adjusting to one's style/goals. My style is to do large runs, let's call it "agar carpet bombing".  I play a numbers game and use all my extras as inoculant for quart jars, as I'm isolating out desired genetics and a true mono culture/s at the same time. I switch up my nutrition to keep the myc interested and because I like fucking around with recipes.

 

As seen here:

 

https://mycotopia.ne...r-30/?p=1358542

 

And gave me the experience to answer this with confidence:

 

https://mycotopia.ne...r-30/?p=1358111

 

Dog food agar was my first successful agar recipe and I never looked back. I am of the opinion that every agar enthusiast should have 2-3 go to agar recipes. None of mine are better, but they serve a purpose (usually )!

[CatsAndBats]

 

 

 

 

For those of you following along, that tallest strand is where I'd grab myc for the next transfer. It's also easier to free the myc from glass than from agar. Cheers!

[peacefrog]

Beautiful!

[whitethumb]

nice thread cat!! i'm not sure how i missed this.

agreed with peace, once you learn to use agar you'll never go back. i have no idea how i managed without it.

pouring agar into petri dishes is simple. lucky for me i get my petri's for free these days.

[peacefrog]

whitethumb! Good to see you on here, bro.