2 replies to this topic

[ELBHWME]

I spawned 8 x 1lbs of fully colonised b+ in brf to 3 small monotubs about 1.5/2 weeks ago. The bulk substrate consists of coir, gypsum, vermiculite and water. I was as cleanly as possible: isolated cleaned room, gloves, minimum exposure to air when spawning, facemask and used plenty of 70% isopropyl alcohol spray.
I keep them at 28 degrees Celsius (give or take slightly) using a reptile heat mat and a thermostat setup.
1 of the tubs looks absplutely fantastic - it was the one I spawned with the 2 best brf bags.
However, I have some concerns about the other 2 tubs. One looks to have a strange grey section on the casing layer. The other has discoloration in a section. I have separated these 2 from my good one. I have attached the pictures of the 2 in question.

Will I be alright with them and see how they turn out or should I get rid of either?

Cheers!!

[pastyoureyes]

First pic I can see some cubensis mycelium, not sure which area you are concerned about. It's not the best picture so I may be missing something but it looks good as far as I can tell.

Second pic I cant tell what is going on there. Looks like you have algae in there but it could be a reflection.

[PJammer24]

You have it far too hot. The hotter you get it the more likely you are to contaminate. contaminates really like warmer temps and it is warmer within the substrate than the air temp surrounding it. I would suggest colonizing at room temps. Room temps work just fine. You may get slightly faster colonization at a higher temperature but you also run a greater risk of contamination.

 

What was your pasteurization method? Pasteurizing properly is key to avoiding competitors when using bulk substrates. Your substrate mix is not very nutritious and would be less likely to contaminate but there is always a risk.

 

I would suggest throwing it away and starting from scratch any time you see a contamination. Any time you see the mold change color, it has sporulated and there are millions of spores being released into your grow space. Over time, the amount of spores will increase dramatically. More spores = higher contamination risk. If you do not want to have larger issues down the road, I would get rid of any that appear to have contaminated ASAP....