7 replies to this topic

[Doctor D]

Has anyone ever used grass clippings instead of straw? How well did it work? Can fresh grass clippings work, or must you dry them out first? How did you dry them?

[Lazlo]

If you're going to use them, they must be cured. Hay performs poorly for mushroom substrate though.

[alpiner]

you're doing a outdoor grow of coprinus comatus straw is a better choice for cubes

[Toads tool]

Yes grass can be used as a substrate additive.
I woke up to proof this morning.

This is Z popcorn spawned to coir/worm poo/ grass clippings. It was allowed a week to colonize then cased with verm/coir with a little lime added just in case.

The grass was allowed to dry outside for a week. The dry light green grass clippings were scraped up off the ground where it lay, avoiding as much foreign matter as possible.
The clippings were rinsed repeatedly in as hot as I could stand water 6 or 7 times. I kept rinsing untill the rinse water was the color of light beer, yellow not green.
These rinsed clippings were mixed with equal parts coir and worm poo then sterilized in pints for 1 hour @ 15 lbs. It was then spawned when cool with 1 pint of popcorn spawn.

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[Lazlo]

I've used them too. My results were nothing like that, but I didn't use anything else but the clippings.

[Doctor D]

If you're going to use them, they must be cured. Hay performs poorly for mushroom substrate though.

When you've used hay, has it been the major component of the substrate, or only a small fraction of the whole, like Toads tool's post?

Doh! Nevermind. you answered already.

I've used them too. My results were nothing like that, but I didn't use anything else but the clippings.

[Doctor D]

Yes grass can be used as a substrate additive.
I woke up to proof this morning.

Those are nice pics, Toads. I was thinking more along the lines of a straw log rather than as an additive. I do add grass clippings to my outdoor cake 'graveyard' to some effect. But if what Lazlo says is correct, I think adding grass to a known good substrate will just stretch out that substrate a bit more rather than add anything really substantial to it.

[Hippie3]

i've seen a few decent grass grows but the primary nutes are still the spawn itself, even with real straw. but grass has inferior texture compared to straw, it mats down holding too much water and not enough air.