77 replies to this topic

[Seeker2be]

The media recipe book part 3

MgCl₂

1.275 g

NaHCO₃

0.065 g

MgSO₄x7H₂O

1.75 g

H₂O

500 mL

 

 

 

 

Nutrient Agar

NA

H₂O

500 mL

Pre-mixed NA

12 g

 

Honey Agar

HON

H₂O

500 mL

Agar

10 g

Honey

16 g

 

Nutrient Agar with Honey

NAH

H₂O

500 mL

Pre-mixed NA

12 g

Honey

16 g

 

Lysogeny Broth

 

Also use as broth (no agar).

LB

Agar

10 g

H₂O

500 mL

Yeast

2.5 g

Peptone

5 g

Dextrose

10 g

Or replace yeast, peptone and dextrose with LB pre-mix

12.5 g

 

Yeast Peptone Dextrose

YPD

Agar

10 g

H₂O

500 mL

Yeast

5 g

Peptone

10 g

Dextrose

10 g

 

Yeast Peptone Agar

YEP

Agar

10 g

H₂O

500 mL

Yeast

10 g

Peptone

20 g

Tryptophan

0.32 g

 

V8 and Honey

V8HEM

H₂O

500 mL

Agar

10 g

Honey

16 g

V8 Juice

80 mL

Egg Shell

0.4 g

Milo

1 g

 

 

Beet Root Agar

BRA

H₂O

500 mL

Agar

10 g

Beet Root Supplement

3 g

Malt

10 g

 

Peaches Malt Agar

PMA

H₂O

500 mL

Agar

10 g

Peaches (canned)

10 g

Dextrose

7 g

 

Spirulina Agar

SPA

H₂O

500 mL

Agar

10 g

Spirulina supplement

3 g

Malt

10 g

 

Nori Agar

NorA

H₂O

500 mL

Agar

10 g

Nori

3 g

Malt

10 g

 

Bean Soup Agar

BSA

H₂O

400 mL

Agar

10 g

Bean Soup

100 mL

 

1) Dissolve agar into water

2) Sterilize

3) cool to 45-50◦C

4) Add egg yolk solution and antibiotic

Mannitol Egg Yolk Polymyxin Agar

MYP

H₂O

500 mL

Agar

10 g

Pre-mixed MYP

23 g

Clycloheximide :C

2 g

Egg Yolk Solution`

25 mL

Antibiotic vial P

4.1 mL

 

Water Agar

H₂O

H₂O

500 mL

Agar

10 g

 

 

 

 

Fish Disease Renibacterium Salmoninarum Charcoal Agar

 

Adjust pH to 6.8 before autoclaving.

FDR

H₂O

500 mL

Agar

10 g

Peptone

5 g

Yeast

0.3 g

L-cysteine hydrochloride

0.5 g

Activated Carbon

0.5 g

Adjust PH to 6.8 before autoclaving

Variant #1

V1

H₂O

500 mL

Agar

10 g

Dry sprouted millet

4 g

Yeast

1 g

Malt

10 g

 

Variant #2

V2

H₂O

500 mL

Agar

10 g

Dry sprouted oats

4 g

Yeast

1 g

Malt

10 g

 

Variant #3

V3

H₂O

500 mL

Agar

10 g

Live sprouted millet

8 g

Yeast

1 g

Malt

10 g

 

Variant #4

V4

H₂O

500 mL

Agar

10 g

Live sprouted oats

8 g

Yeast

1 g

Malt

10 g

 

Variant #5

V5

H₂O

500 mL

Agar

10 g

Fresh Ground Corn

12 g

Yeast

1 g

Malt

10 g

 

 

For all dry Sprouted grains: place on damp cloth (Scott towel) for about 2 days. Dry for 1 day (completely dry). Grind.

For Live sprouted grains: place on damp cloth for about two days. Grind.

 

For any fresh insect media: Freeze before grinding

 

Variant #6

V6

H₂O

500 mL

Agar

10 g

Fresh ground crickets

8 g

Yeast

1 g

Malt

10 g

 

Variant #7

V7

H₂O

500 mL

Agar

10 g

Fresh ground crickets

12 g

Yeast

1 g

Malt

10 g

 

Crickets and Corn

CRC

H₂O

500 mL

Agar

10 g

Fresh ground crickets

8 g

Fresh Ground Corn

8 g

Yeast

1 g

Malt

10 g

 

Variant #9

V9

H₂O

500 mL

Agar

10 g

Fresh ground crickets

8 g

Fresh Ground Corn

8 g

Oyster Shell

0.8 g

Yeast

1 g

Malt

10 g

 

Variant #10

V10

H₂O

500 mL

Agar

10 g

[Seeker2be]

The media recipe book part 4

Fresh ground crickets

8 g

Fresh Ground Corn

8 g

Oats

8 g

Yeast

1 g

Malt

10 g

 

For any fresh insect media: Freeze before grinding

 

Variant #11

V11

H₂O

500 mL

Agar

10 g

Fresh Ground Corn

8 g

Oyster shell

0.8 g

Yeast

1 g

Malt

10 g

 

Variant #12 (MYA with 2x Yeast)

(MYx2A)

H₂O

500 mL

Agar

10 g

Yeast

2 g

Malt

10 g

                                                                                                                                

Photo-bacterium medium

 

Adjust pH to 7.2-7.5 before sterilizing.

PBM

H₂O

Bring solution up to 500 mL

Agar

10 g

Tris

4 g

NH₄

0.4 g

Glycerol

0.5 g

Tryptone

5 g

Yeast

2.5 g

Sea Water aquarium salt

16.5 g

CaCo₃

0.5 g

 

The antibiotic of choice needs to be added to agar after sterilization. in 500mg/500 mL.

1) Grind antibiotic into powder under the hood.

2)Add about 10-15 mL pre-sterilized coded H₂O.

3) Mix well.

4) When agar has cooled to about 50-60◦C add antibiotic.

 

 

Antibiotic Agar

AB

H₂O

500 mL

Agar

10 g

Levaquin           :L

25 g

Doxycycline     :D

25 g

Amoxicillin      :A

25 g

Sefdinir            :CEF

25 g

Ciprofloxacin   :CIP

25 g

Azithromyacin :AZI

25 g

Cephalexin       :CLX

25 g

 

 

Cycloheximide (Dr. Dan’s Favorite antibiotic)

Put 1 mL of 1% cycloheximide solution in through filtered syringe and into any 1L of media (malt and potato based recommended). To make 1% cycloheximide solution weight out 0.1 g of cycloheximide and bring solution up to 10 mL with water.

 

 

Vermiculite Cakes

 

Makes 5 cakes.

Verm Cakes

Sorghum flour (ground milo)

1 cup

H₂O

1 cup

Vermiculite

2 cup

 

Soak plugs in water for at least 24 hours. Drain. Mix with gypsum and Wheat bran till each plug is coated. Sterilize in autoclave for 1-2 hours. Inoculate and seal. When mycelium covers plugs drill hole in log place in plug and seal with wax. Logs will fruit in 6 months to two years.

Plug Recipe

Plug Recipe

50, 000 plugs

1 cup

H₂O

Enough to soak plugs

Garbage bag

1

Gypsum

4- 8 cups

Wheat Bran

6-8 quarts

 

Soak plugs in water at least 24 hours,drain,mix with gypsum

And wheat bran till plug is coated . Sterilize for 2 hours. Cool

 Inoculate.

 

 

Media for Liquid Cultures

LC

H₂O

500 mL

Malt

10 g

Peptone

1 g

Yeast

0.3 g

Vegetable oil

5 drops

Ground Grain (sorghum, oats, etc)

1 g

 

 

EXPERIMENTAL AGAR

 

Boil 1 bag of baby carrots in 500 mL water. Mash carrots. Freeze leftovers.

 

Carrot Agar

CAR

Agar

10 g

H₂O

500 mL

Carrot mash

20 g

 

Carrot Malt Agar

 

Boil 1 bag of baby carrots in 500 mL water. Mash carrots. Freeze leftovers.

 

CMA

Agar

10 g

H₂O

500 mL

Carrot mash

20 g

Malt

5 g

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Complete Media

CM

Agar

10 g

H₂O

500 mL

Sucrose

15 g

Ammonium tartrate (NH₄-)

2.5 g

Ammonium Nitrate (NH₄NO₃)

0.5 g

Magnesium sulfate heptahydrate (MgSO₄x7H₂O)

0.25 g

Sodium Chloride (NaCl)

0.5 g

Calcium chloride (CaCl₂₎

0.065 g

Yeast

0.5 g

Monopotassium phosphate (KH₂PO₄)

0.5 g

 

Sunflower Seed Agar

SFS

H₂O

500 mL

Agar

10 g

Sunflower seeds

10 g

 

Almond Agar

AA

H₂O

500 mL

Agar

10 g

Almonds

10 g

 

 

MEDIA NOT TO USE!

 

Reason: failure for mycelium to thrive

 

 

Cricket Food Agar

CA

Agar

10 g

H₂O

500 mL

Cricket food

20 g

 

 

Ovaltine

 

Reason: failure for mycelium to thrive

OVAL

H₂O

500 mL

Agar

10 g

Ovaltine

10 g

 

Coffee Raw with Malt Extract

 

Reason: failure for mycelium to thrive

 

C®MA

H₂O

500 mL

Agar

10 g

Malt

10 g

Raw Coffee

10 g

 

Dark Coffee with Malt Extract

 

Reason: failure for mycelium to thrive

 

 

C(D)MA

H₂O

500 mL

Agar

10 g

Dark Coffee Bean

10 g

Malt

10 g

 

Nutrient Agar with Soy

 

Reason: Allergies

 

NAS

H₂O

500 mL

Agar

10 g

Pre-mixed NA

12 g

Soy beans

2 g

 

Amaranth Soy Agar

 

Reason: Allergies

 

ASA

H₂O

500 mL

Agar

10 g

Amaranth flour

20g

Soy flour

20 g

 

EntheoGenesis #442

 

Reason: Allergies

 

EG442

H₂O

500 mL

Agar

10 g

Malted Barley

2 g

Soy flour

10 g

Potato Flour

10 g

Brown Rice Flour

10 g

Amaranth Flour

10 g

 

Malt Extract with Onion

 

Reason: Antifungal

 

MEO

H₂O

500 mL

Agar

10 g

Blended onion

10 g

Malt

10 g

 

Malt Extract with Garlic

 

Reason: Antifungal

 

MEG

H₂O

500 mL

Agar

10 g

Blended Galric

10 g

Malt

10 g

 

Reason: Allergies

 

Tryptic Soy Agar

TSA

H₂O

500 mL

Pre-mixed TSA

20 g

 

 

 

 

Reason: Allergies

 

 

Nutrient Agar with Soy

NAS

H₂O

500 mL

Pre-mixed NA

12 g

Soybeans

5 g

 

Reason: Allergies

 

Peanut Butter Agar

PB

H₂O

500 mL

Agar

10 g

Peanut Butter

5 g

 

Coconut Agar

 

Reason: Antifungal

 

CN

H₂O

500 mL

Agar

1 g

Coconut milk/juice

10 g

 

INGREDIENTS TO NEVER USE WITH PRODOCUTION STRAINS

Ingredient

Reason

Peanut Butter

Allergies

Soy

Allergies

Coconut

Antifungal

Dairy/Prebiotics

Allergies

Eggs

Allergies

Tree nut (walnuts, pecans, almonds)

Allergies

Garlic

Antifungal

Cider Vinegar

Failure to thrive

Ovaltine

Antifungal

Pomegranate

Antifungal

Cinnamon

Antifungal

Cloves

Antifungal

Curry

Antifungal

Cilantro

Antifungal

Coffee

Failure to thrive

[wharfrat]

good info as usual.. thank you brother

[CatsAndBats]

As far as the garlic is concerned,  hyph has a garlic stalk tek on here somewhere and I think he used it for it's antibiotic function:

https://mycotopia.ne...bstrate-thread/

Edited by catattack, 20 November 2014 - 10:22 PM.

[Seeker2be]

You are very welcome and thanks for reminding me about hyphs tek

[Seeker2be]

 A Handout:   

On Growing Mushroom in Bags

When do you poke holes? When do you cut the top off the bag?, When do you remove the whole bag for fruiting of various mushrooms? 

Ask yourself, does this mushroom form clusters? If yes, then it probably best to poke holes in the bag and the clusters will form out the sides. 

Does this mushroom require a casing layer? If yes, then the top of the bag can be removed. CO2 will build up inside the bag so if we cut the top then CO2 will build up inside the bag, but the top outside will have more oxygen to grow taller and have larger caps . 

So, when fruiting the antler form of Ganoderma we cut the bag so we leave a lip on the top.  The same is true with maitake

Shitake, Nemeko and even Agrocybe do well with their bags removed entirely because they can fruit on all sides and form clusters, therefore will be damaged from fruiting against the bag.

So here’s a list to help sort out the confusion for sawdust blocks….

Poke holes for….

Hericium erinaceus and allies

Pleurtus spp (including kinds

Ganoderma if you want the classic shape (not the antler form)

Auricularia spp.

Laetiporus sulfureous

Fistulina hepatica

Panellus striticus

Other Polypores

 

Remove top of the bag for

Grifola fondosa (Maitake)

Flammulina velutipes (but best in bottles)

Agrocybe aergerita (sometimes grown this way, may also be cased)

Agaricus spp (Buttons)

Calocybe indica (typically on cased straw, same conditions as psylocybe)

Coprinus comatus

Lepista nuda

Stropharia rugoso-annulata

Remove the entire bag for…

Lentinula edodes (Shitake)

Hypholoma sublateritium

Pholiota nameko (slim-yellow-soup mushroom)

Agrocybe aergerita (Pioppino)

Armillaria mellea (honey mushrooms)There are many more mushrooms than this we can grow.  Just think of the bag as a poorly designed tree bark. It holds in moisture and tree bark will have weak points that allow fruiting.  Some mushrooms like to fruit from stumps, so for those let’ture this thing into a “stump” leave the bark (bag) on but give it a platform (cut the top), when you want to mimic a buried root add a casing layer.  Always mimic how it grows in nature….think about its wild for then mimic that the best you can.

 

.

.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Day 8.  Today started out with us cleaning drying trays and breaking up and loading substrate for another drying session of cortryceps.  After that we met with the director of the labe and practiced cloning mushrooms on agar in front a flowhood with detailed attention to sterile technique.  Using an inside the hood and outside alcohol spray bottle, keeping working materials as close to the hepa filter as possible. Spraying down the previously cut parafilm prior to using with IPA and heating to read hot the scalpels or other transferring instruments. Pushing the clone tissue into the agar to break the surface was also emphasized. We each (3) cloned a portebello mushroom to agar and also cloned a Bolette I found during the weekend in Hope Valley , California in the forest.

We talked about and did a spore print with another portabello on a paper towel.

We then went into Dr. Tura's office and discussed the pros and cons of various mycelium in Aloha's collection and which would be available to us.  Warm weather vs Cold weather varieties were discussed and which ones could or could not be refrigerated.  They keep the warm weather mycelium in red caps and the cold weather mushrooms in a blue cap certtrifuge tube.  I will be making a list again based on the information and will post it here.

Dr. Holiday discussed the concept of senescence with us and said as long as the media are varied it doesn't happen and vigor is maintained..  One should make 6 different media when doing mycelial transfers or cloning to vary the epigensis , chemical key or stimulate a variety of chemicals to maintain vigor of a strain.  He stated agaricus growers have used the same strain since the 1800's without senescence.  The only exception is volvaarella volvech (sp) the straw mushroom that will senesce due to genetics. Different media only change the rate of growth of most mushrooms not the morphology.

Edited by Seeker2be, 21 November 2014 - 08:06 AM.

[esculenta]

i've got to say, i've never seen them post pics or anyone, of laetiporus fruiting through anything but the filter patch.  additionally I've never seen anyone fruiting nameko, piopinni, or maitake by completely stripping the bag.  kind of wierd.  but i guess it would work if you could keep humidity damn near constant 100%.  i usually see nameko and piopinno top fruited.  sometimes pioninni fruited out large slits in the side with the top folded over. 

[Needles]

Thank you for sharing..... Just ordered 50g of agar agar. It might not be crickets but I will have fun trying.

[Seeker2be]

You are all welcome.  I wish all of you could have been there to brainstorm and accelerate the knowledge.  That is what it is all about ....sharing knowledge.

[Seeker2be]

Day 8.  Today started out with us cleaning drying trays and breaking up and loading substrate for another drying session of cortryceps.  After that we met with the director of the labe and practiced cloning mushrooms on agar in front a flowhood with detailed attention to sterile technique.  Using an inside the hood and outside alcohol spray bottle, keeping working materials as close to the hepa filter as possible. Spraying down the previously cut parafilm prior to using with IPA and heating to read hot the scalpels or other transferring instruments. Pushing the clone tissue into the agar to break the surface was also emphasized. We each (3) cloned a portebello mushroom to agar and also cloned a Bolette I found during the weekend in Hope Valley , California in the forest.

We talked about and did a spore print with another portabello on a paper towel.

We then went into director of the lab's office and discussed the pros and cons of various mycelium in Aloha's collection and which would be available to us.  Warm weather vs Cold weather varieties were discussed and which ones could or could not be refrigerated.  They keep the warm weather mycelium in red caps and the cold weather mushrooms in a blue cap certtrifuge tube.  I will be making a list again based on the information and will post it here.

Dr. Holiday discussed the concept of senescence with us and said as long as the media are varied it doesn't happen and vigor is maintained..  One should make 6 different media when doing mycelial transfers or cloning to vary the epigensis , chemical key or stimulate a variety of chemicals to maintain vigor of a strain.  He stated agaricus growers have used the same strain since the 1800's without senescence.  The only exception is volvaarella volvech (sp) the straw mushroom that will senesce due to genetics. Different media only change the rate of growth of most mushrooms not the morphology.

Edited by Seeker2be, 21 November 2014 - 11:56 PM.

[Seeker2be]

The bags, the agar, the agar ingredient pantry, drying room, supplies, citrinopileatus spore printing, auricularis,yellow oyster and blue oyster omelete

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[kcmoxtractor]

excellent writeup!

 

are those unicorn bags?

[Seeker2be]

Mycosac Grow Bag    Go to Aloha medicinals cultivation supply site to see the pictures.  I couldnt up load them.

:"Isn’t it time to move into the 21st century and dump your old single patch bags? These Mycosac bags typically double yield on most farms, because NO CONTAMINATION can get through the filters. We are so happy with these bags, we offer a money back guarantee if they are not the best bags you ever used. Just like buying a new Mercedes Benz, these seem expensive at first, but you will never regret the price once you see how much they increase your yield. These are the best bags available anywhere today. This is the world’s premier growing bag. Since this bag is imported from Belgium, it is more expensive than other grow bags, but the difference in yield and the total absence of contamination make this by far the best investment in bags. This bag features the unique Mycosac microporous filter, made only by Saco2 in Belgium. When Aloha Medicinals switched to this type of bag, our production DOUBLED for the same amount of time and energy! We HIGHLY recommend this bag! Now Offering Three Sizes of Bags! Here are the Best Spawn and Block Bags in America, Guaranteed! A NOTE ON THE FILTERS: Why would you buy these expensive bags??? The usual filter bag available in the USA has a single layer of filter material about 5/1000 of an inch thick (0.005” or 0.12 mm). The air exchange is from outside to inside the bag through this single layer only. The filter layer is not much thicker than the spores and bacteria you are trying to keep out. With daily fluctuations in temperature, the gas is forced back and forth cross this filter layer, carrying bacteria and spores with it. This results in the migration of competitor organisms into the bag IN EVERY CASE. If you can see it growing, that’s great because you call it contamination and throw the bag out, but the real problem is the bacteria that gets through the filter that you cannot see, because this always reduce your yield, lowering the biological efficiency. The problems with the single patch filter bags are reduced yield, contamination and drying out of substrate. These Mycosac bags on the other hand use an entirely different filter design. The filter is shaped like a comb, and the air exchange is lengthwise up the teeth of the comb, and then it enters the bag through the center strip. The entire filter strip is covered on the outside with a layer of plastic, so the gas exchange can only take place along this narrow corridor so there is no drying out or transfer of competitor organisms. The distance the air has to travel to get into or out of the bag is about ½” (.500” or 12 mm). There is no transfer of competitor organisms from the outside, and your yield goes up when compared to the single patch bags. At Aloha Medicinals we inoculate about 800 bags on a typical day and we go throughout the entire year with zero contaminated bags. Also with every species we grow we get a yield of at least 100% Biological Efficiency, some species up to 200%. Due to the higher price on Mycosacs we resisted changing to these bags for a lot of years, but once we did our production DOUBLED! We cannot speak highly enough of these bags, they are the real breakthrough in mushroom cultivation we have all been waiting for. Changing to Mycosac bags was the best investment we ever made!"

Edited by Seeker2be, 22 November 2014 - 01:33 AM.

[kcmoxtractor]

i think you turned your coding elements off when you posted

[Seeker2be]

Disclaimer:  By the way.  I am not selling anything and have no financial or business relationship to Aloha medicinals. 
To answer your question about the bags I had to post the description from the aloha site for the information.  Hope that is ok

Edited by Seeker2be, 22 November 2014 - 01:50 AM.

[Seeker2be]

Mycobags: http://www.alohamedi...tm#.VHCTYE10yUU

[Seeker2be]

Day 9: We arrived at 6:30 am to load cooked grain and also fenugreek seed (an experiment) into bags for autoclaving.  We loaded about 500 lbs and about 30 jars of milo for raising jar spawn for inoculation.

After cleaning up the work area we went to see our mentor for low tek techniequs and made some straw which had been previously treated with lime and inoculated bags with oyster and another set with Elm spawn.  An interesting project he was working on , related to him from a grower in Japan was using spent shitake spawn dried then crushed up , with 10% bran added as a supplement with the PH adjusted to 7 and 65% water content then sterilized can be inoculated with maitake spawn and grown out reducing resources and waste.

Meeting with the lab director discussing Spawn production:  Clean room necessary. Best done with flowhood.  Gypsum mixed into grain after cooking (they autoclave for 30 min at 5 psi to hydrate the grain and “sprout” the endospores let it sit for 12 hours then autoclave for 1 ½ hours) Gypsum creates “pores” between grain so it can breath, keeps it from stickting together.  Too much water and bottom grain explodes setting up for contams. His method soak grains for 18-20 hours combine soaking with cooking at 80 degrees celius time depending on the grain type. Do not drain grain.  They figure grain is 50% water so they add 50% water (your would have to experiment with your grain to get the hydration right but the goal is to NOT drain out the water and its' nutrients) (see formula below for estimating water content and how much to add). He feels milo is the best type of grain with more than 30 types of vits and minerals, wheat has less.  Goal is more inoculation points and for this millet is the choice. Use funnels to load bottles to decrease contamination.  Place bottles in the pressure cooker with space in between to allow steam sterilization (avoiding cold spots). Bags are a great problem in a pressure cooker due to sagging and unequal sterilization, best done in an autoclave.. After sterilizing when almost zero open stop cock to let steam out but cover first with bleach rag to prevent sucking in contaminates from the air (or open in front of flow hood). Innoculate when substrate reaches room temp is best time. Inoculate small squares of petri plate in jar. Shake grain before inoculation and after.  Make sure lids are loose before inoculation.  Blender agar saves 2-3 days in colonization.  Liquid inoculation does not work for slow growing mushrooms like shitake.  The cardboard filters on the jars they use last a long time .

The Lab director  then taught us about calculating the % moisture in a grain sample

 

a. Weigh a small container

b.Weigh 10 grams of material in a container

 

2. Heat in a microwave on high for 20 seconds

a.Re-weigh the sample, subtract the weight of the container

3.Record the weight and repeat step 2 and 2a

 

4. Record the weight and repeat again. Continue with heating weighing at least 10 times or until the graph levels out in step 5 below.  Stirring the material between heats is a good idea to redistribute the moisture.  Be careful not to scorch the material as that effect the accuracy of the test.  it may be necessary to all the material to cool between heats.

 

5 Plot the weights on a piece of graph paper.  The point where the curve flattens out is th weight at which the unbound moisture is all eliminated.  This should be Wd weight in the formula:

Edited by Seeker2be, 22 November 2014 - 09:44 AM.

[Seeker2be]

Day 10:  We did a lot of hard work today.  Lifting 250 10 lb bags or sterilized grain, marking the date and and Hericium product after it was inoculated .  Then off to 4 hours of breaking up 10 lbs bags of colonized corycepts, putting them on 220 trays for drying. Hot work in full tyvek sterile gear.  We went to talk to the lab director but he had too much to do.  I did ask him the perplexing question about fruiting chambers .  “What do you do in your home?” He has an apartment and describe the next step beyond humidity tent, humidity Rubbermaid box etc. he has a stand or metal shelving covered in plastic with a ultrasonic humidifier and heater.  I came to this scholarship frustrated for me the biggest problem is the fruiting chamber and it is the same problem for everyone. Everyone needs to evolve with their successes not just go to buying a 20,000 set up.  Maybe a brilliant grasp of the obvious to everyone but I am still and newbie and still on the road that others have long ago traveled and now role their eyes at my naivety.

 

 

 

Day 11

Another day of inoculating and packaging various types of spawn in 10 lb bags and sealing them for customers.  We sat down with , the biochemist and she went through a list of species and culture types that we might want to do transfers with.  She gave us an 14 page document of agar recipes to vary the diet of mycelia to prevent senescence.  (see recipes in a previous post)

We sat down with the director of the lab and went over our wish lists of cultures we wanted to transfer and this was my final list that was approved.  We will start the process on Monday so that in the final week we can be sure our cultures are growing.

Culture  requests

1.Hypsizygus ulmarius - Elm A

2.Arogcybe Aegerita -  Sorbelt

3.Macrolepiota procera—Jasmine

4.Pleurotus Erygnii – KO1

5.Pleurotus  Ferulae (Nebrodensis) AM1

6.Colocybe Indica

7.Morchella cornice –Munich

8.Stropharia Rugosa- Annulata- Kirk

9.Pleurotus citrinopileatus -AM1

10.Pleurotos Salmineo -VDE1

11.Pleurotos Pulmonaris- AX

12.Hypsizygous Tessulatus-  Ariel

13.Auricularia Auricula –Quad or polytricha

14.Ganoderma Lucidum- Pecan

15.Pleurotus osteatus- GS2

16.Hericium Erinacium- AM1

17.Hericium  Americana -VD1

Edited by Seeker2be, 22 November 2014 - 10:49 PM.

[Seeker2be]

 Day 12

 

We got up at 7 am and drove from Carson city to Sacramento and Marysville , California with  the business manager and lawyer for Aloha medicinal.  We had long talks along the 12 hour trip concerning autoclaves, techniques, mycelia transfer, and about aloha medicinal’ past and future.  He was pushing to continue the student scholarship but to make it more structured in didactic teaching so the program may not die in February after all. 

We visited the simply manna farm where oyster mushrooms are grown from purchased spawn and mixed with limed straw , placed in 5 foot “strawsages” compacted using a hydrolytic press, after lifting a sack of wet straw to drain using an engine hoist and trampoline fabric.  They cut a 16 inch plastic irrigation pipe long ways .  One half was fixed to the elevated platform and the other was inovatively made into a wheeled dolly –hand truck.  The hand truck was rolled up to the other pipe half and the latched together.  The straw- spawn mixture was compacted, the two pipe halves separated and the hand truck taken to the colonization room.  The hand truck had an I -bolt on the top half and that was used to anchor it while a lever lifting hinged deivice was used to lift on to a hook hanger. No need to use your back at all for each 80lb strawsage.

We also toured Mushroom adventures, an agaricus farm in Marysville.  I never understood why people shied away from growing agaricus but now it is clear to me- because agaricus are secondary composters.. One has to make straw manure compost  50-50 mix and for 2 weeks turning it daily making sure you have to out gas all the nitrogen until it doesnt smell of ammonia, then you have to pasteurize it and beyond that heat and stir to again off load the  amonia . This process could take many days.  Then it must be cooledl and mixed with the spawn . The heavy duty equipment to do all this is beyond the pocketbook of  hobbiest or small mushroom farmer.  Next they  leti  colonize in large square containers and then case with peat moss.

Edited by Seeker2be, 23 November 2014 - 08:50 AM.

[Seeker2be]

Day 13
Finally got into the clean lab with the flow hoods and was quite nervous at first but practice makes perfect.  I got some pointers from my roommates who were taught the procedures the day before and spent 5 hours doing transfers.  That helped a lot . I got in the groove and will do better with everyday as transfer techniques becomes routine.  The goal: Get everything you need before you get into the clean area and flow hood, spray down everything with disinfectant outside then place and everything you need inside  then spray inside the flow hood again also spraying your gloves. After you put your transferring tool inside the bacticinerator, cut your parafilm (2 1/2 strips for wide mouth tubes, and 1 1/2 inch for centrifuge tubes and spray it down with alcohol.) Have a  previously folded sprayed with alcohol towel on the surface for wiping alcohol off cut parafilm when ready to use.  Have a ball jar ready to set your cooking instruments upon to let cool. The lab director showed us, that to him, the metal, thin spatula was the best tool for transfers.   Again it had a flat surface and sharp edge to cut and carry the pieces of agar without dropping them. Pieces of tissue were thus less likely to fall from it when you scoop them up while at the same time you are unscrewing your media vials by holding them with your curled pinky finger on the hand that holds the spatula held like a pencil.  Screw tops must be slightly loose prior to using parafilm (after making transfers) for gas exchange to keep cultures alive. I did ten transfers and became calmer after each one.

Edited by Seeker2be, 24 November 2014 - 06:52 AM.