"Mushrooms Info + Process"

We'd like to welcome you to this amazing ancient products. Mycelium have been around since the start of time, helping nature with its natural decomposing (digesting) of items around it.

What is Mycelium?

Mycelium is a rooting system that spreads out in all directions finding food to digest. Mycelium grows in all sorts of materials such as straw, hardwoods, insects, and "YES...." poop. These tiny little rooting systems are very hard to see if not impossible in the wild as they are so very fragile in tensile strength and can be contaminated very easily. How do we spot mycelium in the wild? Look for mushrooms and below the stem if very careful you can unearth the network of mycelium if you so desire.

What are mushrooms?

Mushrooms are a very complex "fungus", which are the fruiting bodies "The fruit" of mycelium. There are thousands of different varieties and it's really important to know which ones are edible. IF unsure ask a professional or get it tested by a lab.

Are all mushrooms edible?
There are a wide variety of mushrooms world wide, and not all are edible. There are gourmet, medicinal, phycobilin (magic), and poisonous mushrooms which could/will cause death if eaten. It's very important to eat mushrooms only from reputable locations or companies or buying kits like our. We have boughten our stains from a reputable supplier.

How many types of mushrooms are edible?

There are a huge selection of mushrooms that are edible. To name a few are Oyster (Blue, Black, Grey, Golden, Pink, King, etc), Beech (white, brown), Enokitake, Shiitake, Maitake, Lions Mane, Chicken of the woods, Turkey tail, Reishi, Wine cap, Chestnut. These are the type we have in our inventory but there are so many more. We keep expanding our inventory by requests of individuals like yourself, and our own curiosity.

Why grow my own mushrooms?

Good Question. There are some really good benefits to growing your own mushrooms.
1) Cheaper then store bought for the volume of mushrooms you'll get.
2) You / We know the quality of the products that the mycelium are digesting.

3) Its pick to table in less than 2 minutes (if your mushrooms are ready and its picking time).
4) Some of these mushrooms are only grown for restaurants, so they are really hard to find in any stores.

It's fun to watch the mycelium slowly build its rooting system through the container they grow in ((jar, bag, tot, etc). Once the jar or bag is completely white with mycelium (usually takes 2-4 weeks strain dependant), we usually start poking the bag with some holes to trigger the mycelium into fruiting if it hasn't already. This inrush of oxygen triggers the mycelium into pinning. The pins are baby mushrooms beginning to grow. This aspect of the grow is amazing as the mushrooms grow exponentially. From pinning to full grown mushroom, how long does it take (this is what I would like you to tell me)?

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Store Supplies:

1) Sterilized grain jar (6 quantity) / Sterilized Substate bags (4 quantity)

A Jar filled with hydrated / sterilized grain that will be ready for your inoculation technique, Or a Sterilized substrate bag ready for inoculation.

2) Inoculated Jar (5 quantity)
A jar or many jars that have been inoculate with the mycelium of your choice.

3) Petri Dish
Its an agar dish (our signature recipe) either ready for your inoculation or we have pre inoculated dishes with the mycelium of your choice. All labels are place at the bottom of the dishes so you know what strain is growing.

4) Liquid Culture
LC is a sterilized solution that allows mycelium to grow in and keeps it suspended ready for inoculation into petri dish, grain or substrate.

5) Sterilized Substrate Bags (4 quantity)

We use the master mix or a bran mix for our substate bags.

6) DIY (Do it yourself)Soon our store will be supplying all the materials need for you to literally do everything yourself (grain, substrate ingredients, agar pre-made mix to create your own 100 petri-dishes, sterilized petri dishes 25 pack,

Growing Technique

I want the full growing experience (Vary basic technique - Different varieties require different techniques)

1) Syringe to grain jar or bag - If your kit includes a syringe with mycelium in it we suggest you use no less than 2ml per jar or bag. The more you inject, the quicker colonization.

2) Colonize part 1 - Place the jar in a dark, warm location (75F), with no air circulation, for 2-4 weeks or until it has been fully colonized (jar or bag is white).

3) Air in bag - Unfold bag so the filter patch is close to the substrate. This will allow the bag to fill up with filtered air (1-3 hours).

4) Sterilize - Sterilize Everything with rubbing alcohol (70% +). We mean everything (table, knife, utensils, jar, bag, hands, etc). This is the part that is very critical, keep all air around you stagnant (turn off the furnace, all fans, have no one around and wear a mask).

5) Transfer - Open the jar and with sterilized knife break up the mycelium (if using a grain bag, just breakup the grains from one another).Open the substrate bag and pour the mycelium grain from the jar/bag to the substrate bag and seal (seal with what ever you can (simple tape down the seam fold and tape again or food saver sealer).

Very Important notes : Most important is if anything spills outside of the bag it is considered CONTAMINATED and must NOT go inside the bag (consider the spillage compost). If you do try to save the spillage and place it in the bag then consider your mushroom bag compost.

6) Mix - Once substrate bag is sealed close, mix the grains in with the hardwood the best you can. The better the mix the faster the colonization.

7) Colonize part 2 - Place the now colonized substrate bag in a dark, warm (75F), stagnant air, location for 2-4 weeks until fully colonized. Bag will be close to white (shiitake will be brown).

8) Prep for fruiting - Sterilize the whole bag, cut hole in the top of the bag and fold so filter patch is placed over the plastic. All the air should be out of the bag and the flap taped to one side of the bag. On the other side of the bag cut an "X". Place in fruiting chamber. Note: some cultures will require bag height meaning you'll just cut the top of the bag open and place in fruiting chamber.

9) Fruiting Chamber
a) Small greenhouse (indoors) - where your able to get the humidity to about 80-95%. Lots of fresh air little fan blowing air into the greenhouse through a filter if possible. This is our method
b) Place bag on a piece of cardboard. Spray the cardboard with water morning and night. Best location to place the bag would be on an island or somewhere in the kitchen. The Cardboard will produce a fairly good amount of humidity throughout the day.
c) Clear tote - Remove the lid and fan the bag morning and night with a mist of spray afterwards.

10) Harvest - Remove mushrooms by lightly twisting in a clockwise direction which will break the mushrooms from the mycelium, Tape off the hole and cut a new hole on a different location of the bag for each following flush.

11) Hibernation + Following Flush - Each mushroom is different but each have there own restart (oysters is in a bowl of water in the fridge for 12-24hrs then remove and start fruiting technique again or wait a week and it will restart. Shiitake - needs a little smack all around, while some just need 1-2 weeks of rest).

12) Cooking - we enjoy mushrooms so much that we make a medley of mushrooms sautéed with a garlic butter, thyme, basil, sage, truffle shavings or salt.

Thanks for the visit.