Making Panaeolus Substrate (Pictorial)

We make Panaeolus substrate in the following manner:
Ingredients: Dried cow dung, vermiculite and soaked straw (submerged in water for 12 hours)
For 4 standard spawn bags we use: 1/2 kilogram dry straw, 4 liters of dried dung, 3 liters of vermiculite and 3-4 liters of water

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Dung and vermiculite are mixed

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Water is added and the mixture is stirred

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The result will look like this

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Soaked straw is added

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And mixed in

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close up

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This is filled into autoclavable spawn bags

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The flaps are folded and the bags are put into the pressure cooker. A lid is put on top to prevent the bags from blocking the steam valve

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After sterilization the bags are allowed to cool down in the flowcabinet

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Two jars with Panaeolus cyanescens spawn

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The bags are opened and 300 ml of spawn is poured in

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The bags are sealed with an impulse sealer

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The bags are shaken and put in a warm place to incubate

After 5 days of incubation the substrate was fully colonized and ready to be cased: 4 bags of substrate:



Close up:



A plastic bin is cleaned with alcohol. (note the holes plugged with polyfill)



The bags are cut open with scissors:



The substrate is put in the bin:





This is leveled:



And cased with sterilized casing soil:





The bin is covered with polyethylene wrap:



Side view:



The bins are now in a warm place for the casing layer to colonize.