Doc_T said:

The thing is, you almost never can get a fruiting substrain from shiitake spores.
Buy a culture from a sponsor.

---

Puma said:

Doc_T said:

The thing is, you almost never can get a fruiting substrain from shiitake spores.
Buy a culture from a sponsor.

---

Do you have any idea why shiitake would so rarely produce a fruiting substrain? You would think that evolution would naturally have encouraged the species to frequently develop fruiting strains.

---

RogerRabbit said:

Store bought mushrooms are horrible choices for cloning.  In most cases, they've been grown out to senescence before fruiting.  I know with my shiitake farm, I do up to 4 grain to grain transfers with 6 pound spawn bags at a rate of 20 to 1.  This turns one petri dish of mycelium into over 100,000 pounds of grain spawn before it's ever even spawned to sawdust at a rate of 1 to 8.  I can't imagine anyone cloning one of my shiitake and starting the whole process over again.  It's tired.  Other farms, especially commercial button and port growers, push the envelope even farther than I do.
RR

---

Puma said:

Doc_T said:

The thing is, you almost never can get a fruiting substrain from shiitake spores.
Buy a culture from a sponsor.

---

Do you have any idea why shiitake would so rarely produce a fruiting substrain? You would think that evolution would naturally have encouraged the species to frequently develop fruiting strains.

---

Why don't pandas like to fuck? Makes no sense evolutionarily.

RogerRabbit said:

Here's a process that has been 100% successful in reviving dry mushroom tissue for me so far.  Don't use peroxide, whatever you do.  It's toxic to fungi cells, and the last thing you want to do when reviving tissue is harm it further.

Sterilize several jars of distilled water, one of which should be prepared with small air exchange holes in the lid and a method of filtering, such as tyvek or synthetic filter disk, polyfill, etc. 

Break up the dry tissue into grain sized chunks and put a dozen or so into one of your sterilized jars of water.  Shake well to wash the pieces of tissue, and then transfer them to the next jar of sterile water. (you can pick up the pieces with a syringe needle or scalpel)  Shake again to wash and repeat. 

When you place them into the final jar, which is filtered, swirl them around in the water and then set the jar away and forget about it for a few weeks.  You'll begin to see mycelium growing on any chunks that are viable.  Don't use nutrients of any kind, just plain sterile distilled water.  Once mycelium begins to form, transfer to agar to isolate away from any contaminants that may be present.
RR

---

RogerRabbit said:

Shiitake is just picky.  I've grown from spores and managed to get mediocre performance, but that was after a very long time trying.  This is the reason shiitake is traded in culture form.  Somebody else has gone to the trouble of isolating a good fruiting strain from spores.

It's the same with most species actually, including the cubensis many people around here are fond of.  Multispore inoculation is a roll of the dice.  Sometimes you get the jackpot, other times you have three mushrooms on a whole substrate.

RR

---

Quote:

Remember, 80% of the shiitake sold world wide are from china

---

RogerRabbit said:

Very doubtful.  If you want to grow shiitake, pony up the dough for a quality culture.  Why start with a lead and mercury contaminated specimen from china that is only in your country to ensure the local farms go bankrupt? Remember, 80% of the shiitake sold world wide are from china.  Aside from the fact that normal working people can't compete from a business standpoint with a communist system, you'd be starting with a senescence ravished culture, dangerously contaminated with heavy metals.  Why bother.
RR

---

shroomie_glen said:

It must be tough living in such a war ravaged region of the world.  Lots of pranaoia/fearmongereing out there eh?

---

jenia1 said:

RogerRabbit said:

Here's a process that has been 100% successful in reviving dry mushroom tissue for me so far.  Don't use peroxide, whatever you do.  It's toxic to fungi cells, and the last thing you want to do when reviving tissue is harm it further.

Sterilize several jars of distilled water, one of which should be prepared with small air exchange holes in the lid and a method of filtering, such as tyvek or synthetic filter disk, polyfill, etc. 

Break up the dry tissue into grain sized chunks and put a dozen or so into one of your sterilized jars of water.  Shake well to wash the pieces of tissue, and then transfer them to the next jar of sterile water. (you can pick up the pieces with a syringe needle or scalpel)  Shake again to wash and repeat. 

When you place them into the final jar, which is filtered, swirl them around in the water and then set the jar away and forget about it for a few weeks.  You'll begin to see mycelium growing on any chunks that are viable.  Don't use nutrients of any kind, just plain sterile distilled water.  Once mycelium begins to form, transfer to agar to isolate away from any contaminants that may be present.
RR

---

ive found this post by RR
will it work with a supermarket dried shiitake?

---

It has worked for me...
P.Mexican Dried Tissue D·H2O LC Re·animation:



Don't know if store·bought shitake would or wouldn't work...