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mptriptoid
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Registered: 06/05/13
Posts: 26
Last seen: 9 years, 5 months
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Cake is darkening. Normal?
#18870983 - 09/21/13 06:48 AM (10 years, 4 months ago) |
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I just put my second PE tray in my FC a 2 days ago.
I spawned three 1/2-pint BRF cakes to manure. It fully colonized in approximately five days, and i allowed it to sit another 6 before introducing to light and FAE. I thought it looked great, but it looks like the cake is slowly darkening. It's pissing a lot, so that could be why. I've been dabbing with a paper towel twice daily and misting as needed. Here are a couple pictures:

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FrankHorrigan
The Inquisition



Registered: 01/04/11
Posts: 10,573
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Re: Cake is darkening. Normal? [Re: mptriptoid]
#18871403 - 09/21/13 09:57 AM (10 years, 4 months ago) |
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That is contaminated to hell. Sorry
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LeopardMan
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Registered: 09/21/09
Posts: 5,463
Loc: A tree house
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Re: Cake is darkening. Normal? [Re: mptriptoid]
#18871454 - 09/21/13 10:18 AM (10 years, 4 months ago) |
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Looks like bacterial contamination. You could still harvest some fruits from it, but honestly it's not worth the trouble. You better focus on sterile procedures and pasteurization techiniques. By the way did you pasteurize manure before spawning?
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You have to die a few times before you can really live. -Charles Bukowski-
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mptriptoid
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Last seen: 9 years, 5 months
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Re: Cake is darkening. Normal? [Re: mptriptoid]
#18872697 - 09/21/13 03:32 PM (10 years, 4 months ago) |
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That's a bummer. A big bummer. I had had my first successful fruits off a slightly smaller cake last week. However, I had ordered pre-pasteurized manure for that one.
This one I still used the same manure, but it had sat for a month and had been opened, so I pasteurized two quarts in a couple jars. I have followed proper sterilization and pasteurization procedures and what not. This was, however, my first time hydrating substrate before spawning to it, so quite honestly, I think I may have overshot field capacity and added a bit too much water.
I'm worried because i dunked and rolled my first successful cake and put it back in the FC with the contaminated one. I unloaded my fc, emptied it, scrubbed it, and changed out the perlite before putting the cakes in there. Any advice for next time guys?
I believe my PE and PR LCs to also be infected, as when I tested the mycelium in BRF, it grew mold... This is my first time really having issues with contams in the last few months so im pretty bummed right now. I still have 2 PR brf cakes that survived though, so I suppose I will look on the bright side. And literally one PE left if this other cake doesn't survive...cloning will be my only way to spare the mycelium for that.
Any advice you guys? I appreciate the responses thus far. As soon as I read them, I tossed the cake. Should I maybe take out my other cakes and spray down the FC/perlite with some alcohol just in case? Or should I go further?
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Mush4Brains
LOOL HACKED!!!

Registered: 07/31/13
Posts: 4,419
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Re: Cake is darkening. Normal? [Re: mptriptoid]
#18872724 - 09/21/13 03:42 PM (10 years, 4 months ago) |
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Advice? Skip the LC until you aren't starting one from spores. Work on your sterility like LM has said, and don't give up. Follow a tek to a T. Remember, your cakes are already a 1:3 ratio, so if you think you're spawning 1:3 cake:substrate it is really only 1:9.
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mptriptoid
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Last seen: 9 years, 5 months
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Re: Cake is darkening. Normal? [Re: Mush4Brains]
#18872761 - 09/21/13 03:53 PM (10 years, 4 months ago) |
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Just curious... What do you mean by the spawn ratio really only being 1:9? I've never read that before.
What amount of substrate would you recommend, say, if I was to spawn two 1/2-pint PR BRF cakes to some manure and verm?
And as for the LC, I did try to use spores to start a PR LC (and I would agree with you... bad idea). However, I used a BRF cake that had been fully colonized for 2 and a half weeks to start two PE LCs. One test cake is looking like it may actually turn out successful. PR was definitely a fail.
What would you recommend I try doing to speed up growth until I get enough to grab a pressure cooker? It's just getting old waiting 3-5 weeks before I finally start a good sized cake in the FC.
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LeopardMan
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Registered: 09/21/09
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Re: Cake is darkening. Normal? [Re: mptriptoid]
#18872778 - 09/21/13 03:57 PM (10 years, 4 months ago) |
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Quote:
mptriptoid said: Any advice you guys? I appreciate the responses thus far. As soon as I read them, I tossed the cake. Should I maybe take out my other cakes and spray down the FC/perlite with some alcohol just in case? Or should I go further?
First off, let me start with some terminology so we can understand each other. Those are not cakes, but trays. You crumbled colonized cakes and spawned them to a pre-pasteurized manure and verm mixture.
Now if, as I suspect, those trays are contaminated with bacteria, there's not much you have to do. Bacteria smell bad but they do not fly, so you don't need to sanitize your FC. Just ditch the bad apple and let the other trays fruit.
If, on the other hand, some of your trays are contaminated with mold, you have to clean everything and hope for the best (cause molds produce spores which can basically spread everywhere in your room).
My advice is: fruit cakes as cakes. If you wanna make trays or monos, buy a PC and start using grains.
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You have to die a few times before you can really live. -Charles Bukowski-
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treid2
Mr.


Registered: 01/25/13
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Re: Cake is darkening. Normal? [Re: LeopardMan]
#18872801 - 09/21/13 04:03 PM (10 years, 4 months ago) |
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TOSS IT!!!!
Do it now!... if that's trich or similar, the spores will be everywhere when it opens up to release them. I had all my cakes and everything going great (even some small trays) BUT when I decided to do a large monotub, somehow trich got inside and destroyed it. After that, all of my cakes started getting trich, and I had to basically lose what would have been about a half pound of dried material all because the trich in the tub managed to get everywhere...
IT SUCKED... but it is what we deal with... so...
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"Now, gods, stand up for bastards!" — King Lear Act 1, scene 2. Damion5050's Coir Tek PF Tek
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FrankHorrigan
The Inquisition



Registered: 01/04/11
Posts: 10,573
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Re: Cake is darkening. Normal? [Re: treid2]
#18873417 - 09/21/13 07:04 PM (10 years, 4 months ago) |
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Quote:
treid2 said: if that's trich or similar, the spores will be everywhere when it opens up to release them. I had all my cakes and everything going great (even some small trays) BUT when I decided to do a large monotub, somehow trich got inside and destroyed it. After that, all of my cakes started getting trich, and I had to basically lose what would have been about a half pound of dried material all because the trich in the tub managed to get everywhere...
This is misleading.
Molds don't magically spread like a cold.
If everything got mold in your room, your fruiting conditions need work or you sterile procedure needs work.
Spores and bacteria are everywhere, no amount of cleaning will help that. What will cause problems is poor sterile technique, poor pasteurization, poor fruiting conditions, or a combo of those three things. These issues help give those spores a nice place to call home.
It is possible that sterile procedures will be more difficult with higher spore loads, but it is more than possible to get shit done. I lost 24 tubs to trich at one time and continue to colonize and fruit in that room to this day, just regular vacuuming is all the cleaning that gets done.
Edited by FrankHorrigan (09/21/13 07:13 PM)
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mptriptoid
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Registered: 06/05/13
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Last seen: 9 years, 5 months
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This is good to know thanks. I vacuum often as well as clean sterilite with alcohol every time it comes in contact with human hands. I also have a still air box I use for inoculation.
I just got two pins in the second round of my healthy cake, so life is good.
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LeopardMan
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Registered: 09/21/09
Posts: 5,463
Loc: A tree house
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Quote:
FrankHorrigan said: This is misleading.
Molds don't magically spread like a cold.
If everything got mold in your room, your fruiting conditions need work or you sterile procedure needs work.
Spores and bacteria are everywhere, no amount of cleaning will help that. What will cause problems is poor sterile technique, poor pasteurization, poor fruiting conditions, or a combo of those three things. These issues help give those spores a nice place to call home
I see where you are coming from, but that could be misleading as well. Spores and bacteria are everywhere, but not in the same degree of concentration. A FC full of cakes contaminated with trichoderma has a much higher concentration of trich spores than the rest of your room. Likewise a room with a FC full of contaminated cakes has a much higher concentration of mold spores than a room with no FC nor contaminated cakes.
Naturally you can't effectively clean a FC or a room full of mold spores, but you can reduce the amount of spores which float in the air. How? Removing any contaminated cakes or trays, cleaning your FC and airing the room. That won't solve the problem but it will definitely help.
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You have to die a few times before you can really live. -Charles Bukowski-
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FrankHorrigan
The Inquisition



Registered: 01/04/11
Posts: 10,573
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Re: Cake is darkening. Normal? [Re: LeopardMan]
#18875681 - 09/22/13 12:13 PM (10 years, 4 months ago) |
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Oh I was not recommending he leave the contam'd tray be. I agree that higher spore loads make cultivation trickier. It makes those "big 3" much more important- sterile technique, proper pasteurization and good fruiting conditions.
But putting fully colonized cakes in unclean air is not going to "spread" the mold in the sense that tried2 was saying. Esp not a bacterial issue like the OP has.
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LeopardMan
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Registered: 09/21/09
Posts: 5,463
Loc: A tree house
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Thanks for clarifying
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You have to die a few times before you can really live. -Charles Bukowski-
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FrankHorrigan
The Inquisition



Registered: 01/04/11
Posts: 10,573
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Re: Cake is darkening. Normal? [Re: LeopardMan]
#18876979 - 09/22/13 05:29 PM (10 years, 4 months ago) |
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Good to see you around again LM!
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LeopardMan
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Registered: 09/21/09
Posts: 5,463
Loc: A tree house
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very kind of you sir
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You have to die a few times before you can really live. -Charles Bukowski-
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