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loggrower
Log Cultivator


Registered: 08/02/13
Posts: 273
Loc: Oregon - Coast Range
Last seen: 6 years, 6 months
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Sawdust darkening upon colonization?
#19094221 - 11/06/13 07:06 AM (10 years, 3 months ago) |
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Has anyone ever noticed their sawdust suddenly darken as it's being colonized? I mean, multiple shades darker... A transition from normal light colored Red Alder sawdust to very dark brown. Very noticeable! The change is visible within six hours of the mycelium strands touching a piece of sawdust.
I had a theory that it had something to do with over-sterilization of sawdust after reading up on it in Stamets book... So, I brought down the PSI to 16 for an hour for quart jars and the effect has pretty much gone away! Mycelium no longer magically changes the color of sawdust when it touches it. I was doing 20PSI for an hour before.
Going to try to keep things at 15-15.5 PSI next time and see if it totally goes away. I still saw the dark brown sawdust effect upon colonization occurring very slightly where sawdust is touching the sides of the glass jar for the 16-16.5 PSI one hour run.
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wood chip
Stranger

Registered: 02/22/09
Posts: 210
Last seen: 10 years, 3 months
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Re: Sawdust darkening upon colonization? [Re: loggrower]
#19095168 - 11/06/13 12:34 PM (10 years, 3 months ago) |
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What species?
I have seen this on agar media when using sweet potato agar with several species of fungi. As an example, purple sweet potato agar changes color but the malt extract agar does not when growing shiitake.
I have seen darkening of malt extract agar using Lepiota rachodes at the interface between media and fungi.
In fungi, enzymes are excreted into the substrate where biochemical reaction occur some of which change the color of the substrate. Light often plays a role.
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liamtheloser
Advanced Idiot

Registered: 06/07/06
Posts: 1,453
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Re: Sawdust darkening upon colonization? [Re: wood chip]
#19095953 - 11/06/13 03:21 PM (10 years, 3 months ago) |
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My mycelium is usually trailing a darker line in the sawdust, but I figured it was metabolites or enzymes predigesting the food
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wood chip
Stranger

Registered: 02/22/09
Posts: 210
Last seen: 10 years, 3 months
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Re: Sawdust darkening upon colonization? [Re: liamtheloser]
#19096058 - 11/06/13 03:45 PM (10 years, 3 months ago) |
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Not sure why. But shiitake sometime brown uniformly, sometime streaks of brown occur sometimes browning occurs in little circles around the bumps.
Light is one factor but bags facing light sometime brown on the opposite side of the light source first which I find unexpectedly, other factors or variable such as texture, aeration non uniform mixing of substrate must also be involved.
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loggrower
Log Cultivator


Registered: 08/02/13
Posts: 273
Loc: Oregon - Coast Range
Last seen: 6 years, 6 months
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Re: Sawdust darkening upon colonization? [Re: wood chip]
#19096364 - 11/06/13 04:53 PM (10 years, 3 months ago) |
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Oyster, Fp strain.
Currently cloning some wild strains, but they should be similar to the Fp Strain.
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Jeff
Addict



Registered: 10/06/12
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Re: Sawdust darkening upon colonization? [Re: loggrower]
#19096370 - 11/06/13 04:53 PM (10 years, 3 months ago) |
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Is there a particular reason that you are worried about this loggrower? I have observed this even in pasteurized sawdust but it does not appear to affect anything.
-------------------- Myco-tek
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RogerRabbit
Bans for Pleasure



Registered: 03/26/03
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Loc: Seattle
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Re: Sawdust darkening upon colonization? [Re: loggrower]
#19096442 - 11/06/13 05:07 PM (10 years, 3 months ago) |
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Quote:
So, I brought down the PSI to 16 for an hour for quart jars and the effect has pretty much gone away! Mycelium no longer magically changes the color of sawdust when it touches it. I was doing 20PSI for an hour before.
This is going to cause problems more serious than a color change in your sawdust. It will damage the filter patch bags and their filters. There's no reason to go over 15 psi. RR
-------------------- Download Let's Grow Mushrooms semper in excretia sumus solim profundum variat "I've never had a failed experiment. I've only discovered 10,000 methods which do not work." Thomas Edison
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loggrower
Log Cultivator


Registered: 08/02/13
Posts: 273
Loc: Oregon - Coast Range
Last seen: 6 years, 6 months
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Re: Sawdust darkening upon colonization? [Re: Jeff]
#19097012 - 11/06/13 06:54 PM (10 years, 3 months ago) |
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Quote:
Jeff said: Is there a particular reason that you are worried about this loggrower? I have observed this even in pasteurized sawdust but it does not appear to affect anything.
I am trying to make sure I'm not "caramelizing" my sawdust with too much heat and causing genetic mutations.
The sawdust I use for cloning wild strains is nearly sterile even before PC'ing. I take a fresh cut Red Alder log and scrape it off, then make chainsaw cuts into it with a plastic bag collecting the sawdust right as it comes out the bottom of the chainsaw.
Have had 100% success cloning wild Oysters with supplemented sawdust so far from both stem butts and wood samples. Woah... These wild strains are aggressive and colonize fast! The mycelium is thicker and less fluffy than the commercial strains I have tried so far. It can support itself a half inch above the substrate before falling back down from condensation weight.
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Amanita virosa
botanist by day


Registered: 12/04/11
Posts: 2,458
Loc: north kakalacky
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Re: Sawdust darkening upon colonization? [Re: RogerRabbit]
#19097059 - 11/06/13 07:05 PM (10 years, 3 months ago) |
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Quote:
RogerRabbit said:
Quote:
So, I brought down the PSI to 16 for an hour for quart jars and the effect has pretty much gone away! Mycelium no longer magically changes the color of sawdust when it touches it. I was doing 20PSI for an hour before.
This is going to cause problems more serious than a color change in your sawdust. It will damage the filter patch bags and their filters. There's no reason to go over 15 psi. RR
specially if op is using low end bags from china. seems like just looking at the patch too long compromises it. And I dont know what kind of pressure cooker your operating but most of them arent made to go up to 20 psi safely; thats the beginning of the RED ZONE!
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loggrower
Log Cultivator


Registered: 08/02/13
Posts: 273
Loc: Oregon - Coast Range
Last seen: 6 years, 6 months
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Re: Sawdust darkening upon colonization? [Re: Amanita virosa]
#19098499 - 11/07/13 12:10 AM (10 years, 3 months ago) |
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Well, it's the exact same design as the pressure sterilizers from Fungi Perfecti. However, it came configured for operating at 20PSI. I shortened the spring slightly in the valve to bring it down to a 17PSI max, and twist it loose a few turns to bring it down to 15.5PSI now.
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nanncee



Registered: 12/01/12
Posts: 434
Loc: Utah
Last seen: 9 years, 2 months
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Re: Sawdust darkening upon colonization? [Re: RogerRabbit]
#19099663 - 11/07/13 10:17 AM (10 years, 3 months ago) |
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Quote:
RogerRabbit said:
Quote:
So, I brought down the PSI to 16 for an hour for quart jars and the effect has pretty much gone away! Mycelium no longer magically changes the color of sawdust when it touches it. I was doing 20PSI for an hour before.
This is going to cause problems more serious than a color change in your sawdust. It will damage the filter patch bags and their filters. There's no reason to go over 15 psi. RR
Hmmmm That's not what happens with mine.. I have run 2000 bags at 20psi for 2-2.5 hours with no problem. Now I am at higher elevation, but still. Unicorn bags, using 2 -941's.
My jars go through the same thing just 1.5 hours.
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Aleon
The Power of Our Origins



Registered: 05/26/11
Posts: 1,127
Loc: Everywhere
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Re: Sawdust darkening upon colonization? [Re: nanncee]
#19100937 - 11/07/13 02:33 PM (10 years, 3 months ago) |
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Quote:
nanncee said:
Quote:
RogerRabbit said:
Quote:
So, I brought down the PSI to 16 for an hour for quart jars and the effect has pretty much gone away! Mycelium no longer magically changes the color of sawdust when it touches it. I was doing 20PSI for an hour before.
This is going to cause problems more serious than a color change in your sawdust. It will damage the filter patch bags and their filters. There's no reason to go over 15 psi. RR
Hmmmm That's not what happens with mine.. I have run 2000 bags at 20psi for 2-2.5 hours with no problem. Now I am at higher elevation, but still. Unicorn bags, using 2 -941's.
My jars go through the same thing just 1.5 hours.
-------------------- Mushroom medicines available at: www.swordandshieldwellness.com
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