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Brian T
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Registered: 11/15/13
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First Grow - having issues, help please!
#19141431 - 11/15/13 03:51 PM (10 years, 2 months ago) |
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I have had a couple of cakes that are in the fruiting chamber. They have been in there for the past 2 - 2 1/2 weeks. They didn't pin the first week and I didn't think much about it as I commonly refer to this website when I am having issues, and I saw it wasn't outside of the ordinary. Now I am starting to become worried. I have harvested 2 mature mushrooms and that is all, the rest have aborted. In total out of 8 cakes only 7-8 Mushrooms have emerged on 2 of the the cakes, 2 of them fully maturing in total. I recently made a SGFC and I'm going to use that next time. They are misted very finely 2 times a day and fan every 3 hours. I have 2 aquarium pumps that pump air into the chamber because we had low FAE at the beginning. I was wondering if anyone would have any information as to why they aren't fruiting or pinning and would be able to tell me what I am doing wrong, or if there is a chance of saving them.
They are an Alacabenzi strain
This is the tank that they are in right now. I have the air being pumped into the middle of the tank. I try to keep it at 95% RH and it is usually around 74 degrees.
 A picture of it from the side, I have a heating blanket under it so it will stay a constant temperature.
 This is what a lot of the cakes look like, They had that fluffy mycelium from FAE on them then it thinned down. Before I put them in the FC I dunk and rolled them in vermiculite
 This is what it looks like with the lid on it. I constantly have condensation on the sides of the tank and on top. It's generally very hard to see through it, but I think it is from the high FH.
 And then this is the new SGFC I made recently. Is there anything it is missing or I did wrong?
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LiquidGlass
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Re: First Grow - having issues, help please! [Re: Brian T]
#19141467 - 11/15/13 04:04 PM (10 years, 2 months ago) |
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Maybe too dry, not enough misting . . .
-------------------- Some art I've made Glass Art Gallery
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SpitballJedi
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Re: First Grow - having issues, help please! [Re: Brian T]
#19141476 - 11/15/13 04:06 PM (10 years, 2 months ago) |
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Make sure you have holes in the bottom of that SGFC.
Get those cakes out of that aquarium and into your SGFC asap. Aquariums make terrible fruiting chambers.
Your cakes are drying out.
Don't set your SGFC on a heat pad. Heat the room instead.
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Brian T
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Re: First Grow - having issues, help please! [Re: SpitballJedi]
#19141520 - 11/15/13 04:19 PM (10 years, 2 months ago) |
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Quote:
SpitballJedi said: Make sure you have holes in the bottom of that SGFC.
Get those cakes out of that aquarium and into your SGFC asap. Aquariums make terrible fruiting chambers.
Your cakes are drying out.
Don't set your SGFC on a heat pad. Heat the room instead.
Okay, thanks! I'll put them in there tonight for sure! I also get rid of the heating pad, do they look too dry? Should I re-dunk them if they are? I have some holes on the bottom of it, they are just hard to see because of the bad picture. I tried to space them 2" apart on all six sides
Edited by Brian T (11/15/13 04:20 PM)
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SpitballJedi
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Re: First Grow - having issues, help please! [Re: Brian T] 1
#19141682 - 11/15/13 04:57 PM (10 years, 2 months ago) |
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They do look a little dry. I don't think they need re-dunked. They're just starting to turn a little blue on the edges.
Just get them in your new FC and start misting.
Mist your cakes till they glisten with moisture and then fan the SGFC out. There is a magic moment when your cakes are no longer glistening, but they still appear moist, this is when you want to mist and fan again. Do this as often as required.
Mist cakes directly with a fine mist. The over-spray helps keep your perlite damp. Misting the walls serves absolutely no purpose.
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Brian T
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Re: First Grow - having issues, help please! [Re: Brian T]
#19156033 - 11/18/13 06:31 PM (10 years, 2 months ago) |
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Unfortunately, I'm still having some issue with getting them to fruit. I put them in the SGFC and made sure it was better temperature and everything for the cakes, yet it looks like they are drying out even more. I'm so lost on these I don't even know where to begin.

This is the new setup with the tank. I have been misting and fanning them through the day when they are looking dry. Sorry I didn't get a up close picture of the cakes, but they are much much darker now. One cake has a few hyphal knots, and another has a single pin. They look like they are drying out do You guys have any idea what I could be doing wrong?
Edited by Brian T (11/18/13 06:45 PM)
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SpitballJedi
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Re: First Grow - having issues, help please! [Re: Brian T]
#19156231 - 11/18/13 07:01 PM (10 years, 2 months ago) |
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get rid of the bubble stones and air pump.
You need to elevate your SGFC at least 3"-4" so air can circulate up through the perlite.
Basic Principles of the SGFCQuote:
SpitballJedi said: Principles and construction of Shotgun Fruiting Chambers (SGFC):
This guide is not focused on PF/BRF cakes per se. It's really just the basics of how the SGFC works.
How it's made A properly made SGFC Is made of a clear/transparent tote with 1/4" holes on all 6 sides about 2" apart in a grid pattern.
They need 4"-5" of damp perlite.
Principle of operation A properly made SGFC uses natural air currents to create high relative humidity (RH) and constant fresh air exchange (FAE).
The fresh air that flows in through the bottom holes rises up through the damp perlite assisting in evaporation. This evaporation is where you get your humidity.
Because humid air rises, it flows up and out the other holes, thus allowing more fresh air in through the bottom. This is how you get constant FAE without sacrificing humidity.
Some Things to Consider The SGFC must not sit directly on a flat surface. It needs to be elevated. If not elevated, air can't flow in through the bottom and the whole system breaks down.
Once inside the SGFC, your cakes will need to misted and fanned. Because of the constant FAE, your cakes will dry out if not misted regularly. Schedules may vary slightly from region to region, but 3-6 times a day is pretty common.
Mist your cakes till they glisten with moisture and then fan the SGFC out. There is a magic moment when your cakes are no longer glistening, but they still appear moist, this is when you want to mist and fan again. Do this as often as required.
Mist cakes directly with a fine mist. The over-spray helps keep your perlite damp. Misting the walls serves absolutely no purpose.
-------------------- The Basics A little civility goes a long way The Noob Forum The Hammock Hangers' Forum
Edited by SpitballJedi (11/19/13 04:33 PM)
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LiquidGlass
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Re: First Grow - having issues, help please! [Re: SpitballJedi]
#19156404 - 11/18/13 07:33 PM (10 years, 2 months ago) |
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You do not need an air pump with the SGFC, that is what the holes are for, and the bottom holes should not be covered
-------------------- Some art I've made Glass Art Gallery
  I was raised a christian and was a stone-faced acid head - Ken Kesey
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Brian T
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Re: First Grow - having issues, help please! [Re: SpitballJedi]
#19156611 - 11/18/13 08:17 PM (10 years, 2 months ago) |
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Thank you! I changed it so that it meets the Tek. I had a hard time finding the guide on a SGFC for some reason when I was making the tub. It makes a lot more sense now after reading that! I'll be sure to post back when I find some success!
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SpitballJedi
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Re: First Grow - having issues, help please! [Re: Brian T]
#19158824 - 11/19/13 09:36 AM (10 years, 2 months ago) |
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-------------------- The Basics A little civility goes a long way The Noob Forum The Hammock Hangers' Forum
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N2ocean
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Re: First Grow - having issues, help please! [Re: SpitballJedi]
#19160131 - 11/19/13 03:13 PM (10 years, 2 months ago) |
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You may also want to get a fine mist pump sprayer. I picked mine up from k-mart for $10. direct spray if too harsh can damage fragile knots an mycelium. Using a spray bottle will still work just keep a bit of distance from the cakes when spraying. It's the misting and evaporation off the surface of the substrate that is the biggest pinning factor. I'd focus on doing that correctly first an foremost.
-------------------- ---The mystics subjective experience of his identity with "the All" is the scientist's objective description of the ecological relationship of the organism/environment as a unified field - Alan Watts, The Joyous Cosmology An excellent, rather short read here----
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TheApprentice
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Re: First Grow - having issues, help please! [Re: N2ocean]
#19160341 - 11/19/13 03:57 PM (10 years, 2 months ago) |
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Also the fact that they are multi-spore could be the issue.
time to get some agar and clone your best mushy!
search " grocery store agar tek". Great for beginners.
I do agree that your sgfc looks too dry tho.
good luck!
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Brian T
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Re: First Grow - having issues, help please! [Re: TheApprentice]
#19218009 - 12/02/13 04:19 PM (10 years, 1 month ago) |
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I'm Finally seeing success! I added and re-hydrated the perlite in my SGFC so that it was to the Tek's specifications. I also redunked all of my cakes. I still continue to mist and fan them through out the day. I'm so excited to see this finally work out good! I have some pictures of course too Thanks for all the tips and help!



 All of the mushrooms are coming in nice, but a few look a little different than the others. Does anyone know why this would be? They are the same strain.


 Then there is this cake, It doesn't have any pins or knots on it but it has some weird mycelial growth on the tops. The first thing I grew was oyster mushrooms and they got this kind of growth on them too before they pinned, is it the same thing?
 This is currently what my SGFC looks like
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SpitballJedi
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Re: First Grow - having issues, help please! [Re: Brian T]
#19218324 - 12/02/13 05:24 PM (10 years, 1 month ago) |
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Looks like you are mostly back on track.
You can expect mushrooms to look different when using MS sirynges. This is because there are many different genetics on the same cake.
For you next grow, use 1/2 pint wide-mouth jars instead of the tall regular mouth.
The taller jars can take longer to colonize and sometimes they stall. When you put them in to fruiting, the tops can dry out because the water sinks to the bottom. This often results in pinning at the bottom and not the top.
It's no big deal, just a tip for better results.
That growth on top looks kinda like contamination. If it starts to turn another color, I would toss it.
Over-all this appears to be a good save. Saving can be tricky. But, you are at least on track for the next grow.
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victor101
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Re: First Grow - having issues, help please! [Re: Brian T]
#19346261 - 12/30/13 01:11 PM (10 years, 1 month ago) |
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Brian,
I too am first time grower presently trying to fruit alacebenzi. My cakes were looking fine pure white full mycellium for 7days while in fruiting chamber. All of a sudden on the 8th day all of the 4 cakes looked like yours with that greenish tint here and there.I can't tell if green or blue.
Was that greenish/bluish discoloration a problem for you?
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cronicr



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Re: First Grow - having issues, help please! [Re: victor101]
#19346268 - 12/30/13 01:13 PM (10 years, 1 month ago) |
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Quote:
victor101 said: Brian,
I too am first time grower presently trying to fruit alacebenzi.
stay away from spores101, post a pic and start a thread but most likely bruising
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victor101
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Re: First Grow - having issues, help please! [Re: cronicr]
#19346864 - 12/30/13 03:42 PM (10 years, 1 month ago) |
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Why stay away from spores101, colonization mycellium looked great! It's only after 8days while fruiting that the greenish stains appeared. They look EXACTLY the same as in the above photos!
anyhow i did'nt take a chance if it were contam or not so I carved out about half inch of cake around affected areas. Doing so I noticed the stains seemed to be only surface related. So now my cakes have funny shape but they are back in fruiting chamber nicely rinsed and clean!
I will probably do dunk and roll soon even though they have not gone thru any flushing yet!
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cronicr



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Re: First Grow - having issues, help please! [Re: victor101]
#19346884 - 12/30/13 03:45 PM (10 years, 1 month ago) |
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  It doesn't matter what i think of you...all that matters is clean spawn I'm tired do me a favor
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NOTFALL3N
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Re: First Grow - having issues, help please! [Re: cronicr]
#19346919 - 12/30/13 03:52 PM (10 years, 1 month ago) |
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1down5up
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Re: First Grow - having issues, help please! [Re: NOTFALL3N]
#19347474 - 12/30/13 05:25 PM (10 years, 1 month ago) |
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If you get your tall ones to fully colonize, when you put them in the FC, turn them on their side to fruit them, it's easier to keep the top hydrated...especially if you can't get the verm to stick there.
-------------------- ~~Everything is relative~~ A Simplified Overview of Mushroom Cultivation Strategies - RR says - EvilMushroom666's Take on BRF Cakes - Frank's list of goodies - Cronicr's Goodies No one is placed higher than another no matter race or creed or gender, we must teach forgiveness and compassion for all life. J.L.
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