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Flyinghigh



Registered: 10/21/12
Posts: 57
Loc: Uk
Last seen: 1 year, 3 months
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Drying and storing Liberty caps
#22407112 - 10/20/15 02:58 AM (8 years, 3 months ago) |
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Not sure if this is the right place to post so sorry if it isn't but can't find anywhere specific for drying and storing so here goes..
I dry my Liberty caps the usual way of spacing them out on paper and then placing them on a high cupboard to dry for a few days, when dry I place them in a sterile 2pint mason jar along with about 40 small packets of silica gel which I have put inside a plastic Baggie with holes punched in it to avoid contact with the silica packets (the silica packets take up about 1/2pint of space in the jar) the jar is then placed in a cool dark place.
I have read a lot about this but still can't answer my own questions so was hoping someone here could help? What I want to know is:
Is this the right/best way to go about drying and storing Liberty caps?
Does the level of light during drying time matter at all? Should I be drying in the dark? Or is the potency not much effected during this time? (They're not in full sunshine or anything just on top of cupboard in a normally lit room)
Does the amount of airspace within the jar matter? When I put my first lot of dry finds in the jar it doesn't take up much space at all leaving a lot of air around them. Is this bad should I have a smaller jar until I need more space? I'm aiming to fill the entire jar but could be a few weeks until full.
Also when I consider the Liberty caps to be dry after 2-3 days they aren't crispy or 'cracker' dry, they don't crumble to dust, they just seem flexible but dry like paper. is this normal? Should I leave them longer? Or will the silica in the jar make them 'cracker' dry like I read about?
I'm only hoping to store them for a few months if they last that long (:
Last year about 1000 libs stored in this ways for a couple of months we're lost due to a white dusty look to them (I presumed a mould) so really don't want a repeat of this
Again sorry if this isn't the right place to post this and sorry if it's a lot to read about nothing but like I say I have read a lot into this and can't find the answers I'm looking for
Any help/tips/pointers would be much appreciated
Thanks in advance
-------------------- If it grows from the ground, it's probably ok
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FryersQuest
Navigator



Registered: 11/10/14
Posts: 632
Loc: Washington, United States
Last seen: 2 years, 2 months
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Re: Drying and storing Liberty caps [Re: Flyinghigh]
#22407141 - 10/20/15 03:33 AM (8 years, 3 months ago) |
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"Is this the right/best way to go about drying and storing Liberty caps?"
No
"Does the level of light during drying time matter at all? Should I be drying in the dark? Or is the potency not much effected during this time? (They're not in full sunshine or anything just on top of cupboard in a normally lit room)"
As long as it doesn't get BLAZING (100F+) hot on top of your cupboard, it doesn't make a difference.
"Does the amount of airspace within the jar matter? When I put my first lot of dry finds in the jar it doesn't take up much space at all leaving a lot of air around them. Is this bad should I have a smaller jar until I need more space? I'm aiming to fill the entire jar but could be a few weeks until full. "
Unless you want to vacuum seal them, there will always be air. And I don't think it will make that big of a difference. There are ways to store mushrooms and keep their potency for years but I can't recall what the best method is. Psilocybe Semilanceata apparently is a very resilient mushroom that keeps its potency quite well.
"Also when I consider the Liberty caps to be dry after 2-3 days they aren't crispy or 'cracker' dry, they don't crumble to dust, they just seem flexible but dry like paper. is this normal? Should I leave them longer? Or will the silica in the jar make them 'cracker' dry like I read about?"
For a long time I thought that cracker dry was a pretty broad term. My air dried mushrooms always had bend to them and I considered them to be cracker dry. I couldn't have been more wrong. Purchase a dehydrator and you will understand what "cracker dry" really is.
As long as mold doesn't get to your libs, they should stay quite potent for a few months. But they will be more potent and stay potent if you dry them properly with a dehydrator. Also with that route you wouldn't have to worry about mold.
My advice to you is purchase a dehydrator and set it to 95F and leave all your libs that you have picked in there for a day or two. If you can't afford it, check to see if you have an oven that can be set to low temps, drying them with a convection oven should be a solid method. You would have to research how to do that properly but I know that is a popular method.
TL;DR: You aren't drying your mushrooms in the most effective way, the fact that they still bend means there is still moisture.
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     Species Found: Gymnopilus Luteofolius ~ Panaeolus Cinctulus ~ Psilocybe Baeocystis ~ Psilocybe Cyanescens ~ Psilocybe cyanofibrillosa ~ Psilocybe Semilanceata ~ Psilocybe Stuntzii
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Flyinghigh



Registered: 10/21/12
Posts: 57
Loc: Uk
Last seen: 1 year, 3 months
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Re: Drying and storing Liberty caps [Re: FryersQuest]
#22407232 - 10/20/15 05:11 AM (8 years, 3 months ago) |
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Thank you for your rapid reply and attention to each point, you have helped massively with my questions.
I was trying to avoid using my oven to dry them as I didn't want to ruin any of them with my inexperience so I am going to purchase a food dehydrator to rid any doubt about drying issues and get them 'cracker' dry libs I'm after (:
This is what I will be ordering

It is one of the cheaper ones I have been looking at (on sale £24.99 down from £79.99) but should do the job right? I don't want to spend loads, it has Temp control of 35-70*c (95-158F)
And also, once they are 'cracker' dry from the dehydrator, it's ok to store them like I said above? Glass mason jar along with silica gel?
Thanks again for your help and advice it is greatly apreciated
-------------------- If it grows from the ground, it's probably ok
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FryersQuest
Navigator



Registered: 11/10/14
Posts: 632
Loc: Washington, United States
Last seen: 2 years, 2 months
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Re: Drying and storing Liberty caps [Re: Flyinghigh]
#22409517 - 10/20/15 02:10 PM (8 years, 3 months ago) |
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Yeah...that is one hell of a deal. And for storage i think your method will be fine. You can try using the search engine to see if anybody has tips.
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     Species Found: Gymnopilus Luteofolius ~ Panaeolus Cinctulus ~ Psilocybe Baeocystis ~ Psilocybe Cyanescens ~ Psilocybe cyanofibrillosa ~ Psilocybe Semilanceata ~ Psilocybe Stuntzii
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NathanFromSussex
Stranger


Registered: 10/12/15
Posts: 1
Last seen: 8 years, 2 months
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Re: Drying and storing Liberty caps [Re: Flyinghigh]
#22489385 - 11/07/15 07:11 AM (8 years, 2 months ago) |
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Hey, just thought I'd let u know how I do it and if u get any useful info then hey ho. I spread out on something similar to chicken wire but for the kitchen, like a cooking rack(chicken wire would be great I think I just found these in the absence of CW and it works so if it ain't broken etc), leaving gaps inbetween each head(try the same with stalks but not as important as heads). It's handy before hand to fix mesh onto top of boxes(so like a shoe box but the lid is now CW mesh instead of lid), this helps with air circulation and catches any stowaways
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