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Artemisia_Ale
Student


Registered: 08/02/20
Posts: 245
Loc: Northwestern Pennsylvania
Last seen: 1 year, 3 months
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Where did I go wrong?
#27131249 - 01/06/21 06:16 PM (3 years, 22 days ago) |
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So I'd like to start off by apologizing for any irritability I may express, as this was my first attempt at a mono and everything had gone so well up to this point.

I'm doing a mini-monotub using popcorn as my grain and coco coir/verm at feild cap. as my substrate mixture. When spawned, I tried layering the grain and subs but ended up just mixing it all together because it wasn't working the same way Id imagined. Then (where I think I screwed up) put a sheet of sanitized aluminum foil down to cover the top, and poked 4 small holes in it. (I had read several teks where this was done, and in general have done ALOT of research before attempting a grow). Well Id waited a full 14 days before pulling off the foil to give it a checkup (patience, right?... LOL!) and when I did, literal POOLS of water were just all over the surface of what looks like mostly cobweb. (But it smells like perfect mycelium, a scent I'm familiar with from friends' projects) At this point I'm pretty sure it's a total loss. (A real burn after weeks of watching videos and pics of everybodys successful harvests). I can truly say that with my luck, I knew this would happen. Id just like to know where all that water came from, and how this happened so I can avoid it? Ive had cakes squeeze out some water after fully colonizing, but never anywhere near this much. If I was to guess, I'd say forget the stupid foil, and leave more holes in the tote uncovered during colonization. And is that for-certain cobweb? Because if not, I'm just going to toss some casing on top to soak-up the excess water, and let her go for a bit. That's about all I can think of to remedy the situation here... Thanks all. Oh, and they (wouldve been) P.C. Puerto Ricans.
(And yes, Ive got plenty of colonized grain, agar, and several PF cakes almost ready. Id never put all my eggs in one basket!)
-------------------- Just ask Alice, I think she'll know...
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CocaineBuffet
Stranger



Registered: 08/29/19
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Well if you got clean colonized grain and agar then you shouldn't need to be too worried about a single tub.
Even having read people bring up 10+ year old teks I don't think I have heard a tek where you put a sheet of foil on your substrate. Layering your grain is not something that most growers do. Just mix your grain with equal amounts of substrate.
I personally can't identify cobweb mold on your sub but it has some green and blue tones to the surface and does look contaminated.
When you are doing your research make sure to check when the tek was posted. There is plenty of good teks on this site but there also a lot of outdated teks as well. Stick to teks from the past 3 years or less.
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Artemisia_Ale
Student


Registered: 08/02/20
Posts: 245
Loc: Northwestern Pennsylvania
Last seen: 1 year, 3 months
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I see the color on the image, but I'm staring at it under a good light and cant tell anything's there. I'll keep an eye on it, and keep it seperated from the rest of the family lol. This camera will make psathyrella stems look blue, so maybe it's got something to do with my color settings. And it's not cobweb either, I guess it looks like the same mycelium on the rest of the grain jars. I'll try and find the teks with the foil covering, might've been in videos. Either way, now its been confirmed... DONT do that.
-------------------- Just ask Alice, I think she'll know...
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CocaineBuffet
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I am basing my recommendation on the second pic because the first once is through the cloudy plastic wall of the tub. My concerns in the second picture are in the corners. It could be the camera though so use your best judgement.
If I was in your position and did not have any other tubs this far along I would personally just wait and see if it fruits. You will be able to identify without a shadow of a doubt if your substrate is more mold than mycelium as time goes on. Even if your sub has a tiny bit of mold it will grow faster than the mycelium and it will be a battle you will not win.
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Jarhead3521
Grindin’



Registered: 09/26/19
Posts: 514
Loc: Amongst the pines
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1:1 spawn sub and a handful or two sub on top has worked great for my monos, no foil no nonsense. Level it out and leave it. I’ve also had shoeboxes that looked like that, put to the side and forgot about it only to have my ol lady tell me it was full of fruits one day.....you might get as lucky.
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AlsetAlokin
Student

Registered: 07/30/20
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Last seen: 3 years, 19 days
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1/4" Case it. If it colonizes in 12 hours you're growing mold,
Better luck next time. Don't use foil.
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Ballzagna
Carb Daddy



Registered: 10/09/19
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Last seen: 13 days, 14 hours
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Quote:
Jarhead3521 said: 1:1 spawn sub and a handful or two sub on top has worked great for my monos, no foil no nonsense. Level it out and leave it. I’ve also had shoeboxes that looked like that, put to the side and forgot about it only to have my ol lady tell me it was full of fruits one day.....you might get as lucky.
neglect tek is overwhelmingly effective sometimes
It doesn't look great but I don't see anything bad either. Let it ride, leave it alone, keep an eye on it.
-------------------- No one likes a naysayer It's probably fine. Even if it's not fine, it'll eventually be fine. So it's fine. PE Adventure
Photosynthesis: A Morning Ritual Ballzagna's Tek Compendium and Notes for Noobs 
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Artemisia_Ale
Student


Registered: 08/02/20
Posts: 245
Loc: Northwestern Pennsylvania
Last seen: 1 year, 3 months
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CocaineBuffet: Yeah, I noticed what you meant about the corners in the pic (which is where mold likes to form) so I'll keep it quarantined for now. I just can't see any color there in-person though.
Should I go ahead and start fanning to drive the ponding off the surface? The pic doesnt do it justice- this is basically just a hydroponic method at this point lol. I'm only worried to do so because this doesnt look 100% colonized. Any input on what to do from here on out would be a lifesaver, I'm not sure how to proceed now that Ive hit an obstacle. I'm assuming hold-off any misting until that ponding is gone? Ive already un-taped my holes, should I have even had them taped to begin with? Having issues arise is what really highlights the gaps in one's knowledge...
AlsetAlokin Loud and clear on the foil. Its good mycelium. (Or was) When I spawned this, I threw six of the grains onto agar plates and the only one that contaminated only had it at the edge of the disk. But I see what you mean... Should I just use the same verm/coir mix to case?
-------------------- Just ask Alice, I think she'll know...
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AlsetAlokin
Student

Registered: 07/30/20
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Last seen: 3 years, 19 days
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If there's more than water droplets on the surface you can use a paper towel to soak up any pooling, but if it were me I'd just put some "touch" under field capacity coir on top for a casing layer.
Honestly it's probably fine, but a great way to find out is to see how fast it takes over that surface. Too fast, probably mold.
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Artemisia_Ale
Student


Registered: 08/02/20
Posts: 245
Loc: Northwestern Pennsylvania
Last seen: 1 year, 3 months
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Alset: It's already fogged up the sides of the tote quite a bit. I'll prepare the casing in the morning, figured that might help. Im surprised Ive gotten this far without having to phone-it-in, but it probably would've saved all this trouble with the foil.
This is technically my first attempt at this on my own, the other time I took over somebody's kit after their parents made them get rid of it (years ago now).
Got a PF chamber going too:

They're taking FOREVER to start pinning, but that's what I've read about this strain (Colombian Rust Spore PC). Apparently I couldn't have chosen two worse strains for a beginner... It's been 10 days since birthing and I'm starting to actually worry about this. Is there anything I can do to accelerate the process? A heating pad is an route from Amazon currently (since I can't get my closet up past 70°F at nights)
-------------------- Just ask Alice, I think she'll know...
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AlsetAlokin
Student

Registered: 07/30/20
Posts: 182
Last seen: 3 years, 19 days
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Condensation in general and on the side of the tote is normal.
Not too experienced with cakes, only done it once and mixed it to bulk.
Some dude wrote up this method of fruiting cakes, and even if you don't plan on following the tek they do a good job at explaining environmental factors of what cakes do and don't like.
Check this, too
Looks like it could use a mist maybe, but I'd leave it be.
Doesn't look like many holes in there and I believe the function of perlite is to promote evaporation by fresh air exchange.
10 days is normal, do not buy or use a heating pad.
Edited by AlsetAlokin (01/06/21 10:14 PM)
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Artemisia_Ale
Student


Registered: 08/02/20
Posts: 245
Loc: Northwestern Pennsylvania
Last seen: 1 year, 3 months
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Huh. Well I wish I wouldve read those a month ago. So where I went wrong there, was attempting to use a shotgun chamber. Alot of the things outlined in those links were the very reasons I was reluctant to cover my sgfc in holes in the first place. This is WAY more difficult than basically everybody makes it seem, theres endless hidden variables... I can honestly say that I've NEVER felt so confused as I have trying to learn how to do this stuff properly. Its really stressful, especially when you've got NOTHING to show for your efforts yet. Almost defeats the purpose of trying to do it in the first place...
-------------------- Just ask Alice, I think she'll know...
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CocaineBuffet
Stranger



Registered: 08/29/19
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It is a lot to LEARN but in practice it is really simple. Its about being up to date on information and asking BEFORE you do something you are unsure of.
Lessons in this hobby are learned hard but once you know what to do its rinse and repeat.
Just know that you have a whole community here who are enthusiastic about helping you succeed.
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zMan
zMan


Registered: 09/08/12
Posts: 2,191
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Quote:
Artemisia_Ale said: Huh. Well I wish I wouldve read those a month ago. So where I went wrong there, was attempting to use a shotgun chamber. Alot of the things outlined in those links were the very reasons I was reluctant to cover my sgfc in holes in the first place. This is WAY more difficult than basically everybody makes it seem, theres endless hidden variables... I can honestly say that I've NEVER felt so confused as I have trying to learn how to do this stuff properly. Its really stressful, especially when you've got NOTHING to show for your efforts yet. Almost defeats the purpose of trying to do it in the first place...
Yes there is a very proper way to do things but overall shrooms aren't hard.
Clean spawn, properly pc, choose a way to spawn, monotubs are pretty easy but even if you screw it up just keep humidity high with misting and a way to get some fresh air in it and you'll still get some fruits.
That tub look ok to me, and if it smells like fresh mushroom then more than likely its fine. You'll be able to tell very quickly if its something other than mushroom myc.
-------------------- Information for everyone: http://www.mushroomvideos.com Are your grains or spawn clean? CLICK THIS CHECKLIST
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Doc9151
Mycologist



Registered: 02/23/17
Posts: 13,753
Loc: Gulf Coast USA
Last seen: 1 year, 6 months
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Re: Where did I go wrong? [Re: zMan]
#27133752 - 01/07/21 06:58 PM (3 years, 21 days ago) |
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Use a paper towel and barely touch the water droplets to absorb them, other than that it's time to fruit!!!
--------------------
  Psilocybe cubensis data collection thread. please help with this project if you hunt wild cubensis. https://www.shroomery.org/forums/showflat.php?Cat=0&Number=26513593&page=0&vc=1#26513593
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