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methodfedora
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novice requesting guidance on contaminants
#27805600 - 06/04/22 11:33 AM (2 years, 7 months ago) |
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Hi all,
I'm growing my first batch using: Psilocybe Cubensis (golden teacher) Substrate of vermiculite and organic brown rice flour half pint jars with an inch of just verm on top Sterilised by sitting on boiling water for two hours No flow hood
The pics below show the cakes after a few months (they were slow to grow).
Are these contaminated? The mycelium isn't snow white - it's more a sort of light ochre-ish. There are other shades and blotches, but nothing that screams "obvious mould". I've chosen the worse bits for the images.
Should I rehydrate these and fruit them out, or should I ditch them and start again with a proper sterilised grow kit? Any advice much appreciated.


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Fishingchris
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Re: novice requesting guidance on contaminants [Re: methodfedora]
#27805606 - 06/04/22 11:38 AM (2 years, 7 months ago) |
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Those look fine. No green or blue.
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Mushroomguy420
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Re: novice requesting guidance on contaminants [Re: Fishingchris]
#27805618 - 06/04/22 11:45 AM (2 years, 7 months ago) |
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To my knowledge cakes take about a month to colonize. Any time something looks like straight milk like that. I can almost guarantee there's all sorts of bacc mustering in there.
You could try and top fruit it...Maybe.
That doesn't look appetizing at all.
Your best bet is going to be to invest in a pressure cooker as this is going to be your main tool to give you success(23qt prestos are nice) & try again.
Jumping into agar sooner than later is going to give you a big jump start, it's more intimidating than it actually is. It makes life much easier & less waste from bad spawn.
Edited by Mushroomguy420 (06/04/22 11:55 AM)
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methodfedora
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Re: novice requesting guidance on contaminants [Re: Mushroomguy420]
#27805639 - 06/04/22 12:00 PM (2 years, 7 months ago) |
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Thanks, both -- appreciate the input. You're pointing in different directions so I'm going to wait & see if anyone else can weigh in.
I will get started with agar, though. And I'll pick up a pressure cooker for next time. Boiling did me wrong, it looks like.
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Rotnpins
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Re: novice requesting guidance on contaminants [Re: methodfedora] 1
#27805644 - 06/04/22 12:08 PM (2 years, 7 months ago) |
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Quote:
methodfedora said: Thanks, both -- appreciate the input. You're pointing in different directions so I'm going to wait & see if anyone else can weigh in.
I will get started with agar, though. And I'll pick up a pressure cooker for next time. Boiling did me wrong, it looks like.
Those dont look good at all to me... I'd definitely say they're bacterial... mycelium shouldn't look like milk.. when you open them, I'm guessing they'll smell sour...
Id probably try smelling them when you birth them... you can always try top fruiting or fruiting in a ziplock to see if you get anything... but I'd definitely start another project asap.
Edit... I just noticed that they took a few months... I'd toss them.. they should only take about a month..
I find it's best to have a few projects going at once.. that way you're not waiting close to a month, having things go south, and starting over... start a few projects, space them out, and you'll always have something to look forward to.. plus it will help you learn a lot faster if you're always working on perfecting your skills..

Edited by Rotnpins (06/04/22 12:15 PM)
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methodfedora
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Re: novice requesting guidance on contaminants [Re: Rotnpins]
#27805652 - 06/04/22 12:21 PM (2 years, 7 months ago) |
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Thanks v much. Makes sense about having a few projects running at once. I didn't do that, and so chucking these out now sucks!
Yeah, they took a lot longer than my reading suggested they should. I wondered if that it was because it was still winter when I began, so during the day they might have been colder than ideal.
Sounds like it's time to bin them, though. Thanks again for your thoughts.
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Rotnpins
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Re: novice requesting guidance on contaminants [Re: methodfedora]
#27805683 - 06/04/22 12:49 PM (2 years, 7 months ago) |
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Quote:
methodfedora said: Thanks v much. Makes sense about having a few projects running at once. I didn't do that, and so chucking these out now sucks!
Yeah, they took a lot longer than my reading suggested they should. I wondered if that it was because it was still winter when I began, so during the day they might have been colder than ideal.
Sounds like it's time to bin them, though. Thanks again for your thoughts.
Jars to take a little longer if you live in a cold environment... but not much longer.. I don't know the exact time line, but I think my 1/2 pint pf tek jars took about 6 weeks during the winter months, and I keep it pretty cold in my house.
It definitely helps you progress a lot quicker when you're constantly rotating projects.. just space out a few projects at first, and once you get some fruits to clone, I'd recommend start agar.. you'll kinda get into a groove of rotating agar work, innoculating jars, prepping tubs, and harvesting..
The shroomery is an amazing resource.. when in doubt, take a picture and ask... also, when you have an issue, use the search function and see if there is already a thread that discusses that topic... take some time and read through the threads, before you know it you'll probably have more mushrooms than you can consume
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methodfedora
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Re: novice requesting guidance on contaminants [Re: Rotnpins]
#27805733 - 06/04/22 01:49 PM (2 years, 7 months ago) |
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Thanks, Rotnpins. Wise words. I've bought a sterile grow kit bag for my next attempt and a fresh set of spores. Sounds like I also need to get a pressure cooker & research up on agar methods.
One mistake I made, or attitude correction really, was that the intial set up for pf tek seemed quite a bit for an utter newbie and so the initial hurdles seemed significant. But working at scale probably involves not that much more effort than I've already gone through. Anyway, several projects on the go makes good sense and I'll aim for that model now.
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Rotnpins
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Re: novice requesting guidance on contaminants [Re: methodfedora]
#27805743 - 06/04/22 01:56 PM (2 years, 7 months ago) |
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Yes... definitely start agar..
Using spores directly on grain, like you're planning, is highly discouraged.. spores inherently have contamination, because we don't fruit in sterile conditions.. so when people put spores directly in presterlilized grain bags, it's basically like gambling. Once in a while you'll get lucky, but the odds are slim...
It's recommended to do PfTek if you want to use spores... see the link in my signature... pf tek is really easy when you get used to it... most cultivators start at Pf Tek and then either stick with it and try and perfect it or switch to grains... or you have the weirdos like myself who run both PfTek and grain projects at the same time
If you want to use grains, you should clean up your culture using agar and then use that to inoculate the grains..
Definitely check out the links in my signature, I think you'll find them helpful... let me know if you have any questions
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methodfedora
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Re: novice requesting guidance on contaminants [Re: Rotnpins]
#27805869 - 06/04/22 03:40 PM (2 years, 7 months ago) |
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Thanks again. I really appreciate you taking the time to explain and to point me towards those links in your signature. I'm going to try again with the pf tek for now, following your updated guide.
I'll get a pressure cooker, given that steaming before didn't seem to work well for me. Your guide mentions that both are options, but I'd guess success rates might be higher with a pressure cooker.. And I'll make an SAB. Fingers crossed for round two!
I also didn't realise you can just store the jars during the incubation process on a shelf. I had them in a dark plastic crate with the lid on at all times, which, given the detail your guide mentions about the need for gas exchange, might have slowed down the whole process.
Thanks once again for weighing in and for your helpful guidance. I'll report back with an update on the next batch.
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Rotnpins
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Re: novice requesting guidance on contaminants [Re: methodfedora]
#27806190 - 06/04/22 08:58 PM (2 years, 7 months ago) |
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Quote:
methodfedora said: And I'll make an SAB. Fingers crossed for round two!
Yes, definitely make/use a SAB.. IMO perfecting your sterile work, either in a still air box or in front of a flow hood, is one of the most important skills in this hobby.. how did you inoculate the first batch of jars? Open air?
My first batch of jars was the only batch I've done that all contaminated... I used a very outdated tek when sterilizing called Oven Tek.. 
Once I made my SAB, things got a lot better.
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methodfedora
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Re: novice requesting guidance on contaminants [Re: Rotnpins] 1
#27815635 - 06/12/22 06:18 AM (2 years, 7 months ago) |
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Hi hi,
Sorry for the delay -- was out gathering SAB kit.
You've put your finger on what I'm sure was a problem in my first attempt. I inoculated my first batch not only in open air, but under the large extractor hood in my kitchen, switched on to a gentle updraft. At the time, I had some vague idea that this might make conditions more secure because contaminants would be lifted up and away from the jars. But it turns out that air is a gas and that convection currents are a thing, so I probably was effectively using a fan to suck extra loads of contaminants onto my spores. Good times.
I've now got my SAB stuff and am going to follow your links for making this afternoon. Further bulletins as events warrant -- thanks again for your help!
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Rotnpins
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Re: novice requesting guidance on contaminants [Re: methodfedora] 1
#27815639 - 06/12/22 06:25 AM (2 years, 7 months ago) |
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When you have some extra time, I would highly recommend reading the links in my signature, starting with the one on top and going down.. I think you'll find the information helpful

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Seamonkey84
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Re: novice requesting guidance on contaminants [Re: Rotnpins]
#27815667 - 06/12/22 07:01 AM (2 years, 7 months ago) |
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Steaming shouldn’t be the problem with BRF, I use it for LC, agar, and brown rice (AKA broke boi tek). The spores or not using a SAB when inoculating is likely the source of contamination. But yes, get a pressure canner (not cooker) when you can
Edited by Seamonkey84 (06/12/22 07:27 AM)
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methodfedora
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Re: novice requesting guidance on contaminants [Re: Rotnpins]
#27818762 - 06/14/22 02:07 AM (2 years, 7 months ago) |
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Quote:
Rotnpins said: When you have some extra time, I would highly recommend reading the links in my signature, starting with the one on top and going down.. I think you'll find the information helpful
 
Yes, thanks. I've already begun doing so -- your sticky guides are super useful. I was previously hunting around on YouTube. Still some good stuff on there but this site is clearly more specialised and brings together a tremendous amount of experience. Hoping to get the next grow up & running this weekend. I'll report back!
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methodfedora
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Re: novice requesting guidance on contaminants [Re: Seamonkey84]
#27818767 - 06/14/22 02:10 AM (2 years, 7 months ago) |
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Quote:
Seamonkey84 said: Steaming shouldn’t be the problem with BRF, I use it for LC, agar, and brown rice (AKA broke boi tek). The spores or not using a SAB when inoculating is likely the source of contamination. But yes, get a pressure canner (not cooker) when you can
This is really helpful, thanks. Maybe I'll try once again with steaming this weekend. I don't have a huge kitchen so nice to cut down on storing large kit if possible.
Also -- I didn't realise I should get a pressure canner not a cooker. Thanks again! Actually didn't even know these were two different things! Will do some research...
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