i like re-reading all these teks i havent in a while :)
im assuming you had a homestead kit? i dont think anyone knows what strain it is; a month or so ago someone asked the same question but i dont think he got the answer. you can use the search function and look for "homestead spores" or some variation of that to read up on the spores sent with the kit.
rating it depends on what you find most important to you. how fast was the colonization? how evenly did they cover the casing layer? how prolific were the fruits? how did they do on the re-flushing? how did they print? how was the trip? etc etc... you can judge the hard facts by keeping notes of the cycle- how many days did it take for ____ , personal notes like how well you thought it performed... be careful with keeping a written record though. for obvious reasons.
how does this one work? havent tried it, but here are a few concerns i had when reading it... (again, use the search function and find out what other posts say about the tek as well...)
- substrate. the substrate method is basically the pf tek, but without the verm barrier. which is awfully helpful if this is your 1st time out of the gate- the verm layer acts as a barrier to contams, which can/will find their way to your jars. no matter where you hide them :) there is no air exchange to the substrate, which helps speed up colonization and help the mycelium get an adequate foothold against any nasties that may find their way in. plus, an absolutely sealed container of innoculated substrate would likely get naaaaaasty.
- the scraping of the sporeprint ... spores need to be rehydrated before being added to the substrate. which is why syringes are good... using just a scraping of a sporeprint isnt a good idea when you compare it to rehydrated spores. plus, the whole thing where he says its okay to open the print in open air- even if youve sprayed down the air with bleach, etc.- youre just begging for contams to fall into that open jar lid (15 seconds is a long time in open air) and get into the substrate.
- casing. he doesnt recommend sterilizing the casing material, which i think is a mistake. you dont have to sterilize coir or even verm (though you can rehydrate coir w/ boiling water or nuke verm for 8 minutes). but potting soil just by its nature as dirt can harbor contams that need to be dealt with (ie sterilized). also, why use soil when you can use verm/coir/peat/50-50+, all casing materials which have a good track record? finally, not using a terrarium is likely to fail, as the adequate humidity for casings cannot be achieved in the ambient air of a room (it needs to be about 82-92%, do you know how humid your room would have to be to get like that? pretty yucky. then again, im from the desert, maybe some people like it that humid).
- in general: i find it to be somewhat of a red flag when he refers to spores as seeds and mushrooms as plants. he calls mycelium "mold".
im assuming you chose the shroom wizards grow guide cos you already have a sporeprint, right? id go with the pf tek (www.fanaticus.com)- at least for your jars. you can then either birth the jars as cakes or case them somewhat like sw describes - check out Mycotopia, in their TEKS section look at Hongus' casing tek for an illustrated example of proper casing technique imo. and either order a syringe, get a print and make a syringe from it. i dont know about the homestead kit and their instructions about the sporeprint- but if you were sterile you could use the same print in a syringe. (search for a syringe making tek). the pf tek is tried & true; many start with it and have success. and if youre concerned about the price of a print, check out the free spore ring - prints for 1$.
gluck, and again, id do a search on the shroomwizards tek here and see what other people have said- as i havent tried it before and these are just some observations on skimming over it :)
***Please Donate Blood. American Red Cross***Edited by oscill8 on 09/12/01 09:44 PM.
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