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NewbieShroomer
member

Registered: 10/01/01
Posts: 199
Loc: San Diego California Baby...
Last seen: 24 years, 5 months

New Tek is complete, What do you think?

2
#458330 - 11/14/01 04:25 PM (24 years, 6 months ago)

Ok, Spent the afternoon writing this, have another thread but that one is just updates, and I am DONE! If someone wants to edit this, be my guest. Someone did suggest I take out the extra stuff such as irrelevant info, like the part where i said I was going to kill myself, but TEKS are SO dry. Like reading a chemistry book... * Sigh * If anybody knows how I can go about subitting this document for actual tek archive posting, LET ME KNOW!! I want to make a splash. Leave my mark and all, silly, goofy ass that I am, crazy shit and all.... Enjoy!

NEWBIE SHROOMERS BEGGINERS GUIDE TEK ( It's all about the details! )

If you are reading this you are either NEW at growing Mushrooms,
or you just like to read anything interesting and shroom related that passes
under your eyes.
Well, regardless of why you are here, I hope you enjoy my ramblings...

This guide is an Overview of the materials and preparation of
everything Shroomy for the Beginner. This is NOT a tek to tell you
specifically how to go about cultivation. Merely a list of facts and
tips for those of us who are starting from the very beginning.

( Authors Note: I take no responsibility for this Document, I was sitting on the couch when I wrote this, and a friend who was hiding under the cushion I was sitting on whispered it all in my ear.. I just wrote down what he told me :) )

Part 1

Updated 11-14-2001

Introduction

So You want to grow Shrooms. You may want to grow just for yourself, or you might want to become a shroom king who pr*duces and de*ls in mass quantities. The Various teks available on the web are all different. EVERY SINGLE ONE. Many are very similar, but they tell you to do slightly different things, many are not dated, many are horribly out of date, and some are even plain wrong. The state of information regarding the Newbies initial production of shrooms is confusing and spread to the four winds. Where is the Newbie supposed to go? Who will he turn to? Who is under my couch?
So many questions... Here, let me ask just one more...

QUESTION: What's a Newbie to do? ANSWER: Listen to The Newbie Shroomer!

Why Me? Because I have shrooms on the brain. Though I am not very experienced * Blush * I do come home from work every day and spend several hours tending to my ever amazing, ever growing Fungus Farm. No more Late nights playing pool, no more watching tv, even my sex life has suffered. I am obsessed. The Ideas below are a collection of material learned from the masters of yesterday, and the innovators of today.

OK, You have read the PF tek, You've read the MMGG, You've read Psilly Simons Grow guide. You are confident, full of enthusiasm, bursting to tell someone, anyone, that you have attained insider knowledge pertaining to the Fruit of the Gods. You my friend are a master of your own destiny ready to become a Full Fledged Dr*g Pr*ducer. A dream Come true, eh? NOT QUITE YET! So, What now?

Grab your own flavorite Newbie Cultivation Tek, and lets get started.
( I recommend the Magic Mushroom Growers Guide until mine is finished )

MATERIALS

Overview

Ahhhhh, Materials.... That is a GREAT start to any Fledgling business.
In fact, you really need to have your shit together when it comes to shrooms.
Let me say one word here: TIME. Every time you need to run back to the store for lysol, tin foil, vermiculite, BRF, lube, sheep ect... YOU are going to lose time.
And when you lose time, you take shortcuts.

BAD NEWBIE! DO NOT TAKE SHORTCUTS THAT UNDERCUT STERILITY IN YOUR INITIAL EXPERIMENTATION.

When growing shrooms, the key is STERILITY.
I Cannot Emphasize Sterility enough. But we will talk more on that issue later,
unless, you don't love me anymore, in which case I will kill myself instead.
And we don't want that now... Do we?!?!?!

Main Entry: ster?ile

1 a : failing to bear or incapable of producing fruit or spores b : failing to produce or incapable of producing offspring c : incapable of germinating d of a flower : neither perfect nor pistillate

2 a : unproductive of vegetation b : free from living organisms and especially microorganisms c : lacking in stimulating emotional or intellectual quality :

YES!!!!! READ THE ABOVE & BURN IT INTO YOUR BRAIN!!!
UNDERSTAND that the Mushroom needs A STERILE SUBSTRATE to grow.
Plants need Soil/Shrooms need STERILE substrate.

CLEAN, CLEAN, CLEAN, CLEAN = Enviroment, work area, your person, your tools.

You have your materials READY, so you do NOT take shortcuts on sterility and so you do not have to extend the time period to grow waiting for the damn store to open because it's 3 in the morning. Er, maybe that's just me tho... ;0)

So, when we talk about materials, lets start with everything we need to
get the cakes made and ready for terrariums, casing, ect.
Everything up to that point. Many of these items are optional,
some you might not need at all, but why not have everything the first time,
just in case?

One last thought. The teks you follow that say " You can do it all for under $30!! "
If thats the kinda budget you have to work with, then for Gods Sake, read No further!!!
Because initial materials for this " hobby " can get expensive, VERY expensive.
BUT, once you have the items you need in bulk, overhead is almost nothing.

* SPORES/SPORE SYRINGES *

Where to get: Multiple Vendors can be found on the Forest Floor and the Shroomery.

Ahhhhhhh, Easily the most important decision you need to make when contemplating Mycology. All the time I see people on the boards whining " But I placed my order
three months ago and I want to get started, my stuff isn't here yet!! " Sniveling Idiots. Place MULTIPLE orders your first time out. You WILL NOT regret this. You will get materials regularly in the mail that way, and not get stuck behind some zoned out, overworked, fry-brained vendor.

Personally the first time I ordered I used three vendors and got a free spore print from Ralphsters Free Spore Ring ( If you haven't gone there yet, What are you waiting for? Great deals and a Spore Print for a dollar!! )

So look to spend about $50 to $60 bucks on spore stuff out the gate. This will give you all of the raw materials you need to be successful or learn great new ways of fucking up without tapping out on the wild wind.

What do you get for $60? Shop around. Ask for deals when you can. Give them the pity trip that you are a newbie and have had to actually BUY shrooms in the past.. * shudder * They will cry with you and give you free shit... Just kidding. Really tho,
with 60 bills you should be able to get around three syringes full of stuff, 5 or so empty syringes, and 3 or 4 prints. Just need to scout yer sources.

So think about it. for one initial payout you can get:

* 3 full syringes
* 5 empties
* 4 prints

That is ALL you will need for a LONG time if you are even halfway sterile :)

( Side Note: When choosing your vendors be sure that thier recent track record is good. Talk to them via email or IM personally.

Do NOT go thru anybody who:

A. Is having troubles with the law
B. Seems to always send things 2 other people 2 months later
C. Has a poor reputation for product quality
D. Always has to defend themselves/products publicly on the boards
E. Likes to have sex with dead people.

Things to remember about Spores:

A. Do NOT touch them with your hands, Use tweezers & a scalpel.
B. You can contaminate your entire print with ease, be careful.
C. Anything you can see, is thousands of spores
D. Contrary to popular Belief, Shroom Spores are NOT good to snort.

( Tip: When using taping teks to innoculate jars, usually you are dealing with sealed jars
that have cooled and are STARVING for Oxygen. I found out the hard way that these jars will
suck down an entire syringe. NO KIDDING. I have a pint jar at home that has the contents of a whole Matius Romero syringe sitting in it, The colonization IS AWESOME. But that damn jar cost me
around $11.50 in spore juice!! LOL!! Looking into some testing with this development and agar/mycelium but nobody seems to think it will work but me. Will keep you all posted :) And oh yea, if your jars are ready to suck in a lot of air, be sure you are using an oven tek or a glovebox, glovebox is better. Just save a sterilized empty needle head to pierce the tape if you are worried.)

Thats it! Investigate the people you will be sending your money to, as your overall success can live and die with the quality of spores they send. )

* JARS *

Where to get: Vons, Ralphs, K-mart... Call around locally and let them know you need Wide Mouth TAPERED jars. Price check and then roll out and pick up your shit! :0)

When the Newbie jumps over to the Shroomery, he is often told that he should start small, learn the life cycle of the mushroom, blah blah blah. Newbie Shroomer says: FUCK THAT NOISE. My advice, start with 24 jars. 12 half pints you will begin work with, and 12 full pints which you will start working with a week after the halves are done. But thats down the road.... I haven't even written it yet! But by the time you get there... *ack!* I'm trippin, let me breathe a minute... In Fact, Breathe with me! Breathing is very important in Mycology, Meaning do NOT BREATHE on your Cultivation equipment or anything you are using. Ahhhhh, Thats better... Lets Continue....

This way, ( starting with 24 jars ) even if you experience Massive Contams, you are covered. And if all your jars pull thru, ( Three Cheers for the Newbie in all of us! ) then you can begin experimenting with your extra cakes as you see fit.

Things to remember about Jars:

A. You NEED them. They are perfect for fungus farming.
B. You WILL want lots of jars going, they are inexpensive, so why not?
C. Jars ARE fun to look at in the sun, see how they sparkle and shine?
D. Lids facing up or down, doesn't appear to matter, no worries.

* TOOLS *

Where to get: Medical Supply Stores, Home Dept, Wallmart

Oh Boy! Tools! Chainsaws, Arc Welders, Back-hoes... Oh wait, Thought I was writing the redneck version of my guide, damn. My Bad. Forget everything I just said. :0P

Here are some of the things you might need + how and where to get them.

1. Scalpel: I have been told that a sharp knife will work instead of a scalpel for moving spores about.

BUT, what you don't hear often is that the damn spores are attached to whatever they are on like gold on a t.v. evangelist. Gotta pry that shit off. Scalpels are not only easier to use, but easier to sanitize.

When you buy your scalpel, Try going to a medical supply store and getting a STAINLESS STEEL scalpel with extra tips. Home depot also carries these but not nearly as nice and not stainless.

( Tip: Your scalpel will become important in MANY aspects of your operation, be sure you have a nice one. Keep it where you will not end up sitting on it or the next time you use it you'll be cutting stitches out of your ass. )

2. Tongs: You never hear about this one either, but tongs can save you from contaminating your materials as well as some pretty bad burns. Pick up tongs at a thrift store used or cheaply anywhere they sell tongs. :0D

( Tip: Make sure your tongs are all metal, rubber/plastic parts hold water and
can contaminate and drip all over, and besides, they look far more menacing all stripped down.

3. Tin Foil: YES!!! For those of us who love tin foil, but have no excuse to play with it, Shroom Cultivation is a dream come true! Tin Foil will become a staple supply right up there with VERM. You will be going thru 25 square feet of tin foil like a fat person goes thru fried chicken. Trust me, Buy 2 Boxes. It's even easier if you get the foil that tears away in sheets. Good Stuff. And Remember, Newbie Shroomer's details are the Bomb Baby, You gotta come to me for the good stuff, the other guys are to boring, and detail-less... :)

( Tip: Buy a lot, Really. It's cheap, it's useful, you will need it, and it goes quick. )

4. Alcohol: You will need to get very drunk before you start... Oh, thats my sex life... * ouch! * Er, Rather you will need rubbing alcohol for many things as well.
From Constructing a sediment free alcohol lamp, to rubbing it all up and down your hands an arms before an oven tek, this stuff IS important.

( Tip: create an alcohol lamp by shoving cotton balls in a shot glass and setting on fire. Light just prior to any kind of jar innoculation. )

5. Peroxide: Great stuff, Use peroxide in the water you boil to sterilize jars,
use it in your casing mix, use it on yourself, great germ killer. If ya can, go to a medical supply store and get the good stuff, but, if'n ya don't, no worries.

( Tip: Using peroxide in your ears once a week is good for you simply pour capful in ear, wait until bubbling stops, drain and use a q-tip. )

6. Shot Glass: The shot glass will come in handy for things such as innoculating Spore Syringes, and as I previously mentioned as an Alcohol Lamp. You really only need one, but be sure it is made of think glass and, you can alway sterilize it with Jack Daniels!! That was a joke. * grin *

( Tip: Personally, if I do all of my shot glass sterilization in a teapot on the stove, at the same time you sterilize your shot glass, you can draw water out of the teapot to fill a spore syringe )

7. Cotton Balls: These are needed only for the alcohol lamp.

8. Alcohol Wipes: I tend to use these for EVERYTHING. Get a big box of them.
Will last you forever, and you will find they will become a staple of your cultivation kit.

( Tip: I think I Read this in the Hawks Sterility guide... When you are innoculating, be SURE to sterilize needle between jars using the alcohol lamp,
and then use an alcohol wipe to cool and cleanse the outside of the needle.
I learned this one the hard way, lost 9 of 12 jars becasue I failed to follow this one simple step. )

9. Lysol: This stuff is great, lemme tell ya, My first batch I didn't use lysol,
and ended up with some SERIOUS green contams, since lysol came into my life, NO Contams. I advise stocking up on this stuff as well. You will notice in the other teks that sometimes the author says " Make sure you NUKE the place with lysol. "
That really stuck in my head, the word NUKE. Think about it, what happens when a NUKE hits something? * smile * You get the picture. Whenever using lysol for anything shroom related, think NUKE.

( Tip: Lysol is a bit pricey in my area, I found that I could buy a HUGE container of it and save quite a few $$$

10. Vermiculite: When you purchase this item, make sure you get the BIG bag. It's only about ten bucks for like 4 square feet of the stuff, you will NEVER run out.
If you buy the small bag, you will find it's only good to fill about 15 or 16 jars.
And thats 4 bucks already :)

( Tip: While you are picking up your verm, grab a couple of 5 gallon buckets to store it in. Long term use of a big bag, wil eventually age the bag and it will start to develop holes and get all over the place. )

11. Brown Rice Flour: You can pick that stuff up at any organic foods store.
Or you can find a grinder and make your own. People say it's better to make your own, but they never say why, if you know, tell me and I will update this tek pronto!

( Tip: When initially mixing with verm and water, mix verm and water FIRST.
VERY IMPORTANT tip Brought to me by the infamous anno. The idea is not to mix it all together. Ideally, you mix VERM and WATER first, till the verm has soaked up ALL the water. Do not worry about measuring water, just feed the verm till it all soaks in,
wait a few minutes, and THEN add the BRF and COAT the verm with it. This is yet another
hidden Idea I found lurking in just one place. Gratis Anno.

( Tip: If they look at you funny in the store, tell them you are cultivating Magic Mushrooms, you think the cops are onto you, and you need someone to create a diversion...)

12. Water: Often overlooked! You will use water in SOOOOOO many steps cultivating mushrooms, that it's not even funny. from mixing it with the verm, to using it in the pressure cooker, to filling the humidifier, If you have one of those faucet purifiers you are in business, if not, heres another idea: I purchased two five gallon water bottles and a spigot for about 25 bucks. From the Glacier machines water is a quarter a gallon, and CRYSTAL clear. So ten gallons = two dollars and fifty cents.

13. Pressure Cooker versus Boiling pot: Very mixed signals from these two camps.
While the boiling pot in theory should work almost as well as the cooker, in my studies
I have found that people using boiling pots are indeed MORE open to contams. But if you boil long enough you shouldbe A-ok. The pressure cooker on the other hand, is THE way to go. Flawless sterilization every time. It's nice when you can be sure that the Jar sterilization part of the procedure is NOT a factor when you are tracking contams.

( Tip: If you are using a boiling pot, don't even bother trying any of the grain teks. Here is why: Grains have much thicker casings and more mass to cook thru and tiny bacteria, mold spores and microns to small for us to fathom can hide away in those.
With a BP as opposed to a PC you can't be sure the heat killed all those little guys. )

( Tip: * Swiped from Captain Max * If your cookers jiggly thing on top ( that's what my girlfriend calls it ) is broken, use a shot glass on top to hold the steam, works like a charm. )

14. Washrag/Towel: Because the jars cannot touch the metal of the bottom of the cooker or pot, you will need to place a rag under the jars. The reason for this, is that the HUGE amount of heat can crack a jar, the heat can dry a jar, and because it's fun to clean stained old rags by boiling them.

( Tip: Add a few capfuls of peroxide to the water you are using to sterilize the jars just for shits and giggles :0) )

15. Paper Towels: Yes, Yes, I know, You are thinking " But Grand PoohBa Newbie Shroomer Sir, nobody else includes paper towels in thier teks!? " Well, get over it. Newbie Shroomer finds the vast majority of mushroom cultivation teks out there not only incomplete, but sadly lacking in details. This is the main reason Newbie Shroomer is here holding out my hand to you right now. So you don't have to sort all of the details out for yourself like I did when I started. And out of the goodness of my heart :0) * Heterosexual Hugs to all! * Paper towels are nice to have on hand cause they are dry, sterile, and disposable.
Keep a roll at hand when you start and you'll thank me later!

16. Bleach: I usually only use bleach water to sterilize previously used jars, and, if you are reading this you are probably not there yet. But it is nice to have on on hand, NOTHING
can live thru a nice bleach bath.

( Tip: When you your initial jars start showing signs of contam, empty the jars immediately * don't listen to the teks telling you they can be saved, cause it ain't worth the trouble *
and soak lids and jars for 4 to 6 hours in %20 bleach water. Then rinse and boil lids and jars for another 45 minutes or so, and your jars are again ready for action.

17. STERILE latex gloves: These are great! You can get a box of about 100 for under three bucks. Disposable, keeps your hands clean, easy to work in. A great Idea for anyone using oven teks especially. Make sure you spray the gloves liberally with lysol before use. Dispose of used gloves when done. If you hafta go around picking things up between sensitive
innoculating/spore printing or whatever just get some new ones, they are cheao cheap cheap.

( Tip: Do NOT TRY using tape teks with the latex gloves on. I tried to do that and it was sooooo frustrating. I felt like a cat with tape on it's paws!!! * grin *

18. Tape: Soooooooooo many uses. Need I say more? LOL! Of course I do! This is The Newbie Shroomer baby, I got's oodles of info, holding nothing back! * grin * You will need strong packing tape, duct tape and masking tape.

A. Masking tape - is used to mark jars, easy to write on, easy to read, easy to take off. Mark tape on tops of jars as you won't be able to watch colonization in places where tape covers the sides of the jar. You can also use it to date whole boxes of jars, that way you don't have dates and strain names all over your boxes :)

B. Duct Tape - If you are thinking of Constructing a glove box ( Newbie Shroomer has Developed the BOMB glovebox with BOMB instructions to go with it, coming soon! * wink *) you will need this stuff. Buy the INDUSTRIAL grade which is nice and extra sticky.

C. Clear Packing tape - This will be used with any tek that involves taping jars prior to sterilization.

19. Sharpie Fine Tip: Pretty petty adding a pen into the mix, but dammit, If you are about to go shopping for materials you will NEED this item anyways. You should get a green Sharpie, cause thats my favorite color. I'm kidding, color doesn't really matter. The pen will be used to write on the masking tape to label strains/dates/specific numerical jar numbering. VERY IMPORTANT.

( Tip: Make sure that you DO label your jars. When you produce them in mass quantities it's very easy to mix jars up and forget what they are and when they were innoculated )

20. Paper and Pen: I could give a rats ass about a log book, but some people swear by them.
( If you choose, ) You should make a log of every step you take, what went where, times dates,
and meticulously script your progress. This will help you track down things you do wrong, as well as the things you do right :)

21. ZipLock Freezer Bags: Cheap, 1 box lasts forever, and will save you some time re-sterilizing crap. Store your empty syringes in one bag, your new ones in another. Discard the original bags
your syringes/prints came in, just more evidence against you should the MAN come down and swoop on your pad.

( Tip: sterilize all tools in a pot, when done, place on LYSOL soaked tin foil, wrap, store in lysol soaked zip lock, do not open again till ready to use in glovebox or stove. )

22. A Plastic Box: Keep all of your crap together in one place. Buy a box to hold everything.
That way you don't need to go searching all over the house when you feel like doing some work.
I always end up with my materials scattered up and down the mansion, er, I mean apartment!

23. Your Tek: Finally, the last thing we are probably going to need is the tek you will use to
get everything going. Don't try your first time with only your memory to rely on if it is your first time. Odds are VERY good that you will forget a vital step and ruin a lot of work, and quite possibly some substantial $$$ worth of spore juice.

( Tip: Get some magnets and post all the tek papers you will need to your fridge, this will help prevent them from mixing up + you can post teks side by side to borrow from two or three. I have found few teks complete and up to date that cover EVERYTHING. Newbie Shroomer will have his beginners tek written shortly, depending on whether this tek gets any attention or not. So LQQK for it :)

You are ROLLING in Materials if you buy all this crap, and should want for very little. Part II will deal with my very own beginners cultivation Tek. Watch Out!!!

Thats it for now. I wrote this Tek While at Work on 11/14/2001 within a 5 hour period. I have no written material I was pulling this info from, it was all in my head. I gave credit to those who deserved it, and I had a blast. Anybody has anything to add, HEY! LEMME KNOW! I will give you full credit, and This TEK will be a HAFTA HAVE for the New Newbies. Thats my goal today anyway :)
If you Actually grow a crop of mushies, and I helped with this tek, By all Means send me a spore print!! I'd Appreciate that!

Email me @ PoolFiend@Hotmail.com or pm me at the Shroomery!

--------------------
If things get any worse, I'll have to ask you to stop helping me.

Too many freaks, not enough circuses.
..........................................
http://www.Mycotopia.net
..........................................

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