First layer: just coarse verm MOISTENED with heavy H2O2. (200mls peroxide to the liter)

Second layer: PF rice cakes fully colonized crumbled over first layer.

Third layer: The highest PH potting soil I could find mixed with some added lime powder stuff ( 75% caco3 and 15% Mg oxide)
Also sprayed to moist capacity with abovementioned h2o2.

******VERY IMPORTANT (my previous mistake)
MOIST MEANS MOIST. EASILY CONFUSED WITH ALMOST DRY.!!!!!!! Trust me with all this talk about humidity I had a tendency to make my original casings too wet.

Also if you use ShroomGods cool mist contams will be minimal. Have been for me. So far none with this new setup.

h2o2+cool mist= no contams were previously the whole spectrum of the rainbow appeared.

Hope this help
From someone who had no idea before the shroomery!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

(Make senior membership now more valid its kinda embarassing to have so many posts with so little success. BUT NOW!!!!!!)

happy happa trippa man.

NO HEAT STERILIZATION WAS EMPLOYED WHATSOEVER.!!

In the nutrient rich substrate jars, it's a race among the microbes to see which can get the strongest foothold first. We sterilize to eliminate the competition. Even better is to give our spores a headstart in a jar of sterilized liquid substrate (malt extract) and inoculating the sterilized jars heavily with the so called "liquid mycelium". That's what I'm going to try next.

The contamination is not as much of a concern in the casing tray if you buy normal bagged (sterilized?) potting soil from Home Depot or Walmart. No need to fertilize. Just make sure the cakes are FULLY colonized in the jar before breaking them up into the tray.
Don't overwater 'cuz that will drown them and pack the soil. The manna was watered by dew. You can loosen it up with a fork if it gets too heavy on top. That allows gas exhange and more places for the pins to com up through the soil. I think this is what people call "deep scratching". Some people have tried sticking the tray in the fridge overnight to shock them in to fruiting, but of course that will only work if the mushrooms are ready. I have not tried that, but I think it might have the effect of synchronizing the whole colony.

Anyways, good luck... and I have some Gulf Coast spore prints to sell for $10 each (3 for $25 and 10 for $70). They are hardy, and potent. The harvest was good.

BTW Greco: What's the purpose of hydrogen peroxide in the casing layers? Does your mister (as opposed to mistress, hehe) have H202 in it as well? And what's the Calcium for, just to raise the PH of the surface layer?

[This message has been edited by TriGuy (edited November 30, 1999).]

The Lizard,

Just bake the soil/verm in the oven for 15 minutes or so... No need to overdo it.

------------------
//Moomin666 -When madness is an art...

------------------
Long live the fighters!!!!!

------------------
-From a registered Mad Scientist

"From a certain point of view"
-Jedi Master Obiwan Kenobi (also a Mad Scientist tm)

------------------
Long live the fighters!!!!!

------------------
"At work they showed me how to open the door by pulling on the handle, so now I don?t have to hurl myself through the glass anymore." -anonymous