i recently found a bag of rabbit food in my house. it contains all sorts of vitamins, calcium, phosphorus, potassium, salt, magnesium, manganese, iron, zinc, copper, iodine, and a ton of amino acids including tryptophan (.12%). it is primarily composed of alfalfa meal, corn, soybeans, oat groats, barley, sunflower seeds, wheat middlings, carrots, green split peas, oatmeal, apples, pineapple, molasses, potatoes, onions, parsley flakes, celery flakes, a bunch of other veggie flakes, ground limestone, dicalcium phosphate, choline chloride, red 40 and a bunch of other stuff. very healthy for rabbits, but i am wondering if it would be suitable as a substrate for growing mycelia. would it contaminate easily? is it ph balanced? it is called Super Premium Rabbit Blend by Wild Harvest.
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I was looking at some rabbit food like that yesterday. I decided to buy the Alfalfa/Timothy's Hay pellets because it didn't have all the vitamins added. I don't know that they are a problem but for me simple is better. The Alfalfa/hay pellets when soaked swell up a lot and break up into fine chopped hay. I added some to my experimental compost to try it. All I can find so far is composted cattle manurer with added forest products. It seems that this doesn't work according to some who tried it. I have made my own mix which looks absolutely fantastic:
1/3 Composted cattle manurer 1/3 worm castings 1/6 shredded coir 1/6 Alfalfa/hay pellets expanded
It is so nice and black and the texture with the coir is absolutely perfect. I stir it several times a day and is so light and airy and yet when you squeeze it, it sticks together. The PH is perfect and is holding steady through many readings at 7.2. I have a few other things to add if I get inspired but my instinct tells me this is a good mix. I'm just worried about whether the Alfalfa will contaminate. If I see it is behaving itself, I will try to add more hay to the mix. I want it for my Pan subs but I think cubensis should like it as well. I haven't tried this mix yet so it is all speculative.
I actually bought the Timothy's Hay in a bale before but cutting it up is a pain. These blocks are all chopped up into 1/4 to 3/4 inch little pieces. They are pretty expensive at $5cdn for 1lb, but they swell up like crazy when you wet them, and when used in addition to the mix the price goes down as the manurer is $2 for a large bag. I am just trying to goose up the manurer to the point where it will work. I am thinking about using my parrot guano as they eat mostly seeds and grains and a bit of fruit. I tried feeding the soaked Alfalfa/hay to them and the Rosellas both loved it. The Amazon picked at it a bit. If I can get them to eat the alfalfa which is a recommended food, then I will have my indoor cows. I think their guano will then be very nutritious for the shrooms.
-------------------- I've been having psilly dreams lately
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Im currently growing Creepers on rabbit food as we speak. The mycelium love it, and I have found it runs through it faster when the rabbit food is ground down into a fine dust and not the whole chunks.
BUT! I have also found that it is a contamination invite festival. I have 1 casing and 1 cake that has survived. These two were the only ones that I pc'd the rabbit food for over an hour. The others, like an idiot, I pasturized. So be very clean cause its a breading grounds for any contam.
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