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[FewTrueSeed]

Growing medicinal and gourmet mushrooms is no simple task. It takes patience and strict procedure to accomplish fruiting.

The vegetative state of fungi (mycelium) consists of strands of single cells. Much like a neuro net, they communicate to adapt and expand until the conditions are correct. The fruit body (mushroom) caries hundreds of thousands, if not millions of microscopic spores. Upon germination spores must make a clamp connection, and mate with another mycelium strand to produce fruit. Most marriages will not produce fruit. Only the strongest "rhizomorphic" mycelium produces offspring.



We are more closely related to fungi than we are plants. And is one of the few organisms to survive the last seven world catastrophes.

Mycelium must be propagated under sterile conditions, which requires specific equipment.

-Autoclaive (pressure canner)
-Petri dishes
-Scalpel
-HEPA flow hood,or still box
-Agar decanter
-Mason jars and .3 micron filter top to fit

-Agar or recipe
-Rye grain
-Substrate: straw, rain, sawdust etc.



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[FewTrueSeed]

RECYCLING PETRI DISHES TEK

Glass petri dishes are expensive and throwing away plastic petri dishes is a waste. I have developed a simple method for sterilization that requires little effort and supplies. If done correctly, petri dished will be free of all contaminants.


First wash the dishes with hot water and soap, rinsing and stacking them. Store the dishes submerged in 10% bleach solution until needed. Its important they spend a short period in the bleach before use. Remove the petri dishes when ready for use. Remove them wearing gloves and drain them. Bring a pot of water to a boil and place it in front in front of the flow hood or in a still box alongside the petri dishes you removed. One at a time submerge the top and bottom of the dish into the hot water by holding them together with thumb and forefinger. Three seconds will do. Use thick gloves as to not burn yourself. The dishes should be stacked and remain in sterile space until agar is poured.

Cleaning dirty dishes


Stored petri in 10% bleach solution


Removing and drainin 


Serilizing in boiling water




HOME MADE MALT FOR AGAR TEK

Malting is the process of germinating and roasting cerial grains. In this process enzymes convert starches into sugar and proteins. We are most familiar with malt in beer. In brewing the converted sugars provide a great energy source for yeast, necessary for fermentation. The same holds true for propagating fungi.

I made a small batch of rye malt over a year ago and it may take me a long while to use it all. I sprouted the seed in a gallon jar after a 24 hour soak. I fed an air pump into it for consistent air circulation. Twelve hours later, sprouts. I then took them to the wood fired oven where I work and roasted them covered for five hours at 200°f. Approximately. Then one hour with the top off to dry them. Worked great. I'm sure any oven would work fine.

My simple agar recipe only includes a tablespoon or so of ground rye malt, a pinch of yeast, a cup of water and agar. Sterilized in the pressure cooker for 25 minutes.

Sprouting




Roasting


Finished product

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[FewTrueSeed]

The above grain is for agar medium. I grind it and make a "tea". Then its sterilized in a media flask with agar, and the poured into petri dishes. I think most people just buy a powdered agar medium. I never considered using malted grain in my jars or bags as a supplement. I'll try it.

[FewTrueSeed]

AGAR MEDIUM STERILIZATION AND POURING

I use my home made malts for making agar. After grinding one or so tablespoons of roasted grain in a coffie grinder I add it to a cup of water and bring it to boiling temperature, covered on the stove. About five minutes simmering should do. I let it settle and pour off the tea into a decanter with three tablespoons of agar. Fifteen psi for twenty minutes is plenty of time for sterilization. Let cool until decanter fask is cool enough to hold and place it directly into sterile space. Still chamber or flow hood. I use spray bottle of bleach to periodically spray inside my still chamber. Removing petri top with one hand and pouring with he other, fill each about a quarter inch with liquid. If the liquid is too hot condensation may appear on the tops. No big deal. Less time with the petri open means less exposure, and less chance of contamination.

Agar medium preparation


Making malt "tea"


Adding agar


Sterilisation





Finished product



GERMINATING SPORES

Starting with a clean spore print is essential to this process. In sterile space prepare scalpel or inoculation loop, agar plates, spore print, and lighter.
Wearing gloves and using proper procedure to avoid vectors of contamination, sterilize scalpel with lighter (still box) or tool clave (recommended for flow hood). Scrape a a section of spore print and transfer the hundreds of thousands of spores onto the agar medium surface. ( Only about five percent may germinate) I like to draw a single line down the center of the dish. Make a smiley face, that's fun. Again, the longer the dish is open the greater the chance of contamination. So be swift. Once inoculated, dishes must be sealed with parafilm and labeled correctly. They may then be removed from sterile space.



CLONING

Taking a clone from a mushroom is a good way to ensure a strain is viable. Clone is taken from a fruiting body as it is the cleanest and newest growth. In sterile space, and sterile scalpel simply remove a interior wedge and place,it on agar. Some varieties are easier to propagate than others. Oysters are especially vigorous and easy to propagate.





Several days later mycelium begins to grow from the edges of the wedge.

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