The Mushroom Matrix

[Voidmatrix]

This idea was inspired by dreamer042 who encouraged me to share about my mushroom cultivation journey. So thank you, dreamer.

I started this maybe a year and half ago, but really took off with some confidence in the past six months, so will start by sharing everything up until now in a concise manner. If there are any questions feel free to ask and I'll provide further specificity.

The first pics show the results of the BRF cake tek. The very first ones are from over a year ago. Some of the later ones are much more recent. I actually will no longer be using the BRF method any longer. I find it too be too much work for too little yield when compared to the monotub. I went so long doing both because I'm neurotic, and if I open a spore syringe then I want to use all of it. And bulk grain (such as rye berries which are my present grain choice for inoculation) doesn't seem to colonize well with spores. Using a whole spore syringe for a couple liquid cultures is not ideal, so would always inoculate a few BRF jars as well. However, now, I have decided there's little concern for only using part of a syringe. The last cakes that I will be working with are presently in their respective terrariums.

The main mushrooms shown on cakes are Penis Envy and Amazonian.

The first monotub photos show Hillbilly, a strain out of Arkansas.

The next ones will be White Teachers. You'll be able to tell the difference.

And there are some other relevant pics just for fun.

As of now, I have four monotubs going and finishing up cakes with 11 of them (six of which are on their second flush) I plan to inoculate about 7 bags this evening. I have several more bags awaiting results of colonization.

Thank you for viewing. I hope you enjoy.

One love

 

[Fridge]

Beautiful work, Void

I myself found another calling in fungi cultivation about a decade ago and I will soon go commercial (with edibles though). Have you thought about taking the leap and go the agar route? It's providing even more fun and if you want to go big it makes things easier.

Also if you look for other cube varieties or species give me a shout. I see Natalensis is missing in your collection .

 

[PedroSanchez]

Have you thought about taking the leap and go the agar route? It's providing even more fun and if you want to go big it makes things easier.

i agree. one syringe will give you infinite mushrooms if you learn agar. no need to worry about how much of the syringe you used or how well a grain will colonize (i do agar > rye berries and it works beautifully). however there is a photo of a dish in that collection so maybe we are misunderstanding?

 

[Voidmatrix]

Beautiful work, Void

I myself found another calling in fungi cultivation about a decade ago and I will soon go commercial (with edibles though). Have you thought about taking the leap and go the agar route? It's providing even more fun and if you want to go big it makes things easier.

Also if you look for other cube varieties or species give me a shout. I see Natalensis is missing in your collection .

ree. one syringe will give you infinite mushrooms if you learn agar. no need to worry about how much of the syringe you used or how well a grain will colonize (i do agar > rye berries and it works beautifully). however there is a photo of a dish in that collection so maybe we are misunderstanding?

Thank you both! Also, thank you specifically for providing insights.

I do play around a little with agar. I want to make a flow hood in order to limit contamination which seems to be much more of an issue working with agar even in my glovebox. There is one picture in there of a healthy one that I did recently. I have only heard good things about working with agar such as the reasons mentioned by PS. I use rye berries presently myself.

Perhaps I'll work with some more agar this week

One love

 

[ommani]

This is really inspiring. Thank you for sharing.

 

[PedroSanchez]

Thank you both! Also, thank you specifically for providing insights.

I do play around a little with agar. I want to make a flow hood in order to limit contamination which seems to be much more of an issue working with agar even in my glovebox. There is one picture in there of a healthy one that I did recently. I have only heard good things about working with agar such as the reasons mentioned by PS. I use rye berries presently myself.

Perhaps I'll work with some more agar this week

One love

i would LOVE a flow hood. although it is possible to work entirely in a SAB it requires a carefully refined skill to get even close to the performance of a flow hood. i get contams all the time in my SAB, particularly after a long break from doing the work, where i lose the workflow.
just to drive my point home, i have used 10ml of spore syringe in the last ~3 years and from that i have grown multiple ounces of fruits (lost count of how many ounces). even that 10ml is excessive, i could have done that from a single drop in theory. i still have the same mycelium in my fridge right now on master slants that has been there for 1-2 years and will still grow (confirmed about 3 months ago).

if a flow hood will take a while to acquire don't let it put you off. a SAB is okay once you get your workflow right, just keep practicing and do plenty of transfers and some of them will take. some people get near perfect results with a SAB. not me though! :lol:

hopefully we have inspired you. i am looking forward to the pictures

 

[Fridge]

I'm with PedroSanchez . I work with a SAB too. I made 20 jars of spawn recently and only one contaminated, which I am happy with.

 

[Voidmatrix]

i would LOVE a flow hood. although it is possible to work entirely in a SAB it requires a carefully refined skill to get even close to the performance of a flow hood. i get contams all the time in my SAB, particularly after a long break from doing the work, where i lose the workflow.
just to drive my point home, i have used 10ml of spore syringe in the last ~3 years and from that i have grown multiple ounces of fruits (lost count of how many ounces). even that 10ml is excessive, i could have done that from a single drop in theory. i still have the same mycelium in my fridge right now on master slants that has been there for 1-2 years and will still grow (confirmed about 3 months ago).

if a flow hood will take a while to acquire don't let it put you off. a SAB is okay once you get your workflow right, just keep practicing and do plenty of transfers and some of them will take. some people get near perfect results with a SAB. not me though! Laughing

hopefully we have inspired you. i am looking forward to the pictures

I'm with PedroSanchez Smile. I work with a SAB too. I made 20 jars of spawn recently and only one contaminated, which I am happy with.

Thank you so much for this. I think I feel odd about the still air box because the holes in which the hands enter always remain open, and so some air (in my mind) must move in and out a little bit. The tradeoff however with the glovebox seems to be more freedom of movement. Working with the glovebox is nice for sterility, but my dexterity is lowered by the thickness of the gloves (making the opening and sealing of agar plates take longer) as well as limited mobility as a result of the gloves being attached to the box.

So, I think I'm going to give the SAB a shot.

And yes, I am inspired. I'm going to attempt to play around with a bunch of agar later this week

This is really inspiring. Thank you for sharing.

Thank you so much my friend. I hope you enjoy these next couple as well.

This is how I ended my night last night.

153g wet.

One love

 

[PedroSanchez]

SAB tends to be slightly better than a glovebox. it seems counterintuitive at first, but what actually happens is you get a pumping effect in the air inside the box when you put your hands in the gloves, which moves the air around. this is fine if you know your glovebox is 100% contamination free, but in reality that is very unlikely because you have to put the things in the box and you can't heat the box once the mycelium is in there or you will kill it.
in a SAB when you put your arm in the hole the air can move freely around your arm, so the air inside the box does not move around much. as long as your movements are calm and not too fast you will not disturb much air in the work area, so the contaminants in the box will stay where they are (on the floor, stuck to the walls, etc) rather than lifting into the air.
most of the time we will have potential contaminants in our work area, but as long as they don't end up in the dishes they are harmless.

i use a big plastic tub with 2 holes cut in it, nothing special and pretty cheap.
i lay a towel down first that i wet with warm, soapy water and spray the inside of the SAB with warm soapy water using an atomizer. that helps potential contaminants stick to the surfaces.

maybe that will work out better for you. it's got to be worth a try for the cost of a plastic box.

 

[Voidmatrix]

SAB tends to be slightly better than a glovebox. it seems counterintuitive at first, but what actually happens is you get a pumping effect in the air inside the box when you put your hands in the gloves, which moves the air around. this is fine if you know your glovebox is 100% contamination free, but in reality that is very unlikely because you have to put the things in the box and you can't heat the box once the mycelium is in there or you will kill it.
in a SAB when you put your arm in the hole the air can move freely around your arm, so the air inside the box does not move around much. as long as your movements are calm and not too fast you will not disturb much air in the work area, so the contaminants in the box will stay where they are (on the floor, stuck to the walls, etc) rather than lifting into the air.
most of the time we will have potential contaminants in our work area, but as long as they don't end up in the dishes they are harmless.

i use a big plastic tub with 2 holes cut in it, nothing special and pretty cheap.
i lay a towel down first that i wet with warm, soapy water and spray the inside of the SAB with warm soapy water using an atomizer. that helps potential contaminants stick to the surfaces.

maybe that will work out better for you. it's got to be worth a try for the cost of a plastic box.

It's funny you said it that way because a friend of mine was trying to tell me something similar. I'm still having a hard time wrapping my head around it I guess. He had to tell me that my disinfecting process is pretty on point since I've rarely had any obvious contamination using the glovebox, even with the air pumped by the movement of the gloves. In my mind, since the box is sealed and everything disinfected before placing in the box (and the environment disinfected before that), the air pumping inside the box should be relatively harmless. Granted, I'm still learning a lot, and am not saying you're wrong, it's just about me and my understanding.

All the same, I will give the SAB a go because the freedom of movement will allow me to get more done easier, faster and in greater amounts.

All that to say, thank you :lol:

One love

 

[reDeMpTion]

It really does seem counterintuitive, but it works for sure. Bigger holes work better too for the same reason which also seems to defy logic in some way. Wetting the inside with soapy or bleach water helps a lot too like pedro said. I would love a flow hood too, but they are pricey and I don't really have the space for one right now.

I've worked out of an SAB for years with a very low contam rate. If you get your technique dialed in an SAB works great. The biggest issue I've had is agar plates getting bacteria on them after pouring. I started wrapping a layer of cling wrap around the SAB to cover the holes while they are cooling and I'm waiting for the condensation to disappear, and I'm not tossing bacterial plates anymore. Of course you could always go the no pour route and avoid most of that, but I've never personally done those. A lot of people like them and have good results though.

Agar will open up a whole new world with mycology. From being able to work from spore prints to cloning fruits, it's worth getting into if you ask me.

Also, I agree with fridge...nats are awesome. I grow them the exact same way as cubes, and the difference in trip quality noticeable and makes them worth trying them out.

Some nice looking fruits in your pics btw!

 

[Voidmatrix]

It really does seem counterintuitive, but it works for sure. Bigger holes work better too for the same reason which also seems to defy logic in some way. Wetting the inside with soapy or bleach water helps a lot too like pedro said. I would love a flow hood too, but they are pricey and I don't really have the space for one right now.

I've worked out of an SAB for years with a very low contam rate. If you get your technique dialed in an SAB works great. The biggest issue I've had is agar plates getting bacteria on them after pouring. I started wrapping a layer of cling wrap around the SAB to cover the holes while they are cooling and I'm waiting for the condensation to disappear, and I'm not tossing bacterial plates anymore. Of course you could always go the no pour route and avoid most of that, but I've never personally done those. A lot of people like them and have good results though.

Agar will open up a whole new world with mycology. From being able to work from spore prints to cloning fruits, it's worth getting into if you ask me.

Also, I agree with fridge...nats are awesome. I grow them the exact same way as cubes, and the difference in trip quality noticeable and makes them worth trying them out.

Some nice looking fruits in your pics btw!

Thank you very much

I fully intend to run the gamut wrt growing and cultivating mushrooms. There's one agar dish shared, and it's something that I will try to do at least one for some inoculation sessions.

As for SAB, I suppose I could just remove the gloves from the glovebox and I have a SAB! Planning on prepping some grain later today, so this week I may have time to try this SAB method.

Thank you all for the sound advice.

One love

 

[Fridge]

Hi Void, yes I agree with the above that a glovebox isn't optimal. The gloves cause the "piston effect", when pulling your hands out, causing particles in the air to be sucked into the box.

One thing I do (and I just want to mention in case you haven't come across that yet) is to spray the inside walls with soapy-water, before I start working in it. A few drops dish soap are enough for the mixture. Don't over mist the ceiling of the SAB otherwise it can happen that a drop of water falls down into the dish or jar while you work. I mist the walls, because dust particles that possibly float around inside the box get stuck to the walls and won't cause contamination. I also mist the area you work on with 70% rubbing alcohol.

I work fast but coordinated. I visualize thd steps before I do them. I try to avoid knocking onto the box and everything that goes in, I bring in through the arm holes after I whiped it down with a microfiber cloth doused in alcohol. Slow, but coordinated moving also prevents contaminats to fly around. Lastly I make sure doors and windows are closed to avoid any draft

I hope it's ok to share my way of doing this, as I hope it will help you. I always try to think like a dust particle. Be the dust particle .

 

[Voidmatrix]

Hi Void, yes I agree with the above that a glovebox isn't optimal. The gloves cause the "piston effect", when pulling your hands out, causing particles in the air to be sucked into the box

This is something I understand but figured such movement of particles would be minimal and harmless.

And I'm very grateful for you sharing your process. Can only help me get better

One love

 

[PedroSanchez]

the reason the contaminants are not harmless is because things have been sanitized, not sterilized, so many contaminants are still in there. in order to remove all contaminants fully you need to sterilize it, so you need to heat the area the same way you do with agar dishes, jars etc when you put them in a pressure cooker. but you cant do this with the glove box because your mycelium needs to be in there and that would kill the mycelium too.
all we can do at that point is work carefully and try to minimize movement inside the space. i always make sure all windows and doors are closed in the room i am working in too, and give the box 20 minutes or so after loading for everything inside to settle down (this is the point where i go and shower etc).
hope that helps

 

[dragonrider]

Wow, those pictures are inspiring.

Those penis envy's look like they're on steroids. Are they as potent by weight as normal ones?

 

[Voidmatrix]

the reason the contaminants are not harmless is because things have been sanitized, not sterilized, so many contaminants are still in there. in order to remove all contaminants fully you need to sterilize it, so you need to heat the area the same way you do with agar dishes, jars etc when you put them in a pressure cooker. but you cant do this with the glove box because your mycelium needs to be in there and that would kill the mycelium too.
all we can do at that point is work carefully and try to minimize movement inside the space. i always make sure all windows and doors are closed in the room i am working in too, and give the box 20 minutes or so after loading for everything inside to settle down (this is the point where i go and shower etc).
hope that helps

This is why I have a bit of hyper concern about contamination: it's literally everywhere! :lol:

I tend to do all of my inoculation in my bathroom due to it being small and having bare floors. I wipe down all surfaces, spray air disinfectants on my way out, allow to settle, the spray walking back in, disinfect everything else, and then get to work. Thank you again for your insights PS :LOVE:

Wow, those pictures are inspiring.

Those penis envy's look like they're on steroids. Are they as potent by weight as normal ones?

Thank you brother! I'm falling in love with this process.

I unfortunately have yet to try out the majority of what I'm growing (for reasons you can imagine), but I really wanna try out the Hillbillies that get extra fat, like that one that's an eighth on its own!

One love

 

[PedroSanchez]

This is why I have a bit of hyper concern about contamination: it's literally everywhere! :lol:

I tend to do all of my inoculation in my bathroom due to it being small and having bare floors. I wipe down all surfaces, spray air disinfectants on my way out, allow to settle, the spray walking back in, disinfect everything else, and then get to work. Thank you again for your insights PS :LOVE:

yea, you are right, contamination is everywhere! got to look on the bright side though, our world is FULL of life

i read somewhere that bathrooms are a bad choice of room because they tend to be covered in bacteria. they are a breeding ground because of the moisture that generally sits in the room. i have not tried using a bathroom though so have no comparison personally.
carpets etc are okay as long as the air in the room is still and you are moving around calmly (just normally is fine, rather than rushing around). maybe it is worth trying another room too if you can, if switching to a SAB doesn't help much.

 

[Voidmatrix]

This is why I have a bit of hyper concern about contamination: it's literally everywhere! :lol:

I tend to do all of my inoculation in my bathroom due to it being small and having bare floors. I wipe down all surfaces, spray air disinfectants on my way out, allow to settle, the spray walking back in, disinfect everything else, and then get to work. Thank you again for your insights PS :LOVE:

yea, you are right, contamination is everywhere! got to look on the bright side though, our world is FULL of life

i read somewhere that bathrooms are a bad choice of room because they tend to be covered in bacteria. they are a breeding ground because of the moisture that generally sits in the room. i have not tried using a bathroom though so have no comparison personally.
carpets etc are okay as long as the air in the room is still and you are moving around calmly (just normally is fine, rather than rushing around). maybe it is worth trying another room too if you can, if switching to a SAB doesn't help much.

Ha! And I read that carpets were bad news! It would be easier and more comfortable if I could do this work in my room though, so I think I'll give that a shot.

There is a closet adjacent to my bedroom that I fully intend to turn into my "fruiting room" that I think will also be a good inoculation and workspace due to it's small size.

Thank you again for playing this tennis game of valuable information with me

One love

 

[reDeMpTion]

When I first started I did my SAB work in the kitchen. That's not very clean or stealth, but I got decent results. I decided to do it in my room that had carpet and did about the same. My old fruiting space was a small under the stairs closet.

Carpet isn't ideal, but you can make it work. Letting everything settle before and moving calmly while working is good advice.

My current space is in an unfinished basement corner. I just made plastic sheet and duct tape walls, and my workspace is a partition in the back of my fruiting room.