> This kit can grow 1 to 3 pounds of mushrooms depending on species and variety.

> Working inside a still air box or in front of a laminar flow hood, inject 2 to 3 ml from liquid culture or spore syringe into the grain bag. The hole should then be covered with a piece of sterile tape such as micropore tape.

> Syringe needle should be flame sterilized between each injection to avoid contaminating cultures.

> Grain bag will be fully colonized in 3 to 6 weeks depending on species and variety. A fully colonized bag will have its grain fully covered with the white mycelium.

> Bags that show signs of contamination or growth that is not mycelium should be discarded.

> This bag will provide 2 quarts of spawn and can be taken into fruiting by mixing this bag with coconut coir, wood chips, straw, or other media and placed in a suitable fruiting chamber depending on species and variety.

> After 2 to 4 weeks in the fruiting chamber, your mushrooms should be ready to harvest.

Our goal is to make mycology easy and affordable for everyone. We have worked hard to create a method that skips all of those unnecessary steps that make growing fungi harder than it needs to be.

Instant Pot

When growing fungi, it is very important that they are grown in a sterile environment so that they are not outcompeted by other organisms such as mold or bacteria. The best way to do this is with a pressure cooker or autoclave but the easiest way with an Instant Pot cooker. Instant Pot pressure cookers get almost as hot and can maintain nearly the same pressure as an autoclave. Instant pot cookers are significantly easier to use and much more beginner friendly. As they do not reach the same pressure as an autoclave, it will be necessary to cook your grain spawn jars for 2.5 hours for maximum sterility; however, as they are electric they do not require constant attention during use.

Glass Jars

We recommend glass jars with metal lids. Any jar will work but larger mouth jars are easier to work with. You can buy new mason jars or simply reuse pasta or pickle jars. You will need to drill 3 holes in the metal lid of the jar. This will allow air exchange for the mycelium growing in the jar as well as give you a location to inject the spore into the jar containing sterilized soaked grains.

Grains

To grow fungi, first you will need to grow the mycelium in grain spawn in jars. There are many options when it comes to the type of grain you can use. Great options for grain include whole oats, milo, and rye. Qsmata offers many great grain options at affordable local shipping rates to Arizona and California customers.

Micropore Tape

In order to keep contaminants out of your grain spawn jar, you will need to cover the holes in the top of the jar with Micropore Tape. "Micropore" is a brand name of 3M and you can use other brands of medical tape such as the Great Value medical tape available at Walmart. When injecting the spore syringe into the grain jar, you will need to cover the hole made in the tape with a new piece of tape.

Candle

Keeping all instruments sterile when growing fungi is very important. Qsmata recommends flame sterilizing your spore syringes before and after injecting into grain spawn. There are many professional options for flame sterilizing scientific equipment such as Bunsen burners however, you can simply use a candle!

Clear Plastic Container for Still Air Box

When injecting your spore syringes into grain spawn jars, you will want to work in a still air box. This is simply a large clear plastic container with two holes in the side for your hands. Before working in your still air box, you will thoroughly spray the inside of the box with 70% isopropyl alcohol. The box will help prevent air from moving contaminates back inside the now sterile environment.

70% Isopropyl Alcohol

All surfaces that cannot be flame sterilized including the inside of your still air box, the fruiting chamber, outside of spawn jars, and the gloves you are wearing should be sprayed with 70% isopropyl alcohol. Do not use 90% isopropyl as it evaporates too quickly for effective sterilization. Alcohol should be used away from open flame and your flame sterilizer should not be kept inside of your still air box as the alcohol may ignite.

Spore Syringe

Fungi reproduce via spores. You can think of them as seeds. There are hundreds of great suppliers of mushroom spores online that offer nearly every species you would want to cultivate from delicious Shiitakes to glow in the dark oysters! Syringes are easiest to use as you can inject the spores directly into the grain spawn jar through the Micropore tape making contamination less likely.

Coconut Coir

Once your grain spawn jars are fully colonized with the white mycelium, you will need to bring them to fruiting. Qsmata recommends using coconut coir for this step as it is a good general purpose substrate for most species. You will want to mix your grain spawn contents to coconut coir together at a ratio of 1 part spawn to 2 parts coir. You will then place the mixture into a plastic tub and allow the fungi to fruit.

Plastic Tub for Fruiting Chamber

After you mix your colonized grain spawn with coconut coir you will place the mixture into a large plastic container to bring the fungi to fruiting. This container must have a lid and should be around 32 QT. You can use a larger or smaller container depending on the amount of spawn you are using just be sure that you have an inch of coconut and spawn mix and enough space between the top of the mix and the lid to accommodate the size of the mushrooms you are growing. Mushrooms should be harvested at different times depending on species so be sure to research the optimal time to harvest your variety. As fungi need to breathe, you will need to either cut several holes in your container and fill them with polyfill. Alternatively, you can tuck the polyfill into the gap between the tub and the lid allowing airflow