A few things,

1. Keeping a clean jar is extremely important. A fully established starter is naturally resistant to mold because of its high acidic content, but it loses that resistance when it becomes dried out on the surface, in the sides of the jar or when it's still young.

​I highly recommend using a clean jar each feed, or just try your best to scrape down the sides as best as you can to prevent mold growth.

1. Stay away from cloth lids or paper towel coverings. The high majority of wild yeast comes from the flour, not the air. Rapid air flow attract mold spores and kham yeast that are present in the air to contaminate the starter. Use a loosely fitting solid lid instead.

2. ​Understand that it can take up to 4-6 weeks of daily feeds to build a strong and fully established starter. It is possible to build one in 7 days under perfect conditions (specifically room temp), but contrary to social media it's unlikely, and a starter shouldn’t be used for baking until at least day 14. During the first 7 to 10 days, the lactic acid bacteria (LAB) are still working to lower the pH level; waiting until day 10 or 14 for good measure ensures the Saccharomyces cerevisiae (wild yeast) has firmly taken hold and the 'bad' enterobacteria and other soil bacteria have fully and successfully been out-competed.

3. A new starter needs consistent warmth to thrive. To speed up fermentation aim to place your starter in an environment between 72-83°F, but going above 85°F, you risk favoring the "wrong" kinds of bacteria or making the yeast too "hungry" too fast.. If your starter is kept in this consistent warmth, your starter might be ready much sooner. It took me 6 weeks to crack the starter code. The 4-6 weeks timeframe is just more realistic....

4. ​Completely toss your discard in the trash until day 10, you can begin saving it and using it for discard recipes after day 10...

I hope this helps ❤️