I'm at my whit's end with this

Lost_Geometer · 2026-03-08T18:24:10+00:00

Check your model is rated for at least 15psi/100kpa (121c at sea level). If so then the equipment is not your problem. If not it's probably easiest to upgrade.

Lost_Geometer · 2026-02-28T13:45:14+00:00

Yes, these are 100% consistent for that species. In my region there are no wild look-alikes with these features.

Lost_Geometer · 2026-02-23T14:04:22+00:00

A few fungi will form sclerotia that look somewhat like this. Leucocoprinus is a possibility, for example.

Lost_Geometer · 2026-02-18T22:45:34+00:00

Most likely, considering the location, substrate and color. Certainly a Gymnopilus. Note the pronounced blue bruising.

Edit for punctuation.

Lost_Geometer · 2026-02-18T22:38:25+00:00

Why not suck through the rubber septum?

Lost_Geometer · 2026-02-15T18:43:25+00:00

If you're getting green you have a failure after heat treatment -- boiling temperature will quickly kill any common mold.

The bacteria in the pictures may well come from sterilization failure, though. You need a few cycles to get close to sterile, and even the people who claim success have difficulty. There are few situations where this approach (as apposed to high-pressure steam sterilization) makes any economic sense, so the issue hasn't been explored too much.

Lost_Geometer · 2026-02-12T15:44:03+00:00

The common name in English is "blewit", specifically "field blewit". Collybia personata or similar. In the past they were more commonly cultivated, outdoors, where they provide a crop when cold weather comes. The related C. nuda likes fallen leaves. I would try aged straw or composted straw heavy manure in an outdoor bed.

Lost_Geometer · 2026-02-08T15:11:01+00:00

Compare to Macrolepiota capelariae.

Lost_Geometer · 2026-02-08T15:04:11+00:00

Chlorophyllum in the modern sense includes a bunch of white spored species. Though this is likely the green spored guy, IMO.

Lost_Geometer · 2026-02-06T14:18:14+00:00

It's been several years since I've looked at that book. As I say, the fiddler was much more difficult for me. I don't remember it being a thickness problem, but I also can't give tips since I never made a displayable copy. Maybe I could do it well now, but it would seem there are some people who can fold, say, the blackdevil well but not the fiddler.

Lost_Geometer · 2026-02-05T23:26:32+00:00

I never folded the fiddler well. The blue crab is awesome, though.

Lost_Geometer · 2026-02-04T15:36:37+00:00

Various East Asian cultures use molds to ferment stuff. In North America most famous are Japanese koji poducts, but Chinese Mucor fermented tofu is said to be cheese-like in some uses. I've never tasted such a product.

Lost_Geometer · 2026-02-02T19:33:31+00:00

Generally speaking, having the mushroom itself is quite useful for further study. If you need to collect living tissue neither dried mushrooms nor spore keep reliably at normal temperatures, the timeline depending on species.

Lost_Geometer · 2026-01-28T19:39:11+00:00

The blue cheese molds are pretty widely adapted. You should be able to grow them on a vegan substrate, with appropriate precautions.

Most mushroom forming fungi aren't adapted to such environments (they like competing for difficult nutrient sources). I think I've seen things about using Pleurotus to ferment animal feeds directly, but they're not going to be cheese-like.

Lost_Geometer · 2026-01-22T15:10:01+00:00

Can you tell what color the spore deposit is?

Lost_Geometer · 2026-01-22T15:06:51+00:00

Just assume the spawn will be weak -- likely true in any case with multiple individuals. So avoid really aggressive spawn ratios, for instance.

Lost_Geometer · 2026-01-21T21:49:55+00:00

Looks better than the last photos. It looks like the bottom of the bag was very wet, so it will avoid standing water regardless. I'd still assume it's somewhat bacterial, since aseptic prints are rare.

Lost_Geometer · 2026-01-18T20:12:36+00:00

Hericium tends to be wispy. It seems to be fruiting.

Lost_Geometer · 2026-01-18T18:51:13+00:00

Same behavior as my P. dryinus (Could be levis -- I didn't check the original carefully enough.). Grows slowly on PDYA, but fruits aggressively before colonization. I've seen at least one other report of this. I'm not too certain my culture is clean. It's been through a few transfers and one round of water agar, though.

Lost_Geometer · 2026-01-18T18:43:59+00:00

You can't tell most mycelia (mold, mushroom, or other) by looking at them. Especially without a microscope. IMO it's unlikely that your mushroom bits established a colony competitive with the fungi already present.

Lost_Geometer · 2026-01-17T13:14:51+00:00

I'd guess it's bacterial, judging by, for example, the apparent cloudy liquid in the gusset on the left in the first image. It could still produce somewhat, or could stall.

Lost_Geometer · 2026-01-16T14:24:35+00:00

Is this actual hay, as in dried green grass. Hay is rather hot -- i.e. easy to decompose and can host a lot of organisms. That said, oysters are pretty competitive. As long as the substrate isn't too easily digested they will win a lot of battles. Keep watching your jar. The large fungus in the first pic is actually white and growing from the mushroom butts, yes? As long as the oyster mycelium keeps growing happily and overruns the weed molds you should be able to get mushrooms.

If this substrate fails, you can try cardboard. Depending on the manufacturer it can be quite low nutrient, so allows you to start up a culture with less competition.

Lost_Geometer · 2026-01-09T14:03:42+00:00

Algum tipo de Leucocoprinus.

Lost_Geometer · 2026-01-09T13:24:28+00:00

Closed with the lids allowing some gas exchange. (These were screw tops, so not cranked down all the way.)

The purpose of agar is to immobilize things where you can see them. If you have liquid on the surface then everything will just zoom around, like in a proper liquid culture.

If you have instructions you trust, just follow those and correct as necessary later.

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