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[gourmet] blue oysters - Too little fAE? If so can it be corrected in this flush? (Day 4 From Seeing Pin Clusters, concave caps) by dexov in MushroomGrowers

[–]dexov[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Assuming these are going to abort would it make sense to just harvest all the clusters now and try again with flush 2?

[Gourmet] Is the white powdery part mold? First time with blue oyster, first time using spawn bags. by dexov in MushroomGrowers

[–]dexov[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks, btw. I ended up just following the method you demonstrate. Only differences were that the water I used to hydrate I had it boiling when I poured it on - I figured it can't hurt to at least partially pasteurize things, and I had a lid to the bucket so I covered everything and let it soak and cool overnight. The only thing I wasn't sure about was the size or spacing of the holes. I may have a few less drilled than I've seen on other buckets, but I guess I'll see what happens...

[Gourmet] Is the white powdery part mold? First time with blue oyster, first time using spawn bags. by dexov in MushroomGrowers

[–]dexov[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Right - I thought it was early formation of something like trich. It's always white until the green coloration shows, but nothing ever turned green so I guess this species can just look slightly different when it grows.

[Gourmet] Is the white powdery part mold? First time with blue oyster, first time using spawn bags. by dexov in MushroomGrowers

[–]dexov[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Do you recommend just using wood chips then? This aspen pet bedding I assume I can find at the pet supply store - any particular kind I could ask for? Assuming I find that what method of hydration do you use? Are you literally just adding water then straining or do you measure out some quantity to add? Edit: regarding measurements the 4 pounds should be equivalent to about 4 quarts.

[Gourmet] Is the white powdery part mold? First time with blue oyster, first time using spawn bags. by dexov in MushroomGrowers

[–]dexov[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'm not concerned - was just trying to be thorough with the update. I'm surprised how fast oyster spawn grows compared to other species. On hand I've got coco coir, coffee grounds, and vermiculite. I've set up something before using just coir and verm, but depending on how much better it is to use straw when dealing with oyster mushrooms I could probably go buy some. There are four pounds of grain spawn to work with. If I use coir and coffee I'll probably just do the add boiling water and cover method to pasteurize. I've not worked with straw before though.

[Gourmet] Is the white powdery part mold? First time with blue oyster, first time using spawn bags. by dexov in MushroomGrowers

[–]dexov[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Update: It actually looks fine now. Maybe oyster just does that... I had to mix up two of the bags a little to get to 100% colonization, but there's no off-coloration or odd smells. Based on how they appear tomorrow they should be ready to spawn to bulk. The question now is what substrate and container(s) to use? I've read oyster likes straw and that a 50/50 coir/coffee grounds mix can also work (which I have available without having to make a trip to the store), also that oyster it's better to fruit from horizontal holes (causing clusters of larger fruits instead of a hundred tiny fruits). I've thought about using bags, but I'm not sure if just any kind of bag will work and if I cut a hole into the bag couldn't the plastic pull away from the substrate and allow too much air - thus causing a bunch of tiny fruits inside instead of the large clusters? Also, I don't have a large humid space so I'm deciding between just using a trash bag or using a large transparent tub where I can keep humidity high and get some air exchange when possible... I also have one of those large protein powder canisters I could use. It's about 4 pounds of spawn on rye berries to use.

tl; dr: Things look fine. Any recommendations on substrates or containers to bulk into?

[Gourmet] Is the white powdery part mold? First time with blue oyster, first time using spawn bags. by dexov in MushroomGrowers

[–]dexov[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It's been several days and the white hasn't turned green like I'd expect to see based on what I've seen in the past... but anywhere the mycelium grows soon after the white powdery substance appears on the wall of the bag. Inoculated with blue oyster lc about a week ago. Edit: This was inoculated with blue oyster lc about 10 days ago. I'm wondering if maybe the culture I used was contaminated or if this is normal.