|
|
Casing Instructions
These instructions are given with the understanding that you are trying this technique on your own and not with any of the Keepers Kits.
For everyone else...these instruction are given with the understanding that you have knowledge of growing mushrooms or have access to information that will help you create mycelium in order to use the casing technique.
Casing Mix Procedure
-
A Large Bag of Casing.
-
One Bag of Vermiculite.
You supply....(unless it came in your kit)
Spray Bottle
Hydrogen Peroxide
Growing Chamber (it is the tub with a white HEPA filter affixed to the
side)
Spring Water
Large (Microwave able) Mixing Bowl
Playtex Gloves (Wal-Mart...about $1.50)
Microwave
Metal Fork
Anti-Bacterial Soap and/or Rubbing Alcohol.
*Fully colonized substrate jars
of mycelium...created by you.
Make sure you have all of these supplies in one place before you begin the next step.
Step 1: Mix 1-part Peroxide with
10-part Spring Water. Place it into the spray bottle
and sit it aside. This liquid mixture will help with the control of contaminations within the soil.
Step 2: In the microwave able mixing bowl place 4 cups of your soil into it.
Mix the soil using a fork until it is thoroughly combined. Using the spray bottle of the Peroxide and Spring water, spray the mixture and stir it until the soil is moistened to field capacity, meaning that if you take a handful of this mixture and squeeze it into a ball it will hold its shape but no water will drip out. We want the mixture moist but not saturated...somewhat fluffy and soft looking.
Place this into a microwave for about 1 minute on
HIGH.
Mix again with a fork and microwave an additional 1 minute on High.
DO NOT OPEN THE MICROWAVE THE 2ND
TIME!!!!
LEAVE THE DOOR CLOSED FOR 30 MINUTES TO ALLOW THE SOIL TO COOL WITHIN THE
MICROWAVE AND NOT BECOME CONTAMINATED.
While the soil is cooling you are to clean the Growing Chamber with some Antibacterial soap and warm tap water...even the lid! Try to be gentle to the white HEPA filter...I don't want you to wash it OFF of the wall of the growing chamber. Turn the chamber upside down onto a clean towel and allow to drip dry.
Step 3: After 30 minutes take out the soil and pour it into the growing chamber evenly (as much as possible) so that it covers the bottom of the growing chamber. If possible do not touch it with your hands! Us a cleanly wiped fork (wiped with alcohol) to slightly even it out (shaking the chamber back and forth and help smooth things out).
Note: It does not have to be perfect! You are going to mix it one more time in the following steps. I just want to make sure you put cover the bottom of the chamber with the soil.
Step 4: Remove the lids from one of your colonized substrate jar and dump the 'cakes' on top of the soil mixture. Using your freshly washed Playtex Gloves (Spray with Lysol or wipe with your Rubbing Alcohol), crumble the cake into small pieces (smaller the better) evenly onto the top of the soil. If you need to apply a second colonized jar in order to finish the layering, then do it. Best to have a little much then not enough. Just wash your hands again before handling the 2nd mycelium.
Example...
Open jar, dump mycelium, quickly sterilize glove with alcohol, crumble mycelium cake.
Repeat for 2nd jar.
NOTE: Most people
use two 1/2-pint colonized Insert jars to cover the top layer of
soil. It allows for faster colonization and larger flushes but, it is not
100% necessary.
Quickly mix your soil and mycelium for about 20 seconds and level the soil. This is the time when you would like to have the soil as level as possible. DO NOT SPEND A LOT OF TIME DOING THIS! More time spent with the soil exposed to the atmosphere the more likely it will become contaminated.
As the white mycelium grows through the soil it should resemble the pictures below.
 |
 |
 |
Just click picture for a larger image.
...AND
AWAY WE GO!!!!
This is the last and final phase of the cultivation process; it is also the easiest and most fun because it is the actual growing and picking of the mushrooms themselves.
Warning!
For this next step you are to use plain Spring Water ONLY! Do not us the
Peroxide/Water mix. If you do so you will retard the growth and greatly
effect the outcome.
After 7-10 days of waiting you can....
You are to place Dry Vermiculate (2nd Bag) over the top of the soil (1/4 inch) and water it WITH THE SPRAY BOTTLE thoroughly...(soak it)....with clean spring water. This will help hold the moisture within the soil and give the mycelium and little extra humidity during the pinning process. Put the lid back on your growing chamber and wait 48 hours.
Spray the inner walls of your Growing Chamber, and the Vermiculite, once a day. You do not have to drown the Vermiculite. Just spray it evenly to keep it moist. When you see mushrooms coming up STOP spraying the Vermiculite but keep spraying the sides of the Growing Chamber.
Do this quickly and thoroughly on a daily basis.
Within a short time, one day to one week, you should have several mushrooms popping up. When these mushrooms start to open up and the veil under the cap rips away, they are ready for harvest.
 |
 |
 |
| The white veil beginning to stretch. | See how thin the veil has become. It is beginning to tear away. |
This is a turning point of the shroom. Now is the perfect time to pick. |
Just reach in and grasp the stem as close to the soil as possible and give it a gentle twist. It should pop right out of there!
Just a reminder to keep spraying and harvesting until the chamber is no longer producing mushrooms (3-4 weeks).
Contaminations of Green Mold!
(Note the green discoloration. This is our enemy!)
This is a bitch but, unfortunately, it is a factor of life for the mushroom grower.
Green mold is a common contaminate that can find its way into your growing chamber quite easily. I am going to try and help you beat, or at least contain, the green fungi.
The key to winning this battle is quick and precise counter measures.
The INSTANT you see green on your casing soil get it out of there! Flame a spoon or heat it as much as possible from your stove top. Quickly open the chamber and scoop it out and close the chamber lid.
Re-heat the spoon EVERY TIME it has to enter the growing chamber.
Mix 1-part Peroxide with 20-parts Spring Water and place it in a
spray bottle.
Spray the newly cleaned area until it is nice and soaked.
Try to keep the mixture contained to the immediate area as much as possible.
If you find that you that you were forced to take away much of the casing soil, just place some DRY CASING over top of that area and begin spraying with the solution.
Do your best to contain and stay on top of the green mold until it is completely gone or it becomes a losing battle.
You're not done yet!
Here is some outdoor adventure!!!
When your mycelium finally quits producing mushrooms you can break-up the 'spent mycelium mat' into small clumps and dump it into a fresh bag of humus (compost from Wal-mart). Take the bag and find yourself a nice shaded area under some bushes or on a rim of your local woods.
Empty the contents and mix the pile as well as you are able, forming a small mound of dirt.
Add just Spring Water the same way as you did in the previous steps and checking it daily for dryness. One should water it everyday, EXCEPT on those rainy days, for about a week or until you just get tired of doing it. After that it is on its own! Just visit it in the morning before heading off to work and pick mushrooms as available.
I like to plant Sugar-Baby Watermelons or Bush Cucumbers plants on top of the mound. That way I can water my plants daily and not be overly concerned about my mushrooms.
Send those pictures in everyone!
The more pictures within the directions the better for all!!!
Stay cool my friends!
Keeper
Build a Professional Flowhood!
Dangers of Eating Magic Mushrooms
Help Identify These Mushrooms!
