How to Use Horse Manure and Straw Mushroom Substrate - 5lb

Setting Up a Clean Workspace

Before using the Horse Manure and Straw Mushroom Substrate - 5lb, ensure that your workspace is clean and sanitized to prevent contamination. Ideally, use a laminar flow hood or still air box, but if these aren’t available, take the following steps:

• Disinfect your work area with rubbing alcohol or another sanitizer.
• Avoid rooms with active airflow from fans, vents, or air conditioners, as they can introduce contaminants.
• Wipe down your substrate bag with rubbing alcohol before handling.
• Sanitize your hands and tools, such as scissors or knives, before cutting open the substrate bag.

Ensuring a clean environment is essential for a successful inoculation process. If you don’t have a laminar flow hood, consider using a still air box to reduce airborne contaminants during inoculation.

Preparing the Horse Manure and Straw Substrate Bag

The Horse Manure and Straw Mushroom Substrate is pasteurized and comes ready to use. Before you inoculate the substrate bag, it’s important to inflate it slightly. This process ensures proper airflow through the filter patch and prepares the substrate for inoculation. Here’s how:

• Grasp the opposite gussets of the bag and gently pull them apart.
• Repeat this motion to allow air to enter through the 5-micron filter patch.
• Once the bag is slightly inflated, it’s ready for inoculation.

Inoculating the Substrate

1. Prepare Your Spawn

To inoculate the Horse Manure and Straw Substrate, you’ll need colonized grain spawn. This can be prepared by inoculating grain jars or grain bags with liquid culture or spores, as explained in our grain inoculation guides.

2. Cut Open the Substrate Bag

Once your grain spawn is fully colonized, it’s time to inoculate the pasteurized substrate. Using sanitized scissors or a knife, carefully cut the top of the substrate bag as close to the heat seal as possible. Make sure you avoid damaging the filter patch or the bag’s sidewalls.

3. Add Colonized Grain Spawn

After opening the substrate bag, gently break up your colonized grain spawn to distribute the mycelium evenly. If your spawn is in a jar, use a sterilized butter knife to break up the grains before adding them to the substrate bag. If your spawn is in a bag, gently massage the bag to loosen the grains.

Once the grains are broken up, swiftly add your colonized spawn to the open substrate bag. One pound (or one quart) of spawn can inoculate up to 5 pounds of the horse manure and straw substrate, though you may use more spawn to speed up colonization.

4. Seal the Substrate Bag

After adding your spawn, seal the substrate bag. The best way to do this is with an impulse sealer to ensure an airtight closure. If you don’t have access to a sealer, you can fold the bag several times and secure it with large paper clips or packing tape. Avoid using porous materials like micropore tape, as the seal must be airtight.

Incubating the Horse Manure and Straw Substrate

Once inoculated, place the sealed substrate bag in an upright position, ensuring the 5-micron filter patch remains unobstructed. The bag should be kept at room temperature (between 65-75°F). Avoid storing the bag in direct sunlight or in areas where temperature fluctuates significantly.

The substrate will typically fully colonize in about 3-4 weeks, depending on environmental factors and the genetics of the mushroom culture. If you see mycelium growth slowing down, ensure that the filter patch is unobstructed and there’s enough air exchange.

Introducing Fruiting Conditions

After full colonization, you’ll need to introduce fruiting conditions to encourage mushroom growth. Look for the appearance of hyphal knots—small, white bumps that are the first sign of mushroom pinning. To initiate fruiting, follow these steps:

• Open the bag and allow fresh air to enter once a day. This encourages pinning by providing the necessary air exchange.
• Maintain high humidity, around 90%, by lightly misting the inside of the bag. Be careful not to over-mist, especially during the pinning stage, as excess moisture can cause mushrooms to abort.
• Monitor for mushroom growth, and when the pins develop into full mushrooms, harvest them just before the caps fully open to avoid spore drop.

Harvesting and Care After Fruiting

Once the mushrooms have matured, gently twist and pull them from the substrate. Avoid cutting them to minimize the risk of contamination. After harvesting, continue misting the substrate and fanning the bag daily to encourage subsequent flushes. In most cases, you can achieve multiple flushes from the same substrate, depending on the genetics of your culture and environmental conditions.

Monitoring for Contamination

Horse Manure and Straw Substrate is pasteurized, which makes it more resistant to contamination compared to sterilized substrates. However, it’s still essential to monitor for contamination during colonization and fruiting. Signs of contamination include strange colors like green or black and the presence of slime or foul odors. If you notice contamination, discard the substrate immediately and sanitize your work area before starting a new project.

Conclusion

The Horse Manure and Straw Mushroom Substrate - 5lb is an excellent choice for cultivating dung-loving mushroom species. By following these steps for inoculation, incubation, and fruiting, you’ll be able to enjoy multiple flushes of healthy mushrooms. Always ensure that your workspace is clean, your tools are sanitized, and your substrate bag is properly prepared for optimal results.

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