fungifun for simple minds - en.psilosophy.infopsilosophy... · Fungifun for Simple Minds by Anno Table of Contents: Grain for Simple Minds Basic rye recipe for 1 pint jar Basic millet

soma rights re-served 1 since 23.06.2016 at http://www.en.psilosophy.info/

Fungifun for Simple Mindsby

Anno

Table of Contents:Grain for Simple Minds Basic rye recipe for 1 pint jar Basic millet or birdseed recipe for 1 pint jar Grains Preparation Preparing grain by simmeringPolyfil filter lid for Simple MindsHomemade Tyvek filter discs testPressure Cooker Use Pressure cooker types Pressure cooking step by step Pressure cooker testPouring Agar for Simple MindsImportance of Gas ExchangeCloning for Simple MindsMycelium Inoculation TechniqueSpore printing

Grain for Simple Mindsoriginal source: http://www.fungifun.org/English/Grain-For-Simple-Minds

These instructions will guide you through the process of preparing grain either to be used as spawn toinoculate bulk substrates or as mushroom substrate that can be directly cased.

There are 2 ways of preparing the grain, either by measuring grain and water, combining them in a jar andpressure cooking it, or first simmering the grain in order to achieve the proper water content, and thenpressure cooking it. Both methods work similarly well. Try both, and see what works for you.

Presto 23-Quart Pressure Cooker/Canner

http://www.fungifun.org/English/Grain-For-Simple-Minds

fungifun for simple minds www.en.psilosophy.info/ceihhixnclawbqcrczaxbogd


Basic rye recipe for 1 pint jar

100g (=3.5 oz~125 ml~0.53 cup) rye105g (= 3.55 oz =105 ml~0.44 cup) waterknife tip full of gypsum (optional)

For a quart jar, double the amounts.

Basic millet or birdseed recipe for 1 pint jar

100g (3.5 oz~140 ml~0.59cup) birdseed60-70g (60-70 ml) waterknife tip full of gypsum (optional)

Note: 1/4 qt(quart) = ½pt(pint) = 1cp(cup) = 236 ml(milliliter) = 236cc(cubic centimeter)The cups, pints and quarts are in the US liquid measuring system.

The recipes above a basic guidelines. Other grains can be used as well, for instance wheat, barley, whole oats,tricale.... The exact measurements depend on the grain used, jar size and your pressure cooker.You might find out, that a little less or more water gives you better results, thus experiment and vary theamounts a little after you have used the basic recipe, to find the optimum for your situation.Keep notes on the amounts!

Grains

Rye



Birdseed

Millet



PreparationFill both the measured amount of grain and the water into the jar, screw the lid fitted with a polyfill filter tightand pressure cook for 1 hour at 15 psi. If you don't know how to use a pressure cooker, check out thisdocument about the correct pressure cooker use. The water absorption ability can vary depending on the grainquality and the type and the size of the pressure cooker. It's best to make a batch of test jars when oneacquires a new grain for instance 100g rye and 100, 105, 110, 115 and 120g water. Then you'll see whichwater content provides the best result.

After the pressure has settled and the jars have cooled down a bit (~1 hour), take thestill very hot jars out of the cooker using a towel and shake them well to mix thewetter and drier kernels.



If you turn the jar upside down, you can see the drierkernels separate from the wet kernels at the bottom.

After shaking the grains should appear wet, after afew days after inoculation they will loose this look andlook more drier. Put the jars back in to the pressurecooker and let sit until completely cool. It has to bepointed out that the grain on this picture was meantto be directly cased after colonization, thus it is a biton the wet side.



The grain used for spawn should look a bit drier, but still moist, and have lessexploded kernels. The rye on this picture has been pressure cooked 48 hours agowith a rye/water ratio of 100g/100g.

Preparing grain by simmeringAlternatively you can prepare the grain by simmering in order to give it the correct water content. Theprocedure step by step:

Weigh out the amount of grain needed (~100g per pint jar).1.Bring double the weight of water to a boil and put the grain in it. Start timing.2.Reduce the heat so the water is barely moving. Stir the grain occasionally with a fork.3.After ~30 minutes (for millet or birdseed) or after ~40 minutes (for rye) pour the now swollen grain4.through a strainer and let is drain for ~20 minutes. The exact simmer times depend on your grain, thesize of the pot and other factors. For the start, follow the above times as closely as possible and then, ifyou see that the water content is not perfect, vary the times a bit.Fill the of grain in the jars, screw the lid fitted with a polyfill filter tight and pressure cook for 1 hour at5.15 psi. If you don't know how to use a pressure cooker, check out this document about the correctpressure cooker use.After the pressure has settled, take the still very hot jars from the cooker (using a towel to protect your6.hands) and shake them well to mix the wetter and drier kernels.



Preparing rye grain by simmering - TEST RESULTS(originally posted at the Shroomery)

I decided to test a rye grain for the water absorbing ability.

I weighed out 3 time 100 gram rye grain.

Experiments:1. 100 g rye were dried in the oven at 140°C for 90 minutes.2. 100 g rye were simmered in 500 ml of water for 30 minutes (rye grain put in boiling water).3. 100 g rye were simmered in 500 ml of water for 40 minutes (rye grain put in boiling water).

Results:1. The 100 g rye grain in the oven dried to 88 g -> 12% moisture content.2. After 20 minutes of draining the grain weighted 190 g, nearly no exploded kernels ->(12g+90g)/190g =54% moisture content.3. After 20 minutes of draining the grain weighted 200 g, more exploded kernels, I'd say at the limit->(12g+100g)/200g = 56% moisture content.

Conclusion:Preparing grain by simmering it is a viable option. It shows that the amounts usually used when one mixesgrain and water directly (100g grain and 100g-110g water) are similar (a little higher) as if one simmers thegrain for around 40 minutes.

Polyfil filter lid for Simple Mindsoriginal source: http://www.fungifun.org/English/Polyfil

These instructions will guide you step by step through the process of making a very effective jar lid filter thatwill allow for fast colonization of shakeable substrates through better gas exchange without compromisingtheir sterility.

Required materials:

pint or quart jar with lidPhillips screwdriver measuring app. 6mm (1/4in) in diameterhammerpolyfil or polyester filter floss

Where can you get it? At Ebay (links above) you should easily find it.Offline you get it at craft stores like Michaels or the craft section of Meijers or Walmart, when you ask atWalmart in arts and crafts department tell them that you are looking for pillow filling or batting.It's also used as filter material for aquariums ("polyester filter floss"), thus aquarium and pet shops have it.

http://www.shroomery.org/forums/showflat.php?Cat=&Board=Forum4&Number=866309

http://www.fungifun.org/English/Polyfil



Screw the lid on the jar and punch a hole in the lid using the screwdriver and the hammer.

Take some floss and fold it to a small ball using both hands.



Make the ball having a tip at one end.

Put this end through the hole and pull it app. halfway through. It should form a relatively tight seat.Be careful not to cut yourself on the sharp edges!



Push the floss back towards the edges. This will hold it in place.



Ready.You should replace the filter floss after using it 3-4 times just to make sure no substrate residuals collect on it which could

support growth of contaminants.



Homemade Tyvek filter discs testoriginal source: http://www.fungifun.org/English/Tyvek

I conducted a test using filters made of TyvekTM material.

I prepared 4 birdseed jars, 2 are covered with the polyfill lid like outlined in the Polyfil filter lid for SimpleMinds, and 2 are covered with squares of TyvekTM hold down by the rim of the lid. The variety of Tyvek was thethin Tyvek used in construction, "Tyvek house wrap".

I inoculated them with Ecuador rye grain spawn and incubate at 29°C.

After 2 days fresh growth was noticable both in polyfill filter jars and in Tyvek filter jars. I couldn't tell if thegrowth is faster in any of them.The jars were shaken to distribute the newly colonized kernels and put back into the incubator.

After 3.5 days into colonisation the jars looked like this.

http://www.fungifun.org/English/Tyvek



6 days after inoculation the jars were colonized.



If you look carefully you will notice, that the Tyvek filter jars have a thin layer of uncolonized, dry kernels onthe top of the jar during the excessive gas exchange through the filter.

To counteract this one should make the hole in the lid smaller (about 1/2 inch in diamter) and thus onlypartially expose the filter surface.

No contamination problems were observed in jars with either kinds of filters.

All in all the test was a succes, proving that "Tyvek house wrap" is suitable for use as an filter in preparing ofgrain spawn.



Pressure Cooker Useoriginal source: http://www.fungifun.org/English/Pressure-Cooker-Use

Pressure cookers and canner are important tools in mycological work. When used properly they guarantee thepreparation of thoroughly sterilized mushroom growing substrates and tools.In a pressure cooker the water reaches a higher temperature before boiling, and this higher temperature killsunwanted organisms more effectively and faster than normal cooking.

This document should give some answers on the correct use of pressure cookers.

Pressure cooker typesThere are different ways of how a pressure cooker indicates and controls the operating pressure.

Pressure gauge + pressure regulator weight (All American Pressure Canner)

http://www.fungifun.org/English/Pressure-Cooker-Use



The pressure regulator weight lets you select one of three pressure settings: 5, 10 and 15 PSI. You shouldselect 15 PSI for mycological work. When the pressure cooker reaches the proper temperature, the pressureregulator weight will jiggle audibly, and you can see the steam being released. Additionally the pressure gaugewill show that the pressure has been reached. It is normal that the pressure gauge shows 1-2 PSI less thanwhat you selected on the pressure regulator weight. To maintain the proper temperature adjust heat lower tomaintain a slow, steady rocking motion.

Pressure gauge + rocker (Presto Pressure Canner)

When the pressure cooker reaches the proper temperature, the rocker will jiggle audibly, and you can see thesteam being released. Adjust heat lower to maintain a slow, steady rocking motion.

Rocker (Presto, Mirro, Hawkins....)

This is essentially the same as the above, just that they don't have a pressure gauge. When the pressurecooker reaches the proper temperature, the rocker will jiggle audibly, and you can see the steam beingreleased. Adjust heat lower to maintain a slow, steady rocking motion.To see if your pressure cooker reaches the desired temperature, you can do a pressure cooker test.

Spring system (T-Fal...)

Many new pressure cookers utilize a spring system.A pin held by a spring is being forced out of the pressure cooker by the building pressure. The more the pin

http://www.fungifun.org/English/Pressure-Cooker-Test



comes out, the higher the pressure in the PC. After a certain point is reached steam is released with a hissingsound.The operating point of those types of pressure cookers should be just before the steam is starting to getreleased, this means once you see the steam being released, you turn the heat down a bit.

In some types you can see the pin coming out:

(Gif animation not available in PDF version.)

In some types you don't:



In each case, the working point of those types of pressure cookers should be just before the steam is startingto get released.

Rack or trivet

Most pressure cookers come with a rack or trivet. Racks are made of aluminum of stainless steel. A rack keepsthe jars from direct contact with the bottom of the pressure cooker. Some types of jars tend to crack if they arenot on a rack.

More on racks at All About Pressure Cooker Racks and Trivets.

http://missvickie.com/howto/cooking101/trivets.htm



Pressure cooking step by step

Put 1 inch of cold water in the PC. Some pressure cooker manuals will tell you to use more water. You1.need to use as much water, that by the end of the pressure cooking there is still some water left at thebottom of the pressure cooker. If you are unsure, you can test drive the pressure cooker without jarsfirst to see the 1 inch of water will fulfill this requirement or not. Never let the pressure cooker rundry! Place filled jars on the rack. Fasten PC lid securely.Leave weight off vent port or open petcock. Turn the heat on at a setting from 2/3 to the highest setting2.until steam flows from the petcock or vent port. You don't want the pressure cooker heat up too fast,since this can cause certain types of jars to break. Adjust the heat so that it takes around 15 minutes forthe steam to begin to come out of the vent. The bigger the pressure cooker, and the more filled it is, thehigher setting you can use.Exhaust steam for 1 minute and then place weight on vent port or close petcock. The PC will pressurize3.during the next 5 to 15 minutes, depending on the size of the PC. (the bigger the PC, and the more jarsare in it, the longer it will take).Start timing the process, depending on the pressure cooker type4.- when the pressure reading on the dial gauge indicates that the recommended pressure has beenreached or- when the weighted gauge begins to jiggle/rock or- when the valve comes up to the of second or third (last) ring or- when the steam is starting to get released from the pressure setting dial.Adjust heat lower to maintain a slow, steady rocking motion, or the pressure indicator staying at the5.proper ring, or there is no steam coming from the pressure setting dial, depending on the pressurecooker type.When timed processing is completed, turn off the heat, remove the PC from heat (if electric range), and6.let the PC de-pressurize at room temperature. (dial needle moves back to "0" or no steam escapes whenweight is gently nudged). Do not force-cool the PC under water or force the steam out! Thedepressurazation can take anywhere from 5-20 minutes, depending on the size of the pressure cookerand the amounts of the jars in it.After the PC is depressurized, remove the weight from the vent port or open the petcock.7.

If you are preparing whole grains (rye, millet, birdseed...), you will now want to wait around 30 minutes andthen take the hot jars out and shake them to distribute the wetter and drier kernels.If you are preparing PF jars it's best to leave them cool down in the pressure cooker over night.

Pressure cooker testoriginal source: http://www.fungifun.org/English/Pressure-Cooker-Test

A simple test to test if your pressure cooker is working properly:

Let a drop of water drop on the pressure cooker while sterilizing.If the drop boils like underneath, the temperature is around 250°F (121°C) and the pressure cooker is workingproperly.

(Gif animation not available in PDF version.)

Why does this happen?

http://www.fungifun.org/English/Pressure-Cooker-Test



A pressure cooker operating under pressure is very hot, it is quite much hotter than the boiling point of waterat 1 atmosphere (212°F=100°C). If the pressure cooker is of the "standard" kind, it will be at 250°F = 121°C.

If you put a small amount of water, a drop, on the surface of the lid of the pressure cooker while the pressurecooker is hot and under pressure, the drop of water will begin to boil vigorously and will evaporate in 2-3seconds, since the surface of the pressure cooker is so much hotter than the boiling point of water at theatmospheric pressure.

If the pressure cooker doesn't work properly, i.e. if the pressure doesn't build up as it should, the pressurecooker temperature will be the same or only slightly above as the boiling point of water at atmosphericpressure. If you were to drop a drop of water on such a cooker, the drop would only sit there and slowlyevaporate over the course of a longer time span.



Pouring Agar for Simple Mindsoriginal source: http://www.fungifun.org/English/Agar

These instructions will guide you through the process of pouring agar without having heavy condensation onthe Petri dishes.

I stack the Petris in 5 or 6-piece stacks in front of the hood. Then I prepare some cups and boiling water.I let the agar cool down to around 35°C, just before it solidifies. Then I pour the agar in the dishes, andimmediately after a stack is finished I put a cup with the hot water on top of it.

What does this do? Water vapor condensates at cold surfaces. Now, when you stack the dishes, the top of eachdish is kept warm by the bottom of the previous dish. Except the top one! Through the cold top one there is atemperature gradient and the top and to some extent also the dishes underneath get some condensation.

When you put a cup of hot water on the top dish, it prevents this condensation by heating the lid.You will also notice I put a sheet of paper in front of the hood, so the dishes don't cool too fast from the side,which again contributes to less condensation.

http://www.fungifun.org/English/Agar



I seal agar plates with a Glad Clingwrap, where I cut a small piece off the roll with a very sharp knife.You can use any wrap, as long it's made from polyethylene. There are differences between brands though,some will work better than others.Saran wrap is NOT suitable, since it's not made from polyethylene and is not gas permeable.Sealing dishes prevents contaminants coming into the dish for whatever reasons, ads for easy handling sincethe both dish parts would otherwise come apart and allows gas exchange, since the polyethylene wrap is gaspermeable.



Importance of Gas Exchangeoriginal source: http://www.fungifun.org/English/Importance-Of-Gas-Exchange

When mushrooms digest a substrate, they produce carbon dioxide (CO2), and consume oxygen (O2).This is a fairly important factor determining success or demise of a growth attempt.

I prepared a few plastic containers with 1/2 pint content with my standard substrate I use for PF tek jars. Theplastic containers have a lid, that completely seals the container, so there is no gas exchange.

When I use the same substrate in jars with an aluminum foil lid, like described in the PF-Tek for Simple Minds Iget full colonization in 8-12 days.

The spores germinated after 2 days and the colonization went fairly fast for another 3 days, then it suddenlystopped.

I left it then another week, and the colonization barely moved on.Then I opened the container in front of a flow hood for a few seconds to provide some air.The colonization again started, and again halted after a few days....I repeated this another 2 times, and after 1 month into colonization, the substrate is still not completelycolonized.You can see at the pictures how the mycelium has a different appearance in some areas and it shows thedifferent growth and stall phases.

The inoculation was at the sides and one inoculation point at the top of substrate. There is no vermiculite seal,but a thin vermiculite bottom layer.

TEST II :This time I took the same plastic containers, but fitted them with a polyfill filter.This is day 6 of colonization, look what a difference the air exchange makes!

http://www.fungifun.org/English/Importance-Of-Gas-Exchange

http://www.psilosophy.info/pdf/psilocybe_fanaticus_tek.html#substrate_preparation

http://www.psilosophy.info/pdf/psilocybe_fanaticus_tek.html#pf-tek_for_simple_minds



One has to love polyfill!

Day 8:

I hereby declare this cake colonized.

FAQ

Why couldn't I put a few heat loving plants in my incubator at night to help with the exchange?Plants convert CO2 and water into oxygen and sugars....when they have light. This process is calledphotosynthesis.The incubator shouldn't have light. So this woudn't really work well.Plants need some oxygen for themselves too, btw.Readhttp://www.mcps.k12.md.us/departments/eventscience/EBS.OS1_RS~DF.htmlhttp://www.hsv.k12.al.us/schools/middle/wtms/student/cell/cell_energy.htmlhttp://www.saburchill.com/chapters/summary02.html

Besides, the point is not that the oxygen isn't available, it is there, in the normal air, to more than 20%, theproblem is that it has to get to the mycelium, and it can't get there, if the jar is sealed.

I've found that the most tightly closed casings during regrow, turned out the best.In the post casing - pre pinning phase the CO2 levels should be high. This is best achieved by simply coveringthe casing container with aluminum foil or similar.It will get some air exchange (same as the jars with the aluminum foil lid), but the CO2 level will be high. That'swhat you want to achieve.

http://www.mcps.k12.md.us/departments/eventscience/EBS.OS1_RS~DF.html

http://www.hsv.k12.al.us/schools/middle/wtms/student/cell/cell_energy.html

http://www.saburchill.com/chapters/summary02.html



Cloning for Simple Mindsoriginal source: http://www.fungifun.org/English/Cloning

These instructions will guide you through the process of cloning a mushroom on agar.

Take a nice, healthy mushroom.

Tear the mushroom apart in the middle lenghtwise.

http://www.fungifun.org/English/Cloning



Flame the scalpell untill glowing red.Let cool for a few seconds.

Cut a small chunk from the cap base, measuring around 2 x 2 x 2 mm.



Transfer to agar.





Mycelium Inoculation Techniqueoriginal source: http://www.fungifun.org/English/Mycelium

This is a significant add-on of the PF-Tek which enables you to grow virtually hundreds of PF-cakes with onlyone spore syringe! Also the primordia will appear in as little as 16 days after inoculation! The key is first tocolonize a sterilized rye jar and then use this mycelium to make a mycelium syringe.

For the first part I basically use the The Foolproof Psilocybe cubensis Mycelial Culture Technique.

I use 100 g (3,2 ounces) rye + 105 g water + a knife tip of gypsum (optional) in a 450 ml (1 pint) jar.For more detail on grain preparation read Grain for Simple Minds.

There is way to prevent airborne contamination entering the jars. Take a clean plastic bag and spray the innerside with Lysol or alcohol. Rub it from outside so the Lysol is evenly dispersed on the inner surface of the bag.When the sterilization time is over, wait a few minutes for the pressure to build down to ambient. Then take aclean, folded cloth or thick gloves, open the cooker and transfer the (careful, burning hot!) jars to the bag(shake the rye jars at this stage to distribute the dryer and wetter kernels!).

Roll the rest of the bag together, so you get it pretty airtight.As the hot air in the jars is cooling down and its volume decreases, fresh (contaminated!) air from outside isdrawn in. This setup will accomplish that the contaminants from the air set down on the wet bag surface anddon't come into the jars!

The sterilization time should be 1 hour to assure complete sterilization. You should shake the rye jarsimmediately after spore inoculation and than once after 3-4 days and optionally again after 8 days. Theoptimum room temperature for incubation is about 27°C (80°F).

Now comes the best part!After the rye jars are completely colonized you will need:

At least one empty plastic syringe with needle, 10ml or moreA small (app. 200 ml) jar with a screw lid (I take one from a spaghetti sauce)Tin foilAlcohol lampA tea spoon

Punch a hole with a small nail into the middle of the lid. It has to be big enough for the needle of the syringefits through. Fill the jar with app. twice the amount of water you will need to fill the syringes. (for instancewhen you have three syringes with each 10 ml to fill, use app. 60 ml water). Screw the lid on and cover with adouble layer of tin foil, sterilize in a pressure cooker for 30 minutes and then handle according to the abovetips.

After the water jar has cooled down to room temperature prepare everything for the transfer of the colonizedrye to the water filled jar.Wash your hands, clean the working surface, take the colonized rye jar, loosen the lid of the water jar, butdon't take it off yet. Sterilize the already washed and Lysol-sprayed spoon over the flame of the alcohol lamp. Iuse to cool the hot spoon by dipping it in a small glass of alcohol, but you can also wait a few moments thespoon cools down. Then open the rye jar, the water jar and transfer 2 spoon full of colonized rye to the waterjar. This should obviously best be done under sterile conditions (in front of a HEPA filter or in a glove box), butif you work fast and in a draft free room you should accomplish this without contaminating the whole jar.Replace the lids back and screw them tight. The rye jar can be kept in a fridge at least three months and beused over and over again.

Take the water jar, put a finger on the tin foil where the hole is and shake it vigorously at least 3 minutes untilyou see many tiny mycelium pieces swimming in the water. Take a clean, sterilized syringe, sterilize the tip of

http://www.fungifun.org/English/Mycelium

http://en.psilosophy.info/pdf/hepa_filter_flowhood_(psilosophy.info).pdf



the needle over the flame and pull (holding the needle still in the flame) the plunger back 4 millimeters (1/5

inch). This will give you a little air bubble so later on you can shake the mycelium water prior to inoculation ofthe PF jars.

Remove the tin cover, hold the jar at an angle, insert the needle into water and pull the plunger until thesyringe is full. Be careful the syringe needle is clean and sterilized or you will contaminate the myceliumwater.

That's it! You can now use this syringe like you would use the spore-water one. You can keep the myceliumsyringes in the fridge at least 2 months.

Spore printingoriginal source: http://www.fungifun.org/English/SporePrinting

Wash your hands and work in a clean environment to perform the following steps:

take a clean material you want to print on (fresh typing paper, index cards, wax paper, tin foil, glassslides....)cut a opened, clean, mature cap off the stem as near to the gills as possible with a clean scalpel or knifeplace the cap on the printing material gills downcover the cap with a jar or glass or place the printing material in a plastic container (Tupperware...)with lid on.let sit for 12-24 hours at room temperaturepick up the cap, cover again and let the print dry for around 24 hourswhen the print is dry fold the print and tape the edges or leave it as is and put into a clean plastic zipbag.label and store in a dark, cold and dry place.

http://www.fungifun.org/English/SporePrinting

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fungifun for simple minds - en.psilosophy.infopsilosophy... · Fungifun for Simple Minds by Anno Table of Contents: Grain for Simple Minds Basic rye recipe for 1 pint jar Basic millet