Mushroom cultivation is a fun yet difficult process. You must learn how to pick the right mushroom for you, find the right substrate, and gather supplies. However, this is made easier with the advent of mushroom grow kits. We must ask ourselves, after the growing process begins and the mushroom substrate is safely in its jar, how do you properly store mushroom substrate jars so that your mushrooms can grow properly? Read on to find out more. But first, we must understand various terms we'll use throughout this guide.
Terms You Should Know
Here are a few terms you should know before we get started with mushroom substrate jars. Make sure you read carefully:
- Mushroom mycelium is the body of the mushroom that grows underground. The fruiting body of the mushroom grows above the ground. The latter is the familiar cap and stem that you see in the wild.
- A mushroom substrate is a material that mushroom mycelium grows in. It's similar to the soil that plants grow in. It can be made of multiple materials, and we'll go through them below.
- Mushroom substrate jars are homes for your mushroom strain. It's where the mycelium colonizes the substrate.
Now that we've gone over the primary terms you'll need to know, let's move forward with some general rules of thumb when storing your jars. (Not sure which jar you have? See half-pint jars vs grain jars.)
Rules of Thumb
There are several rules of thumb to keep in mind when you're storing inoculated jars while they colonize. First, keep them out of direct sunlight. Colonizing jars don't need light at all, so a dark, clean, undisturbed spot like a closet, cabinet, or shelf in a closed room is ideal. Keep the temperature steady, ideally in the low-to-mid 70s °F; cooler temperatures slow colonization and heat spikes invite contamination.
Leave the lids on. Colonizing jars get the gas exchange they need through a filter patch or injection-port lid, so don't poke open holes in the lid, which lets contaminants straight in. Because the jars are sealed, they also don't need a humidifier during colonization; humidity matters later, once the cakes are birthed into a fruiting chamber.
Choose a clean spot. If you're going to put jars somewhere that doesn't get much traffic, clean the area thoroughly first, especially if you notice mold nearby. Airborne spores from other fungi are a common source of contamination.
Different Kinds of Substrate
There are many different kinds of substrate for your mushrooms.
Coffee grounds are a popular choice for growth, and if you have a coffee shop in the area, you should be able to get some from there. They often save their spent coffee grounds and could give you some for free.
Straw is both cheap and efficient. You can purchase it at farming stores. To prepare it for use, cut your straw into 3-inch pieces, put it in a laundry bag or another type of mesh bag, and pasteurize it by submerging it in water around 155 degrees Fahrenheit. Drain and squeeze. After this process, it should be ready to start the inoculation process.
Coco coir is made up of ground-up coconut husks. You can find it in most garden stores. Vermiculite helps hold moisture. Mixing coco coir and vermiculite is a classic base for bulk substrate — or use a ready-made bulk substrate.
Hardwood pellets are made from maple, beech, and oak. They make a phenomenal substrate for wood-loving mushroom types. However, you shouldn't use softwood pellets or sawdust as your substrate. People often supplement hardwood with bran, since the wood alone won't have enough nutrients for some mushroom types. See our wood-based substrates.
Manure isn't the most pleasant medium, but some mushrooms require it. It's typically mixed with coco coir and water. Our manure-based substrates come pre-pasteurized.
You can also use logs! Most hardwood varieties like birch, maple, and poplar work well. You'll need a log anywhere from 4 to 6 inches in diameter.
After Colonization
Once jars are fully colonized, they can be fruited as PF Tek cakes or used as spawn for a bulk grow. See our guide to growing mushrooms in substrate jars. Fully colonized whole-grain jars can also be held in a cool spot for a couple of months; read how to store colonized grain spawn.
Common Issues for Mushroom Growth
Mushroom cultivation is a delicate process that involves constant monitoring. Some issues associated with mushroom growth are contamination, too little light during fruiting, too much light, and temperature concerns. Sterilize all your tools and keep your environment clean ahead of time to discourage contamination. Once you move to fruiting, give your mushrooms around twelve hours of indirect light a day; automatic LED grow lights make this easy. Keep an eye on temperature with a thermometer and hygrometer, and you should be fine.
In short, to ensure that your mushrooms grow properly, there's a lot of knowledge you need to accumulate. However, using this short guide should help you tremendously. Here at Midwest Grow Kits, we offer the best cultivation kits in the industry to help you on your way.
