Welcome to our guide on Common Myco Cultivation Terms! Whether you’re new to the world of mushroom cultivation or looking to expand your mycological knowledge, understanding these terms is essential for successful growth. From substrate to fruiting chamber, we’ll explore the terminology that forms the foundation of myco cultivation. Let’s dive in and demystify the language of mushrooms together!
Grain Spawn – Colonised grain which can be used to inoculate bulk substrate.
Liquid Culture (LC) – Nutrient rich water with mycelium growing inside.
Spore syringe – Syringe with distilled water and mushroom spores, the spores will not germinate in the distilled water until they reach nutrients.
PF Tek Kit – This is basically soil in a container that has been sterilised and can be inoculated with with a spore/LC syringe
Shotgun Fruiting Chamber – This is a tub, usually around 4l that has multiple holes drilled around all sides ( looks like it was shot with a shotgun) it is used to fruit PF Tek kits, usually has a layer of perlite at the bottom to keep in moisture.
Monotub – This in a large 20l – 80l tub that is used for bulk grows. Your bulk substrate + grain spawn mix is added to the monotub, it has 6 – 10 large holes in the sides filled with polyfill to allow for gas exchange.
Polyfill – A porous synthetic material often used to allow gas exchange while filtering out possible contaminants
Micropore tape – medical tape that is porous used to allow gas exchange while filtering out possible contaminants
BRF – brown rice flour , used to make PF Tek kits
Agar Plates – Petri dish with a nutrient rich substance that mycelium will grow on. Made in sterile conditions and can be used to clone mushrooms or grow out cultures to eliminate infection.
Cake – this is substrate / soil fully colonised with mycelium – usually referring to a pf tek kit.
Still Air Box (SAB) – This is a see through 80l tub with two holes in the side for your arms to go through. It is used to do sterile lab work such as making agar plates.
Spore Print – Once a mushroom reaches maturity it will drop spores, these spores can be collected sometimes on a petri dish or piece of tinfoil.
Cloning – A mushroom can be cloned in sterile conditions by cutting out a small piece of flesh from the center of the mushroom and growing it on an agar plate.
Sterilising – Sterilisation refers to any process that removes, kills, or deactivates all forms of life – in mycology this is achieved by using a pressure cooker that reaches 15psi – 121C
Pasteurisation – pasteurise means to reduce the amount of harmful competing organisms. When the process is over, there is still some micro-activity going on in the substrate, usually in the form of beneficial bacteria. It is achieved of heating substrate between 65c-75c for an hour
Grow bags – these are bags with a special filter patch in the bag allowing for gas exchange. These bags are used to make grain spawn and to fruit edible mushrooms. These are not needed in the growing of psilocybin mushrooms.
Injection Port – a rubber port that is used to inoculate through. Once the needle is removed from the port it seals itself preventing contamination.
Vermiculite – Vermiculite is a water-absorbing material used to retain moisture in mushroom substrates used in PF Tek kits and in bulk substrates.
Perlite – Perlite is a natural volcanic mineral that, when expanded, forms a coarse and porous granule with a large relative surface area. All the nooks and crannies in the perlite granules are able to hold water, which evaporates over time. This evaporation from the perlite is what allows for the high relative humidity in your fruiting chamber. It is not used in substrates.
