Mushrooms
Harder To Find Items
For Growing Magic Mushrooms
Organic Brown Rice Flour
1 or 2 pounds of organic brown rice flour will be enough for your first few crops. If you plan on doing things on a big scale you can get a larger amount. Obtain brown rice flour from a reliable source, most supermarket varieties are loaded with preservatives. Be sure the package says organic brown rice flour.
Because it is organic with no preservatives, the brown rice will be open to insect and bacterial attack, especially if it is stored for any amount of time. Always store organic brown rice in a well sealed light proof plastic bag or container, and keep it in a dry cool area that is well sanitized.
Vermiculite
8 quarts of vermiculite will be enough for your first few crops. If you plan on doing things on a big scale you can get more. If possible use the medium or large size (coarse grade vermiculite is best). Fine size vermiculite particles will work, but larger sizes allow the cakes to colonize faster.
Vermiculite is a alumino-silicate clay mineral that is mined and heated to expand the particles. It's sterile, soaks up 3-4 times its volume in water, and attracts nutrients such as calcium, magnesium, potassium, and phosphorous. Vermiculite itself provides no water or nutrients, but will retain the moisture and nutrients you add to the cakes.
1/2 Pint Tapered Wide Mouth Canning Jars
Canning jars are usually available at harvest time (autumn), but they may be hard to find at other times of the year. Try to get the 1/2 pint (about 8 ounces or 250 ml) size canning jars, there are two reasons for doing so. First, the smaller jars will colonize faster (quicker harvest).
Second, in this guide the directions for mixing the substrate (that will go into the jars) are written assuming that 1/2 pint jars are used. You can use 1 pint tapered jars with no problem, but you will have to double the amount of material that would go into a 1/2 pint jar.
Pressure Cooker
Try to get one that is 4 quarts or larger, the larger the better. You can get 3-6 jars (1/2 pint) inside a 4 quart pressure cooker, depending on the shape of the jars and the pressure cooker. Some jars are short and wide others are taller and thin. An eight quart will allow you to sterilize 8-12 jars (1/2 pint) at a time.
Make absolutely sure that you know how to use it, and that all seals, valves, and safety plugs are in working order. For most people this is the most difficult item to obtain. New pressure cookers start at about $40.00 each, high quality models cost more but will last longer. Look in the housewares section of a department store.
Pressure canners will allow you to work with a larger volume of jars, some of them even have built in racks, so a maximum number of jars can be sterilized in one session. But they are more expensive and can be difficult to find. Information is presented in this guide for steam sterilization so you can still get by without a pressure cooker or canner, if necessary.
Fruiting Chamber
Aquariums, camping coolers, and large plastic storage containers are examples of suitable fruiting chambers. When growing in a low light area where you will have to supply additional light, use something with a clear top for a fruiting chamber. Light will not be able to penetrate a dark top.
I use a plastic storage container that measures about 24 inches (width) by 18 inches (tall) by 18 inches (front to back) for 10 cakes. There is more than enough room. Most department stores have a good selection of plastic storage boxes for a reasonable price. Make sure to get something that won't let much air escape, or it will be hard to maintain a high humidity level.
Perlite
8 quarts of perlite is more than enough for a single fruiting chamber, it can be reused for years. When dirty, it can be cleaned by soaking it in hydrogen peroxide mixed with water for an hour or two. You can also add some hydrogen peroxide to perlite in the growing chamber to help it stay clean a bit longer.
By the time your cakes have stopped producing mushrooms, the perlite might start smelling bad. If you want to reuse it, put it in a baking pan and cook it at 350 degrees in your oven until it is dry. Let it cool, and it’s ready to be used again.
Perlite is a silicon-rich volcanic rock. It's mined and heated to expand the particles. It will soak up water. For our purposes, perlite is soaked with water, drained with a colander, and placed at the bottom of the fruiting chamber to raise and keep the humidity inside high.
Most people prefer coarse because it is easier to work with, but medium or fine perlite will do the job. If you only have vermiculate available, you can use it in place of perlite in the fruiting chamber.
I Overview II Equipment III Procedure IV Fruiting V Extras
Books Let's Grow Mushrooms!
If information found on the web and books is hard for you to follow, this movie is the alternative. While the intent of the video is to teach about growing all types of mushroom, most (if not all the info) can be applied to grow magic mushrooms.
Disk 1 contains clear instructions on growing mushrooms with brown rice flour, grain, straw, manure, or sawdust and wood chips. Disk 2 covers more advanced techniques. About 3.5 hours long on two dvd's.
Let's Grow Mushrooms! Psilocybin Mushroom Handbook:
Easy Indoor and Outdoor Mushroom Cultivation
Compared to previous mushroom growing books, this is a fairly easy to understand, accurate, illustrated guide to growing mushrooms that contain high concentrations of psilocybin (the primary chemical that produces intoxication when a person takes most types of magic mushrooms).
Based on Oss&Oeric, Psilocybe Fanaticus, and other growing methods. Takes the accumulated knowledge of growing magic mushrooms and puts them together in one book. Shows basic and reliable methods for growing psilocybin mushrooms that can be adapted as the grower gains experience.
This book was written for the first timer but and also has information that intermediate and advanced growers might benefit from. Primarily about growing indoors, there is a chapter about growing outdoors. About 200 pages with black and white images that illustrate the text being discussed. Includes 32 page section of color photos.
Psilocybin Mushroom Handbook
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