Should I remove the lid and attempt to remove as much as possible?

(There on a towel on top of a warming pad)

As I understand I can take a stem sample to agar and a wedge of mycelium from agar plate, if successful, and drop into brf jar.....is this correct? Pre-made agar plate recommendations??? I've heard LC is kinda 50/50 if I just drop a stem sample in it

Where are people getting culture syringes with top notch genetics?

I am so sick of TMU. He used to be awesome but I've had so many mishaps and straight-up nonsense with him lately. I tell him more than half his syringes are contam'd and he just tells me I'm idiot. I order high-end strains like Tidal Wave, and he automatically substitutes other strains that I don't want.

Agar and Breeding Topic: Understanding the Individuality of each Culture to Optimize Mycelium through Culture Training Procedures.

This is another topic that I also consider essential in understanding if you want to improve your agar game, either just for growing purposes (to improve grows), breeding (developing or enhancing the vigor and aggressiveness of a culture) or anything in between. Please note I will be focusing on the Agar portion of this topic, as I want to keep not terribly long).

First into some Basics on terminology I will be using:

Culture – I’m referring to a “named isolation or cross” on this case, to make this easier to Explain. For this example and purpose, I will be using Bluey Vuitton, as this one is a very popular culture that many are familiar with (by name etc.), but this applies to any variety.

Once a culture has been properly isolated (with consistent traits over time) and later spread to many diff growers, we as a community keep the same Culture name (BV on this example) even as we grow it over and over, and select from different filial generations and/or clone generations, many times having completely different traits than the base culture had upon receiving it (that’s normal and expected from all living things, including Mycelium).

Correct Naming is essential to keep track of each culture’s origins, so I fully abide to that, but it also makes people have a false believe, that each culture is identical if they share the same name

If we Take Bluey Vuitton for example, the Bluey Vuitton I have on my library may share the same name as another person’s Bluey Vuitton but the fact that we must remember is, those 2 Bluey Vuitton cultures are mostly bounded by coming from a Base BV culture (from the breeder), and each has traveled a different path to be on their present form.

And this presents us with the following dilemma: we want to treat them as if they were identical, just because they both have the same culture name, but we are leaving out the fact that each “sub-culture” (further isolation of the culture, further filial generation) is different even among the same “Culture”.

Due to my work and obsession with nutrients, I receive many daily messages that often include a long list of cultures, asking me to provide a response with the nutrient density of each of their cultures, but sadly my response always disappoints them when I have to reply back that each Isolation or Culture will be different even if they share the same name, including its nutrients needs or preferences, thus why I could only tell them for cultures specifically obtained from me vs being able to respond to their long list of Cultures.

Now let’s look into the reason for this:.

There are multiple reasons for this, including and not limited to:

1. Each Culture has been further isolated by each user of such Culture; either for different looking fruits, better flushing potential, faster colonization, etc..

2. Each Specific Culture has also been trained to the environment each user commonly utilizes for mycology (For example, most people stick with a specific agar formula, specific Bulk mix etc.).

This heavily affects the individual development of each culture, as much like us humans, mycelium also reacts differently to different environments, which inevitably start to enhance or transform a culture as a direct result of the environment and path is has gone through

(a good analogy would be to imagine 2 identical twins; one going to a heavy war for 5 years and surviving, while the other was living the dream and being cozy at home without much need to ever enter Survival Mode.

Or simply the same 2 twins, one living in the desert and one in a forest, you would expect those 2 twins to be vastly different, with different needs, preferences, depending on how life has molded them with time.

So if we can all acknowledge those 2 facts above, then the question becomes, how can we take this information and use it for our best benefit in Mycology?

1. We can focus on the individuality of each SPECIFIC culture that you have in your own Library (BV, GT JMF, etc.) – We can begin treating each culture as a completely unique organism, with different needs, different preferences, different metabolism / digestion speeds. And work with each and every Culture on your library, to really understand its specific needs (this includes the nutrient mix it prefers, the density it prefers of those nutrients and experimenting till you find what makes each specific culture reach its maximum potential. Again, this is if you want really optimized genetics,

I understand this is more advanced and not necessarily for new growers, but really a good point of focus if you are an experienced person on the field, or simply want to really optimize your favorite cultures (more on this below)..And the good thing is that a lot of this process can be done through agar work. There are also different criteria you might be looking to enhance depending on what you prioritize. For example, I tend to work on these criteria for each culture:

Robustness – Refers to the Vigor of the Mycelium. What I am for is strong and vigorous growth, which tells me the Mycelium has the optimal nutrient mix at its early stage (I don’t purposedly aim for Rhizomorphic, but I do acknowledge that many cultures at their optimal stage, can get very rhizomorphic, but that’s just an added benefit not the final goal.

There are signs I look for here such as:.

-Color Intensity of the Mycelium (tells if its close to its optimal nutrient mix and density)

-The Density of the Mycelium (if its all branched together, or spread apart, or looks fluffy, etc.

-Consistency of the Mycelium through testing on many agar plates. (I aim for mycelium that is very consistent and that doesn’t have too much variability within each plate (for example a Mycelium that starts with Strong White in the center of the plate but faded as it gets closer to the edge, tells me that the Mycelium is not at its optimal environment for Robustness.

Aggressiveness - Another criterion I really value is amping the aggressiveness of each culture, as there are many benefits of having a really aggressive culture (including faster colonization, more resistant to contamination and overall, a more efficient and quicker Cycle.

The good thing is, that I have found a culture aggressiveness in Agar, almost always translates to Aggressiveness in the later phases of the cycle, as mycelium on this Aggressive Mode, tends to stay Aggressive cause what is has been trained for, and what it sees as Natural so it becomes part of culture DNA, after these “Bio-Hacking” procedures have been completed and optimized.

Ending Thoughts and TLDR : In Summary, we need collectively stop thinking as Mycelium as one thing that is all identical and just an afterthought, and really learn to accept and love the uniqueness of each specific culture.

And we have to be cognizant of the fact that each and every “Culture” that we got will be different from someone Else “same culture” as both have traveled different paths, including if its gone through a Culture Enhancing Protocol (such as Biohacking) or lack of, which in turn will make for completely different culture preferences and needs, even for those with the same Culture Name.

Of course, there are other many criteria that enhance a culture, but I have found these 2 criteria likely account for most of the weight when it comes to Biohacking the mycelium to further improve a culture and our desired results with each of them. A subsequent post will touch on the Grow part of this process and how the 2 intertwine to bring the best out of each culture.

Mush love and Regards,

Humble

https://preview.redd.it/loenilid7kcd1.png?width=3375&format=png&auto=webp&s=81376aa3b90910c51e44a50487dcc371d8bb5b9a

Growing for the first time and wondering if I should use the Uncle Ben’s rice method or go for another since I have no experience? Or would it be better to order a grow kit that I can inoculate?

IS THIS BRUSING OR??

Hoping for some feedback before I innoculate. First time making grain spawn at home. Wild bird seed (no suet, insects etc), soaked overnight. Cooked for 15 mins or so. Drained and left to steam for a bit on tea towels. Loaded up the jars and cooked at 15psi for 90 minutes. Think it looks ok?

Let my second flush sit for waaaay too long (haven’t had access to them :/) Are theses still edible? Could I eat them? SHOULD I? Lmk! [actives]

What if when the law went into effect, there was also a national wide Purge like plot but with psilocybin instituted to take place one year from the day?

Something like a reactivating of a selective lockdowns, institution, businesses, and government closure where tens of millions took a voluntary and prepared for therapeutic dose for on a new holiday.

What do you think would happen?

I don't see this as a particularly political thought experiment. In fact I wouldn't mind a break from thinking about two old dudes for a few hours to center myself in preparation of this weeks mindfuck of memes, conspiracies, and headlines to come. Also its not often both parties agree to this extent on novel policy but they do about Pscily therapy. So if you find yourself wanting for hope, you're welcome.

How should I dry these? Could I just put it on a shelf and air dry ?

To anyone here who may be inexperienced and looking to experiment with psychedelics: I cannot stress enough that your current frame of mind going into taking mushrooms is likely the biggest factor in determining whether or not you have an enjoyable experience. This is probably something you’ve heard from many people that you might not take seriously, but fucking take it serious. This is some serious shit that can really fuck you up if you aren’t ready for what it’ll show you. I found that out the hard way today.

I’ve been growing a block of Penis Envy mushrooms for quite some time now and have tripped on this same organism multiple times, even taking significantly higher doses than what I took today. Yet, this trip was by far my most horrifying one.

For some perspective on why I did this: I’m in a very tricky situation in real life. I’m not in good shape mentally or physically. I’m lonely and don’t have much going for me. So, I thought I needed a big kick to get me out of a deep hole. I decided to take 3.5 grams tonight to prepare for a 10-gram dose tomorrow, to test the waters a bit. I also made tea using the lemon tek

So, 5 minutes after taking them I tell my grandma I’ll go in the room and let her know when I feel anything. Then, it hit me. I felt extremely scared. It was like the fear you get just before going on a rollercoaster when you try to get the operator to let you off, but he doesn’t. Yeah, that kind of fear.

Ten minutes later, I ran to the bathroom, trying to puke up whatever was in me before it could fully take effect. Then I went to the couch to try to rest. By 25 minutes in, I was feeling the effects strongly, so it must have fully absorbed, despite my efforts to throw it up.

I started scanning through my memories of things I’d read about psychedelics inducing schizophrenia, and this terrified me even more. It was a fierce battle to hold onto my sanity and recognize that I was just under the influence of mushrooms, and that my mind was not permanently damaged. My grandma, sitting next to me, asked if I was seeing visuals (she had tripped the day before and seen plenty of kaleidoscopic things), to which I replied no. I had no open-eye visuals, only closed-eye ones.

I then convinced myself that the psilocybin must have interacted with my brain in just the right way, at the exact time and circumstances necessary, to fry my brain and turn me insane. I believed I had done permanent damage to my brain. I quickly closed my eyes, counted internally, and breathed in and out rhythmically, repeating the mantra “I’m okay” to myself. At this point, I was really about to lose it. I couldn’t escape because when I closed my eyes, I felt like I was being stretched thin upon the endless geometry waiting for me. So I kept them open, but my eyelids were extremely heavy, it was a battle.

Meanwhile, a children’s cartoon ‘the backyardigans’ was playing (apparently my recommendation), saying a ton of trippy stuff. I was absolutely bombarded by synesthesia, and the colorful words and playful tunes were making my insanity meters go even higher. I felt like I was about to become one with the cartoon, just existing as a humorous concept within pixels.

After a few minutes of feeling like a fool, I decided I needed to get out of the living room. I moved to my room and played some calming music, which gave me something to focus my attention on. This helped me through the next hour or two, with some challenging thoughts and introspection regarding my current state in life. Eventually, I went to my bedroom and lay down. I was so exhausted. My mind felt like it had been put in a blender. I didn’t know if I would be sane tomorrow, or not. It didn’t matter, I lost the energy to think about it.

Lying there, I saw blankets of eyeballs (which I perceived as the personification of my own weirdness manifesting), beautiful geometric shapes, and finally, the universe’s ugliest creature.

It was an eyeless flesh-and-trash monster with mouths all over its body, skin embedded with occasional tin cans or pieces of garbage. Each one of its thousands of mouths hung open, and it moved as if embedded in a tsunami of trash. It was riding a wave of trash—an infinitely fractal wave. Surprisingly, this wasn’t the scariest part of the trip. It was one of the more humorous bits. I was simply astonished that my own mind could create something so ugly. I felt that I had offended myself, and that was hilarious to me.

Then, finally, it was over.

Im still considering that 10g dose, but I’ll be rescheduling that for a month.