Monotub Grow Guide
Step One: Inoculation
Getting Your Substrate Sorted
There are two components of substrate with your Monotub grow kit. The smaller, millet grain bag is what we need to use for inoculation. The larger soil-looking substrate needs to be set aside in a cool, dark and dry place away from any dust or dirt.
Prepare Your Millet
Take your smaller millet grain bag and use the alcohol swab provided to wipe the grey inoculation patch clean. Do not disinfect the air filter patch or the needle with this as it will affect your grow.
Add Your Spores
Take your 10ml spores and shake them briefly. Remove the end cap and apply the needle to the end of the syringe. When you’re ready, inoculate the full number of spores into the millet grain bag
Get Mixing!
Leave the bag for 20-30 seconds for the self-healing injection port to heal over before giving the bag a quick mix up to distribute the spores in the bag. When handling the bag, be careful not to touch the air filter patch as this can degrade the area and allow for contaminants to make their way in.
Mixing and drawing air into the bag prior to inoculation will aerate the substrate and allow the mycelium to grow and colonise faster. Do not attempt to remove the filter patch or open the bag at this stage. The white filter patch is there to allow air exchange whilst keeping contaminants out.
Step Two: Incubation
Incubate the Bag
You need a warm, dark place for your grain bag to reside in order for it to build up it’s white fluffy mycelium. For this, we’d recommend using a heat mat to keep the temperature between 24-27c for your Gourmet Mushrooms.
Getting the Heat Right
Place your bag, preferably in a fruiting chamber or plastic chamber, on top of your heat mat. If there is a temperature probe, ensure it is kept underneath the bag itself, whilst in direct contact with the heat mat. This will make sure the temperatures are accurate.
Keep it Dark!
We recommend keeping the bag in complete darkness, with adequate air flow to allow FAE (fresh air exchange).
Full Coloniation
Check in on the bag after 10-14 days, and if the bag has less than 80% of it’s surface covered with white, fluffy mycelium- give it a mix up and leave it for another 7-10 days. Repeat this until you have a bag which is 80% colonized and ready for the next step.
Please note that if you feel as if your bag is being slow to colonize, it Is likely to be due to the environmental conditions. We recommend reaching out to us so we can support you further with this!
Step Three: Fruiting
PRO TIP!
This step can be tricky, and if this is your first time with a Monotub please do not hesitate to reach out to us with any questions you may have.
We would strongly recommend you research your species of mushrooms before putting them to fruit as some may require drops in temperatures.
Prep Your Monotub
Get your Monotub chamber ready, using 70% Isopropyl Alcohol spray to clean it our prior to use.
Break up the millet grain within the bag to get it ready for the next step.
Add Your Substrate
Open the bag of CVG which we set aside for this step and add a 1-1 1/2 cm layer of this to the bottom of the tub. It helps to keep this layer away from the walls of the Monotub if possible, to prevent water gathering on the brick itself which can be a hotspot for contamination.
Add the Mycelium
Sprinkle the mycelium on top of this layer, and sandwich it with another thinner layer of CVG. Keep going like this until there is no mycelium left. Make sure to leave enough CVG to add as a final layer on top of the brick to seal the mycelium in.
Get Your Lighting Right
Add the lid to the monotub, and ensure it receives low, indirect lighting to encourage fruiting. Do not mist or interact with the chamber for 24-48 hours. If the chamber mists up and water droplets accumulate, it should be okay to leave, however if it gets dryer than this you will need to mist the brick.
Get Misting
We recommend misting the brick once a day if needed, and fanning it every day to ensure adequate FAE. Monotubs rely on the users knowledge on when to mist, when to fan or when to leave it alone, therefore we recommend Monotubs to advanced mycologists only. That said, if you feel a little out of your depth please reach out to us with images and we should be able to assist you further!
Things to Remember
We don’t recommend pushing this “lasagna” down too much as this will remove the bubbles of air sandwiched within the layers. A light tapping down would be perfect to ensure it keeps its shape.
At this stage, due to the increased interactions between you and the project, contamination can occur. We would recommend keeping an eye out for it and removing it if you spot any. If you’re ever unsure, contact us as contamination will spread quickly. At this stage, any contamination you encounter will be environmental so may indicate you’re misting it too much, or not giving it enough FAE.
Step Four: Harvesting
Harvest Time
Typically, you should see pinning begin around 5-7 days after moving your project into the above conditions. However, for some species it can take longer.
After the mushrooms start pinning, they should mature within 5-7 days. They will not be uniform; therefore, some will mature faster than others. We recommend harvesting them prior to them opening their caps and spreading spores, as this can open the door for contamination.
Multiple Flushes
Expect 2 to 3 flushes (crops) of mushrooms per cake. Don’t throw the cake away after the first flush, there’s plenty more to come!
We would recommend you keep misting and fanning the project required. Your grow is finished once mushrooms no longer grow or the substrate eventually succumbs to contaminated.
Dispose of the spent substrate in a compost heap.
