Mushroom Liquid Cultures: How, Why and Where to Buy (2024)

FAQs

How do you make liquid mushroom cultures? ›

To make liquid culture, mix a sugar source (like light malt extract or honey) with water, sterilize the solution, and then introduce mushroom mycelium. Use a canning jar with an airport lid for the culture and a pressure cooker for sterilization.

This procedure is written to be used with a single US quart-size jar, but can easily be used with smaller jars. Taller jars may be used, but you may experience difficulty in withdrawing the culture into syringes. If using this procedure for more than one jar, maintain the ratio of 9 ml of nutrients to 300 ml of water.

How do you make a liquid culture solution? Most growers agree that 4% sugar to water is the best ratio, but anywhere from 3% to 5% will be fine. The amount of water and nutrients required will depend on the size of your jars. But generally, aim to fill your jars to around 80%.

How much of my mushroom liquid culture syringe should I inject into my research substrate? You should inject 5cc (or mL) of your MYYCO syringe into your research substrate. Too much can cause too damp of an environment and create mold or rot and too little will not allow for proper microscopic research.

Within 7 – 14 days you'll see the mycelium has 'clouded' the culture and expanded throughout; this is aided with semi-regular mixing/shaking. This can be achieved by use of a magnetic stirrer, a bolt in the bottom or just swirling by hand. Things you'll need: AirPort Jar – Here is my guide on how to make them.

While liquid cultures can be stored for many months, we recommend using them within six months for the best results. In our experience, liquid cultures of nearly any variety can grow even after a year of storage in the refrigerator.

Liquid culture is best stored in the fridge at 2-4 ° C once the syringes arrive. The syringes can be stored unopened in the fridge for up to 3 months. Liquid culture syringes that contain Pink Oyster mycelium should not be stored in the fridge. Pink oyster mycelium do not fare well is stored cold long term.

Inoculating Grain from a Syringe

Then you can quickly lift the lid of the grain jar and inject the syringe. The first bit of liquid will cool down the syringe. Usually about 1 – 2 CC's of liquid culture is sufficient per quart sized grain jar.

A good liquid culture will often be a tiny bit cloudy and then clear up. This is because the bacteria starts to grow a tiny bit but the mycelium is so far ahead that it scours the liquid culture of bacteria and particulates and then dominates it (mycelium has been fighting bacteria like this for millions of years).

How do you know if liquid culture has gone bad? ›

Cloudiness: A clear liquid culture should remain transparent. Cloudiness or turbidity can indicate the presence of bacteria or fungal contamination.

Several hours of spinning could be harmful. After spinning new LC for about a week at 7 minutes a day, your LC is ready for testing on an agar dish. I like using 60 mm dishes, small and will tell you if the culture is clean and healthy. Hopefully your LC is clean and can be stored in the fridge for 6 months use.

Mycelium will incubate anywhere from 70-86 degrees Fahrenheit depending on the specific strain. Allow the bag to fully colonize (turn completely white). This should take 10-14 days at warmer temperatures, or 16-21 days at temperatures around 70 degrees.

For oyster mushrooms and shiitake, a simple recipe is tap water + maple syrup. Simply add 1 tsp of pure maple syrup to 1 cup of hot water, give it a mix and add it to your jars with airport lids screwed on. I try to fill my liquid culture jars fairly close to the top, leaving about 5cms (2 inches) of air.