In this section I will just give a brief description of the growing process before I get into the actual details of it. First off: Sterilization - Sterilization is a very important part of mushroom cultivation, but not as important as most people think. What I mean by that is the fact that there are literally billions of foreign contaminate spores floating around in the air where you are now. If some of these spores get into your substrate jars they can easily kill your young mycelium (the mushroom plant). If we just use some common sense during the process of cultivation we can easily block out 90% of these foreign spores, that means the ultra sterile complicated methods (inoculating hoods, etc.) only block out some of the last 10% of the contaminates. I don't mind the 10% odds of my having contaminated cultures. With those odds I will lose approximately 1.2 jars per dozen, not too bad. Even with the complicated methods and setups I've tried I lose that many cultures, so I've decided to bypass the complicated process - thus simplicity.
         In my process, a mixture of organic brown rice flour, vermiculite and water are mixed in a bowl and spooned into glass canning type mason jars (15 minutes work). These jars are placed in a covered pot of boiling water until sterile (about 60 minutes). After they have cooled down to room temperature they are inoculated with spores (20 minutes work). At this time the jars are just placed under your bed, on a shelf in a closet or in a drawer and left alone for approximately three to four weeks. When this time period is up the jars should be colonized with mycelium (a white mold), they are then opened up and the contents are mixed with potting soil in a tray, similar to a Rubbermaid or Tupperware size shoebox, and left alone for another week. Soon, some or most of the surface of the soil will probably be covered with the white mycelium and possibly dozens of mushrooms in their beginning stages of growth.
         At this stage in the process all that is needed now is a once or twice a day misting of water (with a hand sprayer) to keep the soil moist, and the picking of all matured mushrooms. It is a very easy process to grow mushrooms using this method.
         Most books and manuals dedicated to mushroom cultivation are based on laboratory processes, are very complicated and not easily understood by the inexperienced cultivator. It is for this reason I have decided to write this guide. Hopefully it will help shed some of the fears new growers may have about not "knowing enough" to be successful. I recommend that when you are successful in cultivating of your crops that you take at least one of your mature mushrooms and make another sporeprint with it to replace the one that you used. This way you can always start a new crop whenever you desire or if you pass this guide on to someone else (with one of your sporeprints) they will have the spores required to try this cultivation process themselves. Full directions will be given at the end of this guide on how to make your own sporeprints. Good Luck !!

"SUPPLIES REQUIRED"

            * Organic Brown Rice Flour: This *flour can be found in almost any health food store and some larger upscale grocery stores even carry it. It usually comes in a two-pound bag and costs about $3.00. Make sure that the bag has the words "Organically Produced" on it, this is very important. A two-pound bag will be sufficient to make about three dozen (36) half pint culture jars.  If your local "Health Food" store does not carry this type of flour they will probably order some for you if you ask them to.
* ADDITION May 12, 2000: If you can't find brown rice flour you can substitute it with either soy flour or rye flour as long as it states "Organically Produced" on the package, but I have had my best success using the brown rice flours.

            * Vermiculite: This is a product that can be found almost anywhere garden supplies are sold. I buy mine at either a K-Mart or Wal-Mart garden department and a huge bag costs under $4.00. Its purpose is to retain moisture and help keep the soil from becoming too tightly compacted.  If at all possible I recommend you purchase the "course" vermiculite instead of the fine type.  If you can't locate any vermiculite where you live I recommend substituting it with perlite which is much easier to find.

            * Hand Spray Bottle: I buy mine at K-Mart in the health and beauty section. Make sure it has an adjustable nozzle so you can spray a fine mist with it. These cost less than $1.00 each (buy 2).

            * Canning Jars: You will need to purchase a case (one dozen) of 1/2 pint or 1 pint canning jars which are also called jelly jars, Kerr jars or Mason jars. These can be found in about every major grocery or hardware store and cost around $6.00 to $9.00 a dozen. Make sure they are "wide mouth", meaning the top of the jar is larger (or as large)  as the bottom of the jar - this is so the contents will simply slide out of the jar when ready (1/2 pint = 8 ounces and 1 pint = 16 ounces).
* ADDITION January 6, 2004: It may be hard to locate these jars in some of the colder states during the winter months because most stores pull them off of the shelves to make room for their winter related stock items.  You can ask a store employee if they have any in their back storage room or if they can order any for you.  If this does not help you will need to wait for winter to end when the stores restock their shelves.

            *Plastic Trays: These can be purchased in K-Mart or WalMart and are about the size of a standard shoebox with a snap on lid. I purchase mine in the K-mart kitchen storage utensil area. They are called Modular Storage Containers made by “Aero Housewares” (stock #3515).  They are 13" x 7-1/2" x 6" high and come in packs of five for $4.89.  WalMart also sells a similar tray that is 13.5” x 8” x 4” high made by a company called “Sterilite” (stock #1852) for less than $1.00 each.  If you can't find these exact brands, any similar sized type will do as long as it has a lid on it.

            * Potting Soil: This is just a small bag of potting soil, which can be purchased, also at (you guessed it) the K-Mart or WalMart garden section for $1.00 or less. This is the same type of dirt you would purchase to grow most house plants in.  Do not purchase any potting soil that has fertilizers or nutrients already added to it.

      .This is the complete equipment list you will need to buy for cultivating mushrooms in your own home, the total cost is under $20.00 and you should have very little problem locating any of these items. Everything else you will need, with the exception of spores, can usually be found around your home and is listed below:

               * Small Knife: This can be any small sharp knife that has a pointed end on the blade. It will be used to scrape the spores from the sporeprint into the jars (this is not required if you are using a spore syringe).
            * Bleach: This will be used to sterilize the work area. Lysol spray is excellent for this task but bleach is 1/10 of the price and also it is non-flammable.
            * Water: This can be tap water, distilled water, drinking water, spring water or filtered water. The only water we can't use is water that has been softened using a salt water softener or saltwater itself.
            * Large Pot with Lid: This just needs to be what it sounds like, a large pot with a lid on it. The larger the better but as long as it is high enough to put the lid on with the canning jars inside it is fine. This will be used to boil (sterilize) the jars in (This is not needed if you have access to a pressure cooker).
* Aluminum Foil or Duct Tape: Either one of these will work, but it is very important for successful cultivation to use one or the other (see casing section).

"INOCULATING"

      This is the first, and one of the most important steps in the process. What we will be doing here is mixing the substrate, which is the nutritional food for your fungi (a sort of synthetic cow-poop without the smell), and putting it into the individual canning jars. These jars are then boiled in a covered pot of water to sterilize and kill any germs or foreign spores that may have gotten in during the mixing process. After being removed from the boiling pot of water and allowed to cool down to room temperature, these jars are then opened and some spores are scraped inside from the sporeprint and the jar lid is then replaced. If you are using a spore syringe for your inoculation the lid will not need to be removed, but instead two holes will be poked in it with a thumbtack or small nail.
      Step 1: Remove the jars from the box they were purchased in, wash them in warm soapy water, rinse well and dry. In a large mixing bowl measure 3 cups of "organically produced" brown rice flour and eight cups of vermiculite. Mix these two dry ingredients together with a large spoon until they are well combined, then add 3 cups of water (see addition #1 below) and continue mixing until everything is equally mixed and there are no dry spots. Spoon this mixture loosely (do not pack tight) into 12 one half pint or 6 one pint canning jars equally. Wipe the rims of the jars clean with your hand or a paper towel and screw the lids back on tight (with the rubber seal facing down).
   ADDITION #1: This additional step is not necessary, but it will help your crop to produce up to 25% more mushrooms. If you take one cup of the water and before you add it to the dry mix in the bowl bring it to a boil in the microwave. When you take it out of the microwave, while it is still hot, immediately stir in one teaspoon of honey (any kind, but organic is best). Then add the water to the dry mix in the bowl (along with the rest of the water) and stir as directed. What this honey does is add more nutrients and dextrose (sugar) to your substrate which is just more FOOD for the mycelium to consume (meaning more shrooms).
      Step 2: Lie a washcloth in the bottom of the pot you will be using so your glass jars will not actually sit on the metal bottom .  Place as many jars as will fit into the pot (standing up) without forcing.  If the pot you will be using is tall enough to stack the jars on top of each other it is alright to do so. Slowly add water to the pot until the level comes up about halfway on the jars (2" to 3" deep). Place the pot on a burner and bring it slowly to a boil using medium high heat. Put the lid on the pot, reduce heat to medium low to keep a low boil going and leave it alone for 60 minutes. When the 60 minutes are up carefully remove the pot from the burner and "leave the lid on" until the pot is warm to the touch without burning your hand (do not be tempted to peek under the lid). When the pot is warm to the touch, remove the lid, remove each jar one at a time and retighten the lids down immediately, this is to keep invading spores from entering the jars through any lids that may have become loose during the boiling process. If you could not fit all twelve jars in the pot at one time, you can now repeat this process as many times as it takes to get all of your jars sterilized.
      
      Step 3: Once you have all of your jars sterilized and they have been allowed to cool down to room temperature (just sit them on a shelf overnight) it is time to place the spores inside. It is a good idea to let your jars sit on a shelf for three days if possible (after sterilizing, but before adding the spores) just to make sure that all contaminates in the jars were destroyed during the boiling process. After the three days are up ,and if you don't see any mold growing inside your jars (usually a green or black color), it is a safe sign to proceed with your spore inoculation. This three day wait is not really necessary, but it is better to find out if your jars are sterile before you add the spores than to find out later and possibly lose your spores to a foreign contaminate.  This is the point in the process where you just use common sense when it comes to being sterile. Since the air is full of millions of spores all around you and it is almost impossible to get rid of them, the next best thing you can do is to kill them. Find a small room that is fairly clean, a kitchen is fine, where you will be wanting to do your transfer of spores. Turn off all fans, heaters and air conditioners so the air in the room is sitting still. On a clean counter or table place the following items:

      Step 4: Adjust the nozzle on the bleach/water spray bottle to a fine mist and spray the air in the room to kill any airborne bacteria and spores (see addition #3 below). After the mist has settled for a few minutes it is time to inoculate (plant seeds in) the jars.  NOTE: If you are going to inoculate with a spore syringe, skip the rest of Step 4 and go now to Step 4A. While you are doing this it is a good idea to either hold your breath or tie a scarf over your mouth and nose so you don't breathe germs into the jars while the lids are off (about 15 seconds for each jar).  First you will need to take the thumbtack or nail and poke two small holes, one on each side of the jar lid across from each other near the edge (without removing the lid from the jar).Use the cigarette lighter to heat the point of the knife until it is almost red hot and then let it cool back down to room temperature which should take a couple minutes. Making slow moves, to keep from causing a breeze, you can now take the lid off of the first jar and lie it upside down on top of one of the other jars so you will have both hands free. Open your sporeprint, hold it at a sharp angle over the open jar and with the tip of the knife scrape a small amount of spores on top of the substrate in the jar, immediately replace and tighten the lid. Breathe.  Now take one of the paper coffeepot filters, center it on top of the jar lid you just inoculated, fold the excess filter down around the sides of the jar and secure it in place with a rubberband. Repeat this process until you have inoculated all of the jars. As far as how many spores to use; If you can see "any" spores fall into the jar, that is sufficient. It usually takes an area of sporeprint about the size of a match head to inoculate each jar. Move on to Step 5.
   ADDITION #3: It is a good idea to cover your sporeprint with an upside down bowl before spraying the bleach/water in the room. The bleach/water can kill the spores if it is allowed to get on the sporeprint. After you spray the room please wait several minutes before removing the bowl covering the sporeprint, this will give the bleach/water spray time to settle in the room. It is also a good idea to wear light color clothing since the spraying of the bleach water could possibly put spots on your dark clothing.
      Step 4A: This step is only required if you are using a spore syringe for your spore inoculations.  First you will need to take the thumbtack or nail and poke two small holes, one on each side of the jar lid across from each other near the edge (without removing the lid from the jar). Carefully stick the syringe needle  into the first  hole you just made and squirt about 1/2cc of spore solution between the glass side of the jar and the substrate. Remove the syringe needle from the hole and do the same thing in the other hole you made. Now take one of the paper coffeepot filters, center it on top of the jar lid you just inoculated through, fold the excess filter down around the sides of the jar and secure it in place with a rubberband. Continue this process until all of your substrate jars have been inoculated with spore solution.
      Step 5: Place the inoculated jars on a shelf in a closet or in a dresser drawer and leave them alone for at least three weeks. You can look in on them if you wish from time to time to check their progress but "never" take off, loosen the lid or remove the filter.  One important thing is to keep these "inoculated jars" in a very dark place if at all possible while they are colonizing with mycelium.   Mycelium grows very good in total darkness but most contaminates need light for survival (for photosynthesis).  By keeping your jars in a dark place it is very hard for contaminates to survive.  I keep my jars in a cardboard box with the top folded closed. The progress you are looking for is a pure white mold growing on the substrate in the jar. This is the mycelium (mushroom plant) which will one day put out lots of fruits we call mushrooms. If any color of mold is noticed growing in the jars other than the white color of the mycelium, that jar is contaminated and (see addition #4 below) sometimes must be destroyed. All that means is you have to dump the jar out, wash it over and use it again. The jars you purchased can be used dozens of times, over and over, but you will need to purchase new lids each time from the same store your jars were purchased in. These jars of mycelium will grow in almost any temperature in your house as long as it is comfortable for you, usually that is somewhere in the high 60's to the high 80's. This white mycelium will first start growing on the surface of the substrate and then begin working its way down the sides of the jar. When it has grown to a point that the mycelium has colonized at least 80% of the jar it is alright to go ahead and case the jars in the fruiting trays, which forces the mycelium to grow mushrooms.  Waiting for your jars to colonize 100% is recommended, but it takes longer and can be bypassed (I know how anxious you are to see the fruits of your labor).
   ADDITION #4: A contaminated jar is not necessarily a lost jar. I recommend that if you see a foreign mold (usually green or black) growing inside your jar, just leave it alone for a while in a dark place. Most of the time when these two molds meet (your mycelium and the contaminate) your mycelium will kill the contaminate and your jar will survive. If the contaminate takes over and kills the mycelium, then it is time to dump the jar out.  By keeping a jar in total darkness it will help weaken the contaminate and give strength to the mycelium.

"CASING"

         In this phase of the growing process we will be going over how to introduce the mature mycelium to soil in preparation for fruiting. It is a very easy process and the sterility is not of great importance anymore because the mycelium in your jars is mature at this point and is fairly strong and capable of fighting off most invading contaminate spores and bacteria on its own from this point on.  This does not mean sterility is not important, because it is, but just not as important as most people are led to think.
      Step 1: The supplies you need to get together for this step are, the potting soil, the vermiculite (you should have a lot left over), a spray bottle of plain water, a large mixing bowl, a large spoon, your plastic trays with lids, the substrate jars with the mycelium growing in them and either aluminum foil or duct tape. Make sure you have all of these supplies in one place before you begin the next step.
      Step 2-A: In the mixing bowl, add one and one half cups of potting soil plus one and one half cups of vermiculite. Mix these ingredients together using the large spoon until they are well combined. Using the spray bottle of plain water, lightly spray the mixture and stir with the large spoon several times until the mixture is moistened to field capacity, meaning that if you take a handful of this mixture in your hand and squeeze it into a ball it will hold its shape but no water will drip out. We want the mixture moist but not saturated.   If you accidently add too much water you can add small amounts of dry soil until the moisture content is corrected.
Step 2-B: Take each of your plastic growing trays and cover all four sides with either duct tape or aluminum foil from top to bottom (I prefer duct tape because it stays in place).  The purpose of this is simple and very important for successful fruiting.  Mycelium does not use light for photosynthesis like plants do, but they do need some light. Mycelium grows under the soil but does not produce mushrooms until it sees light. Seeing this light tells the mycelium that it has reached the surface of the soil so it can grow mushrooms.  It is this "light trigger effect" that keeps mushrooms from growing under the soil where they would be wasted.  If light is allowed to shine through the sides of your trays, where it would actually be shining below the top of the soil, you will get mushrooms growing below the soil (something you do not want to happen).  By blocking light from shining through the sides of your tray, with either aluminum foil or duct tape, you will make sure that all of your shrooms grow upwards above the soil.  Doing this will also make sure that your mushrooms grow in different places throughout your tray.  If light is allowed to shine through the sides of your tray you will only have mushrooms growing around the sides of your tray and not in the center resulting in smaller harvests.
      Step 3: Dump this soil/vermiculite/water mixture into one of the trays and spread it level on the bottom (at least one inch deep) but do not pack it down. Remove the lids from two or three of your colonized substrate/mycelium jars and dump the contents on top of the soil mixture on the bottom of the tray. Using freshly washed hands, crumble the mycelium/substrate cakes into small pieces (about the size of marbles) and spread them out into an even layer on top of the soil/vermiculite/water layer.
      Step 4: Put 3 cups of plain potting soil into the mixing bowl. Using the spray water bottle and the large spoon, spray and mix back and forth until your soil as reached the field capacity stage (as described in step 2). Pour this into the tray on top of the crumbled mycelium/substrate cakes and spread level with the spoon or your cleaned hands. What you should have now is a three layer sandwich. Bottom layer being premoistened soil/vermiculite, center layer being crumbled up mycelium/substrate cakes and top layer being plain premoistened soil. Put the lid on the tray and repeat this process with your other jars and trays until you have all of your jars cased.
      Step 5: Place these filled and covered trays in a closet, under your bed or in a dresser drawer and leave them alone for seven days at room temperature. They do not require any light or watering during this time, but if they do get light it is alright, its just not necessary.

   ADDITION #5:  This step is not necessary but it could help you have a better chance of harvesting a nice crop.  The soil that you will be using in your fruiting trays can easily be sterilized by spreading it onto a cookie sheet and baking it in an oven at 325 degrees for 15 minutes before you add the vermiculite and water to it.   By doing this you will kill any contaminates that could be hiding in it from when you purchased it.  Remember, sterility is always important when cultivating mushrooms of any kind.  By taking the extra time to be careful you could possibly be saving yourself from losing everything to a foreign contaminate attack.

"GROWING SHROOMS"

         This is the last and final phase of the cultivation process; it is also the easiest and most fun because it is the actual growing and picking of the mushrooms themselves. We have now waited five or six weeks to get to this point and I know that everyone is excited about finally being able to see the fruits of their labor.
      Step 1: It is now time to remove the lids from your trays and let the fungi breathe some fresh air. By now you could have some white fungi (mold) growing across the surface of the soil. This is your mature mycelium looking for a place to have its babies (mushrooms).  If there are no signs of mycelium growing on the surface of the soil it is not a sign of failure.   Remove the lids from your trays and put them away, we will no longer need them until it is time to reuse the trays for another crop.
STEP 1-B: This is something newly added to my grow guide. Even though I wrote this guide over 15 years ago I'm still finding new ways to help people receive better results and larger harvests. This is something I thought of almost a year ago, but I didn't want to let everyone know about it until I experimented with it and was sure it worked (it does).
   This new step involves purchasing an extra tray, identical to the one you are casing your mycelium in. When you are ready to remove the lid on your tray, after the seven day waiting period, you should replace it with the extra "empty" tray you purchased. This empty tray should be placed upside down on top of your cased tray (forming a sort of dome over your cased tray). What this will do is help form a high humidity atmosphere directly above the soil and at the same time it will give your mushrooms room to grow without hitting the bottom of the lid. All you will need to do after this is to lift your lid every two days and give the soil two or three good sprays of water (and harvest any mature mushrooms). Below is a picture showing the new setup addition.