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1+2. Substrate selection:
Choose good quality straw or corn cobs of the last harvest.
Fresh wood chips, originating from deciduous trees, are suitable as well.
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3. Substrate preparation:
Keep the substrate in hot water (between 60 and 75 °C) for ½ hour.
Let it drain and cool down on a clean surface.
Put disposable gloves before touching the pasteurized substrate, in order to prevent recontamination.
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4. Inoculation:
Fill a clean plastic bag with 5 cm thick substrate-layers, between which spawn is crumbled.
Press well, in order to make intense contact between spawn and substrate.
A 2 liter- portion of spawn (= 1,4 kg) is sufficient for the inoculation of 50 kg of wet material.
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5. Incubation:
Cut the lower edges of the closed bag, and keep the substrate in the dark at 20-25 °C.
After 2-3 weeks, it will be fully colonised with white mycelium, and will have turned into a firm block.
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6. Fructification:
Remove the plastic, or make holes every 10 cm.
Place the substrate block in the light, protected from direct sunlight, and keep it humid e.g. by means of a garden hose with spray-nozzle. Temperature may vary between 5 an 20 °C.
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7. Harvest:
Mushrooms tend to appear in "flushes" or series, with intervals of 2-3 weeks.
The total yield is 10 to 20 % of the original weight of the wet substrate.
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