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Paradoxical

Help with Oysters and potential ID

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I have recently started growing mushrooms, and have run into a potential problem and i need some help.

Let me explain:

I isolated a white oyster strain from a super market variety, and passaged this to grain in a jar.

Once the grain was colonised I used that jar to inoculate four other jars.

My technique was very sterile as I had access to an autoclave, and sterile room.

I then pasteurised some pea straw (following RR videos), and used the colonised grain jars to make four straw logs. three of these logs were placed into a plastic tub, and the fourth log was placed on top of the tub due to space. these were left in a room which does not get any direct sunlight and is pretty dark

the colonisation appeared to go well. I then had to go away on holiday for a week.

When I came back the log on the top had fruited with white oyster mushrooms - great!

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but the ones in the tub had not, and had a lot of what looked like aborted pins - I assumed that there was not enough air exchange in the tub (no holes)

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So i then brought some more tubs, filled them with water soaked perlite, and placed two logs in each bin. I have been giving frequent air exchanges with the lid.

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So now the good bit! The three other logs have started to fruit as well, but the mushrooms do not appear like white oyster mushrooms, they blue in colour on the top kind of like blue oysters.

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So is this contamination? or is it due to the different fruiting conditions ie light?

The original log that gave white oyster mushrooms, appears to still be fruiting the same type - i.e. not blue at all

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Has anyone else had this happen to them?

Has any one got any advice for me please?

Cheers in advance.

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post-8677-0-66398100-1445224329_thumb.jpg

post-8677-0-76885300-1445224035_thumb.jpg

post-8677-0-93840900-1445224044_thumb.jpg

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post-8677-0-34119300-1445224279_thumb.jpg

post-8677-0-66398100-1445224329_thumb.jpg

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To me it looks like still nowhere near enough air. When you say you've been doing air exchange...how many? How often?

The one that fruited first...was this just left out in the open air to fruit? Not in a tub at all?

Maybe as soon as you get a block to pin you should take it out of the tubs to mature the fruit.

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Yes the first one to fruit was just out in the open.

I have been three air changes a day, one in the morning, and two in the evening. So should I just leave the lids off the tubs? or just take them out of the tubs?

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I'd try having them out of the tubs altogether. You can still sit them on some damp perlite, maybe put that on the lid of the tub, upside down. Then sit the block on top of it. Re-wet the perlite as needed, maybe lightly mist the block too.

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Okay thanks.

What do you think about the different coloured mushrooms? Are they just different due to environment, or do i have a contamination?

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That largest mushroom appears to have contamination on it. If I were you I'd rip them off and then spray the whole block in a diluted bleach solution. Also, sniff what you rip off, if it smells bad, it is bad.

But that contam may have just flourished in the high humidity high CO2 environment, it might not take hold with more fresh air and lots of light (which you do have, I can see the windows).

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They aren't contams
I've had multiple white oyster strains do that. Especially from supermarkets. They taste awesome and are still oyster mushrooms. Have had some go a deep brown colour when I grew them mid summer outside. Think it's a response to lighting a little bit.
You need way more air than what you are giving them at the moment too. But they look healthy otherwise. Good job man. Give them way more air and they will reward you kindly.

I would not rip any mushrooms off. I didn't see any contam in the pics displayed

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Thanks ace1928,

Its good to know that this has happened to other people. They do appear to look like a form of oyster. I tried to isolate a single strain from the supermarket ones, and did two agar transfers, so I wasn't expecting to get much variation but I guess nature has a way of working its self out.

Cheers

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Yeh i've never figured out why it does it but it has happened before.
From whites and have also had some "blue" oysters from the super market go back to a white cap.
Gotta love the curve balls

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Hey mate, nice work on the first bag!

I've always read oysters are require an extreme amount of FAE.

Is this from the some isolate you gave me a plate of? If so I have three bags of nearly colonized as well as 3 buckets of woodchips! Roughly what temp did you get these to fruit at?

Sorry I'm asking you more questions than I'm answering!

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Hey Kierbob,

Yeah that is the same isolate that I gave you. I don't know exactly what temp they were are, I just placed them in the only really suitable place i had. My house is pretty cold though.

Good luck on getting those bags and buckets to fruit!

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Awesome Kierbob, thanks for the update pics!

After I gave my bags plenty of fresh air they have been fruiting like crazy!

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