Growing Mycelium Experiment


For the mycelium experiment, the end result was not as expected but I think this is because the mycelium requires perfect conditions for it to grow successfully.

When my partner and I were first getting the mycelium activated, I was a little skeptical because the mushroom spores are really tiny so we couldn’t see them. All I saw was the hemp and I was curious to see how tiny spores were to grow and eventually encapsulate all the hemp. After activating the mycelium with water and flour, we let it sit in a cool and dark place while following the directions. When it was 4-5 days later, we were able to fill our molds with the growing mycelium. We knew that the spores must have been activated because when we looked, at the bag, there was water inside so that meant that the mushrooms were alive.

After filling our molds, I chose an empty honey bear container, we let our mycelium grow. However, the directions didn’t specify what environment to let our molds to sit in so I let mine sit on my desk. I moved it around a little but I don’t think my desk was a very good spot for the mycelium because I don’t think it grew very well.

After about 2 weeks of letting the mycelium sit inside the mold, I looked closer and I wasn’t sure if I saw growth or not. It was definitely not all white like the pictures and instructions. The mycelium didn’t look like it grew much at all. Part of me was worried because I had stuffed the honey bear with a lot of mycelium but it didn’t fit into all the crevices of the mold. For example, the mycelium mixture wasn’t packed completely in the face of the bear. But I did look a little closer and I saw some brown strings of something in the mold. I’m not sure if it’s just strings of hemp but I think it might be the mycelium. If it is the mushroom, it is really little but at least it means it’s growing.

So as of now, I still have the mycelium in the mold and I haven’t cured it yet because I’m hoping it will continue to grow until it’s ready to be cured and the mycelium will hold its shape. If I tried curing it as it is now, I think all of the hemp will fall apart and the experiment would have definitely failed. Hopefully after a couple more weeks it will be ready.

 

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