Hey there! how to tell if your on-line supplier isn't a narc?

maybe you've had dealings with someone online that's sold some spores to you without any hassle or having the man up your ass.

http://sporeworks.com

reputable?

I just don't want to get burned my first time out.

 

just go to shroomery.org and order from their sponsers... ive heard good things about ralphstersspores.com

 

Sporeworks is a damn good company, but I prefer spores101.com.

 

my personal favorite is earthstongue.com they ar very cheap and reliable. They are a company in Texas.

 

Well, ordering spores(note, not mushrooms or pre-innoculated spore kits) is LEGAL in most states. GA and CA are the only two I know of that prohibit the sale of cube spores.

Anyway, a narc won't get you for ordering the spores because its not illegal. Growing mushrooms, however, is illegal. More likely, you'll get crap spores than run into legal problems. Order from a shroomery.org sponsor and you won't have problems. SWIM has had good luck with ralphstersspores.

Cheers

 

spores101.com is good

about 2 weeks after your order you should get them, but obviously no emails or anything will be sent to you, be patient.

 

Thanks for the thumbsup for ralphsters ahimsa, I really like their 3 packs and pricing compaired to most but had heard zero as to quality of poduct.

P.S. On the spore-related subject, anyone have a SWIM who's used chopped straw as an alternative to Vermiculite in their Cakes / substrate? My SWIM will have an ample supply of Flax and Buckwheat grain & straw next summer and was a bit curious.

 

Straw works really well in a bulk substrate type situation mixed with poo. Basically, a mixture of straw and herbivore poo is pastuerized and mixed with pre colonized spawn(think gardening, germinating the spores(seeds) in a small pot of bird seed or rye and them planting into a bigger pot(the poo/straw mix).

I would think that vermiculite has a better moisture capacity than straw, so I would use it over straaw in a PF cake grow. Also, chopping the staw up finely enough will be a mjor pain. Vermiculite is cheap.

cheers

 

Sweet, thanks for te feedback

I must admit thou I had confused Ralphsters with The Good Spore in my previous post, any SWIM's with previous buisness relations? Prices are alot lower than others so perhaps it's reflected in quality of product, however I'm not going to be cynical enough to assume off the cuff that everyone is a raging capitalist.

 

Tried straw. Got comtaminated. Coulda been any cause though.

 

You work on the kitchen table or in a "cleanroom" with a glovebox after a wipedown with a mild bleach solution?

 

Probably because straw is kind of dirty. You can't sterilize it, either. Has to be pasteurized.

As far as substituting it for vermiculite, it just won't work. Straw is used as a bulk sub. If you want to do PF cakes, you're gonna have to have vermiculite.

 

Hmmm, probably best for another thread. Soaking in Ozone saturated water would have quite the anti-pathogenic effect dontcha' think?

Mabey it's too much Old school Eddy Murphey saying "Buckwheat, it Oooooo-tay!".

 

Yeah I had many successful batches both before and after the straw experiment. So I knew what I was doing in regards to cleanliness. I attempted to sterilize the straw though, and that may have been it...

 

That's exactly it. 140 F for 1 hour. No more, no less, unless you live in a completely spore-free environment. And if you do, I pity you.