Is it possible to get a spore print from dried mushrooms? Ordering them online seems a little sketch, and I'm wondering if I can get my own spores from dried ones, or if they must be fresh.
No, the mushroom has to be moist to get a good print. If you're really desperate you could try applying some water to cotton and put it in a small sealed container where the moisture can get to the cap, though it's likely that it's too dry and too damaged to give a good print. Ordering online worked fine for me.
You would have to think that if the cap was fully open and dropping spores when it was picked, then there should be dried spores still in the cap. I suppose you could try to soak a crumbled cap in a little water for a while, then fill a syringe. See what happens. It would have to be a real old, black bottomed shroom cap, though. But, I agree that you can get anything you want online. Spores themselves are legal.
Well, this is rather interesting. I recieved some fresh mushrooms once, and they gave one hell of a print if I wet them a little. The prints are on lense cleaning paper in my freezer along with my pot seeds! Other mushrooms wouldn't give me a good print though
If you put a mature cap into a shallow canning jar, you can make a print that will keep for quite a while. Once a nice print has formed, remove the shroom, put the lid on the jar, and put it somewhere safe. It should last for at least a couple years. Later, to prepare for making a syringe, just add some distilled water to the jar and scrape the spores from the bottom with a toothpick.
