Ready-to-Inoculate Oyster Substrate Bag, 5 lb

Description

This is the middle rung of the ladder: less work than soaking pellets, cheaper than an all-in-one bag, and nothing colonised yet. The substrate is hydrated to field capacity and ready for your grain at 5-10% of wet weight.

It is blended for oyster species, which are content on a supplemented, pasteurised base. Slow, nitrogen-hungry species such as Shiitake, Chestnut, King Oyster and Reishi do poorly on this bag; those need the enriched Master’s Mix formula instead.

Use it within three days of arrival, or refrigerate at 2-4 C and use within a week. Damp substrate sitting in a warm room is an excellent medium for the wrong kind of biology.

What is in the box

• 1 filter-patch bag with hydrated, supplemented substrate
• Micropore tape for closing the slot
• Grow card

How to grow it

1. Add your own spawn through the injection port at roughly 10% of wet weight, or open the bag and mix.
2. Incubate at the temperature on the label until the bag is fully colonised.
3. Cut the fruiting slot, move to fresh air and high humidity, and harvest the first flush.
4. Rest and soak between flushes rather than pushing for a third.

Care on arrival

Substrate in these bags is hydrated and ready for your spawn. It is not a sterile product and it is not ready to fruit. Use it quickly and keep it cool until you do.

Specifications

Questions

Is spawn included?

No. This is the substrate bag alone, priced lower than an all-in-one bag for exactly that reason. Add a jar of matching grain spawn from the spawn category.

Is the substrate pasteurised?

It is hydrated and supplemented and ready for your spawn, but we do not sterilise these bags for you: use it quickly, keep it cool, and work clean when you open it.

What is the difference between an empty bag, a substrate bag and a colonised block?

An empty bag holds nothing. A substrate bag holds hydrated substrate that you still inoculate and colonise yourself. A colonised block is already white and goes straight into the fruiting space. The price difference is exactly that work, and every listing here names which one it is.

Will a domestic pressure cooker take a 5 lb bag?

Usually yes, laid flat, if the pot is 23 litres or more and the bag fits without folding against the wall. Check your pot’s internal diameter before you buy a case of bags.

Is shipping included, and how do you handle live orders?

Flat rate, free over $95. Kits, blocks and spawn travel in insulated packaging with a cold pack and are dispatched Monday to Wednesday. Dry goods such as substrate, bags and hardware leave the same day if the order is in before 2pm.

Live goods are packed in an insulated mailer with a cold pack and dispatched Monday to Wednesday. Standard shipping is free over $95.