Shiitake Mushroom Liquid Culture

Frequently Asked Questions

Care instructions

Liquid culture can be stored at room temperature for up to 6 months and longer than a year if refrigerated. Grain spawn and substrate should be used within 1-2 weeks of being sterilized.

What is the difference between spores and liquid culture?

A liquid culture syringe is a culture medium that contains small pieces of Mycelium which have already germinated (from spores) and began growing. Often a Liquid culture syringe contains a nutritious liquid (often sterilized) such as honey liquid culture which the Mycelium can feed on and expand.

A spore syringe contains spores suspended in a water solution (often sterilized and distilled). Spores can be viewed in a similar way seeds are viewed in a plant’s life cycle. The difference with spores is that two spores that are a genetic match must meet (under the correct conditions) then germinate to begin their life cycle. A spore syringe will create a Mycelium network with many different genetic lineages inside.

How long does it take to colonize grain spawn?

Generally it takes 3-5 days for visible growth. At this point it is best to shake the grain spawn to redistribute the mycelium. After shaking, the mycelium with rebound and colonize the grain spawn fully in 1-2 weeks.