Has anybody grown P. cubensis outdoors with any success? Somebody I met thinks that it would be cool to start a few patches in the woods at the local park but is curious as to what efforts he should take. I think that he might try to spawn a mix of some spent substrate and a little bit of newly colonized substrate to some coco coir and whatever other shit that might be around on the forest floor.
really helps if its in the right season...i doubt they'd work doing it during the summer. why not indoors? u can do it very discretely...x x x
I never meant to imply that it was an alternative to growing indoors. Also, I never meant to question whether it's possible, because I know that it is possible.
it is possible, but only under proper conditions (i.e. the right climate, immediate surroundings, etc.) if you're growing cubes, then you'll most likely need to live somewhere very warm to have much success, but then i could be wrong about that. temperate, cool climates are much more suited to the woodloving mushrooms of the pacific northwest, such as Psilocybe azurescens or P. cyanescens outdoor growing is, in general, a bit more technical and "advanced" than indoor growing. your best bet for a GOOD answer to this question would be to look up info at the shroomery, and if you can't find info about growing cubes outdoors there, then ask them. there are some pretty smart folks over there.
I've read about it a bit, and in my opinion, it seems a lot less technical and advanced than indoor growing because cleanliness doesn't seem to be as much of an issue outdoors. The spawn would be created in the same manner as it would indoors, but I don't know that it is really important to pasteurize whatever bulk substrate is used outdoors. Basically, I am wondering if anybody here has taken reasonable effort to attempt an outdoor grow or has any advice on how to go about doing it. I think that the weather where I live in the summer would be ideal (humid and hot) and see no opportunity cost in attempting it. At most, a few pf jars would be lost and some spent substrate from indoor grows would be put into the forest instead of the trash.
cleanliness is of the utmost importance, deceptively so with outdoor growing, as to my limited understanding of this subject. a lot of people think "well, plenty of mushrooms grow wild with no problem, so why would cleanliness be an issue for me growing outdoors?" the problem lies in the fact that in the wild, millions upon millions of spores are carried through the environment, and only the tiniest fraction of these ever will produce actual mushrooms. in the wild any innapropriate conditions or competing fungi more suited to the environment (particularly applicable for our purposes) will destroy any chances of producing mushrooms. from what i understand from people who have done it, its quite easy to get your mycellium growing outdoors, its another thing to induce fruiting. you also have to take into account what the mycellium will feed on. if its homemade substrate there will be absolutely no advantage to growing them outdoors as it is easier to grow them indoors by controlling ALL variables (not to mention its more covert!) if its woodchips and the like, theres no real sense in growing cubes this way. it is entirely possible to grow cubensis outdoors, but its not particularly worthwhile, and there are too many variables out of your control. and remember that your climate has EVERYTHING to do with growth. cow manure and grassy areas help maintain consistant moisture levels for a while - pf substrate left out in the woods will not. humidity in our neck of the woods (i'm in ohio) is not consistant from day to day, all day long, and temperatures are also inconsistant enough to mess up proper growth. for instance, this time of year it can reach above 90 or, at night and in mornings, drop below 60 (it did last night in my town) i just don't think its all that practical or wise to try and grow cubes outdoors in these types of conditions. you're better off just making casings, or starting a bed of wood chips for some azures or cyans for the autumn. but like you said, theres not a lot for you to lose except some unused substrate and the spent cakes used to spawn. i guess you may as well try, it just doesnt sound too very prone to succeed -to me- then again, i've never done it, and while i've grown my share of mushrooms in the past i've not done anything like this. basically there are reasons cubensis doesnt grow wild in ohio and pennsylvania. and there are reasons most growers choose to grow cubes, and choose to grow indoors rather than growing outdoors, or species that are best suited to growing outdoors (notoriously hard to grow indoors)
I think I agree with pretty much everything you wrote and don't really have much confidence about this but still think it is worth a shot just for the entertainment it will provide. Just browsing shroomery, I've seen pictures of spent pf cakes that have fruited after being burried in flower pots under (I think) potting soil. Climate is definitely the main thing, though. The weather in Southwest PA can be extreme compared to Seattle, for example, but I think that trying to spawn them in the forest will shelter them from the unsuitable maximum high temperatures. Additionally, I don't think that it would ever get too cold during the summer months (I've seen frozen mycelium survive without any complications), and I think that watering the patch during dry spells would help to stave off dehydration. This thread on shroomery, http://www.shroomery.org/forums/showflat.php/Cat/0/Number/1610063/an/0/page/0 , has influenced me to reconsider the great outdoors. The OP follows up with pictures and information about his rogue patches out in the woods and claims to have had success until October (in N. California, I think). But as far as success goes, I think that a real success would be to get a few patches started in the local park for any well-informed passerby to pick; there is always indoor cultivation for one's own means.
surely! while i'm technically in zone 5 and would not likely be able to cultivate woodloving species outdoors on a perennial level, i'm considering trying my hand at a single year's crop next year if i can find a suitable location to get some azures or cyans going. i've never had the opportunity to try any mushrooms other than cubes. this would definitely be worth a shot, and is not at all labor intensive and (i think) a good deal more likely to work out than growing cubes outdoors - particularly since i am just barely within the realm of zone 5 and very near zone 6.
just followed your link. i remember seeing that when it was new, i think! i remembered it being for woodlovers, though. cool!
I think that the climate around where I (and probably you) live is best suited for P. caerulipes, but I've never read about anyone being able to cultivate them. I know that they're pretty abundant in WV (from friends who go to school or visit there often for obvious reasons), but I have no idea how well they grow further North. I really think that the biggest obstacle to growing P. cubensis would be humidification. I don't think temperature will be an issue because there wouldn't be any direct sunlight, and I've seen indoor grows in unairconditioned apartments in the summer around here.
well im going to be starting a little indoor batch soon...and when all the fruits are gone from the cakes i'll probably be introducing them to the outdoors...i'll let you know how it goes..x x x
That's terrific. My local forest is soon to have some spent brf cakes and, in the more distant yet near future, some colonized grains spawned to an as of yet unknown substrate, somewhere. Poop is pretty cheap, but it might look unusual for somebody to carry a bag of poop into the forest, although I suppose it can be put in a less conspicuous container.
I feel bad for you... Like said above, it's the wrong season! Just buy a growbag online and safely innoculate it. You will have easy sterile mushrooms in just 6 weeks! Good luck!
This is being done out of interest and is in no way necessary for anything. Everything used is a small percentage relative to the scale of the indoor grow that is currently going on. This is influenced wholely by curiousity. Today some brf cakes that have been through two flushes already were broken up, watered down, and burried under some dead leaves and other mulchy material from the forest floor, which was also watered. The spot will be checked upon regularly and watered as needed. The spot chosen is pretty well shaded and should be protected from most of the harsher elements by a tree that they are planted near.
Well, below is what it has yielded so far. It's quite unimpressive, but I'm glad it worked at least. Unfortunately, it has a few rotten spots. Hopefully, if more come they won't be as small and inedible as this.
