Large Wheat Straw Cake Prep TEK

 Nan's Nook : Archives : Misc Tek : Straw Tek : Wheat Straw Tek : Large Wheat Straw Cake Prep TEK
  Subtopic Posts Updated Creator

re-printed from myco-tek.com
--------------------------------------------------

Large Wheat Straw Cake Preparation:

Overview:

Below is a list of all the items you will need to carry out this procedure:

01

Spawned Wheat Straw
A 1.5 Qt capacity Glass Bowl
A bottle of Rubbing Alcohol
A paper towel


Additional Items required: (not pictured above)

A small sheet of Tin Foil
A small plate
A weight of some kind
(needed to compress the straw down into the bowl)


Note: The following items pictured above are not required for this TEK:

Jar of Grain Spawn
7 half-pint canning jars w/ lids
A drinking glass



Initial Preparation:

Before we begin; it's always a good idea to wash your hands and clean the work space that you will be working in before you get started. I recommend saturating a paper towel with rubbing alcohol and wiping your hands down thoroughly with it, paying close attention to your finger tips and nails where dirt can be easily trapped.


Procedure:


Start by saturating the paper towel with alcohol, like so:
00

Using the alcohol-saturated towel; wipe the glass bowl clean (starting on the inside and continuing to the outside), like so:
02

Once the bowl has had a moment to dry; it's time to begin adding the straw to the bowl. Start by adding a large handful, like so:
03

After a large handful of straw is added; use your fingers to press firmly down on the straw in order to compact it, like so:
04

Continue repeating this procedure of adding straw to the bowl and compacting it with your hands, like so:
05

Continue adding and packing the straw until you end up over-filling the bowl with straw to the point that it can't possible hold anymore, like so:
06

Now it's time to cover the straw with foil, like so:
06

After you have covered the straw with a sheet of tin foil; you will now want to press firmly down on the bowl of straw with both of your hands as best you can to compress the straw down into the bowl, like so:
07

Using a small plate like the one pictured below; place the plate over the tin foil-covered bowl of straw and place a weight over the top to help compress the straw down during the incubation phase:
08

If you are working with more than one bowl of straw, then you can stack them for efficiency, like so:
09

That's it! The cake is now ready to be placed back into the incubation chamber so the mycelium can colonize it in preparation for the pinning/fruiting stage.

To see a TEK for constructing an inexpensive incubation chamber required for the colonization or vegetation phase, follow the link below:

Incubation Chamber TEK

Edited by Mycotek on Dec. 20 2001,10:01