imported>Claude: Batch 2: spores, cloning, culture storage, smash tek, drying, local suppliers; convert sources to footnotes

2026-10-22T20:00:00Z

Batch 2: spores, cloning, culture storage, smash tek, drying, local suppliers; convert sources to footnotes

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Spores are where most grows begin. A single mushroom drops millions of them, each carrying a slightly different mix of its parents' genetics. This page covers collecting spores and turning them into something you can inoculate with.

== Prints, swabs, and syringes ==
{| class="wikitable"
! Form !! What it is !! Good for !! Keeps
|-
| '''Spore print''' || Spores dropped onto foil or paper || Long-term storage, trading, making syringes || Years, dry and dark
|-
| '''Swab''' || A sterile cotton swab rubbed across the gills || Quick transfer to agar || Months
|-
| '''Spore syringe''' || Spores suspended in sterile water || Inoculating agar, LC, or grain || Months, in the fridge
|}

Spore syringes are convenient, but they can't be checked for contamination until something grows. '''Starting spores on [[Tutorials/Agar/Making Plates|agar]] first''' lets you see what you have, clean it up with [[Tutorials/Agar/Three-Transfers|transfers]], and only then move it to grain.

== Taking a spore print ==
=== Pick the mushroom ===
Choose a healthy, mature mushroom whose veil has just torn, exposing the gills, but before the cap flattens and starts dropping spores on its own. A cap that has already dropped spores in the tub will be covered in contamination from the air.

=== Set it up ===
Do this in a [[Tutorials/Basics/Sterile Technique|still air box]] if you have one; prints pick up whatever is floating around.
# Wipe a sheet of aluminum foil (or paper, or a glass slide) with alcohol and let it dry.
# Cut the stem off flush with the cap using a clean, flame-sterilized blade.
# Set the cap gills-down on the foil.
# Cover it with a clean glass, bowl, or plastic cup to keep air from moving and to hold in a little humidity.
# Leave it for 6–24 hours.

=== Collect it ===
Lift the cap straight up without sliding it. You should see a dark pattern of the gills. Let it air-dry for an hour, then fold the foil over it into a packet, seal it in a labeled zip bag, and store it somewhere cool, dry, and dark.

Label each print with the strain and date. Prints from different strains are indistinguishable once folded.

== Making a spore syringe ==
=== You'll need ===
* A clean print
* Distilled water, sterilized: pressure cook it in a jar with an injection-port lid (see [[Reference/Pressure Cooking at Altitude|altitude times]]), or boil it for 20 minutes and let it cool covered
* A sterile syringe and needle

=== Method ===
# In your still air box, open the print and the water jar briefly.
# With a flame-sterilized scalpel, scrape some spores into the water. A little goes a long way; a few scrapes will make several syringes.
# Close the jar and swirl. Let it sit for 12–24 hours so the spores hydrate.
# Flame the needle, let it cool, and draw the solution up. Re-cap the needle.

Syringe water should look faintly cloudy or have visible dark specks. Clear water may have too few spores; a dark, muddy suspension is more than you need.

== Using spores ==
* '''On agar:''' 1–2 drops in the center of a plate. Look for white growth in 3–10 days, then start [[Tutorials/Agar/Three-Transfers|transferring]].
* '''In LC:''' 1–2 ml per jar. See [[Tutorials/LiquidCulture/Making and Using LC|liquid culture]].
* '''In grain:''' 2–4 ml per quart jar. Slower and riskier than LC or agar.

Spores germinate slowly compared with living mycelium, so expect spore-started cultures to take noticeably longer to get going.

== Swabs ==
Rub a sterile cotton swab gently across the gills of a freshly opened cap, then return it to its sterile sleeve or a sealed bag. To use it, streak it lightly in a zigzag across an agar plate.

{{Cultivation}}
[[Category:Tutorials]]
[[Category:Spores]]

Tutorials/Spores/Prints and Syringes - Revision history

imported>Claude: Batch 2: spores, cloning, culture storage, smash tek, drying, local suppliers; convert sources to footnotes