Magic mushrooms are easy to grow for those so inclined. The issue for many is either illegality, that they cannot grow in their living situation, or cannot obtain the starting materials needed, such as spores. If none of these things are a concern, then anyone can do it with some instructions!
There are many different techniques that can be used to grow magic mushrooms. Psilocybe Cubensis are the easiest and most commonly grown, and are a great place to start for beginners. Some of the most common methods are listed below, with links to their sources for more details.
PF Tek
Psilocybe Fanaticus technique (known more commonly as PF Tek) was first made publicly available in 1992 by Robert McPherson, also known as Psilocybe Fanaticus.
The most important ingredient in growing mushrooms are the spores, which can be obtained from dry spore prints that are re-hydrated for use in cultivation, or from spore syringes (spores in sterile water).
You will also need other supplies, including:
- A large plastic container
- Canning jars
- A pressure cooker or canner
- Brown rice flour
- Vermiculite
Basic method:
- Mix the brown rice flour with water and vermiculite to create a substrate cake, which is where the mushrooms will grow.
- Next, put the substrate in the canning jars, seal them and sterilize using a pressure cooker or canner.
- After the jars cool down, inoculate them with a spore syringe.
- Incubate the jars for about a week at a temperature of 24C.
- Once the cakes are covered in white ropes of fuzz called mycelium, place them into a large plastic container for fruiting. Expose to light and a lot of humidity.
- Mushrooms should begin to grow after 1-2 weeks.
For more detailed instructions and a full list of supplies you’ll need, click here.
Without Pressure Cooker
Don’t have a pressure cooker or canner? That’s okay too! There are always ways to make things work. Here is a method for doing either cakes or bulk grows without a pressure cooker: Bod’s Easy AF Cheapest Way to Get Started TEK.
Uncle Ben Tek
Uncle Ben Tek (also known as Spiderman Tek), is a method of inoculation that uses pre-cooked brown rice bags instead of brown rice flour and vermiculite. This technique is seen by some as a lazy way to grow mushrooms, but has gained popularity on Reddit over the last year or two, even spawning its own subreddit: r/unclebens.
From a popular Reddit thread on r/shrooms:
What you’ll need:
- Pre-cooked rice in a bag (Uncle Ben’s – common brand)
- Spore solution (You can buy spore syringes or make your own solution and load it into a syringe)
- Scissors
- Alcohol
- Micropore tape
- Optional: Still air box
Instructions:
- Break up the rice in the bag with your fingers.
- Wipe down the outside of your rice bags with alcohol or another disinfectant.
- Wipe down your scissors with alcohol or another disinfectant.
- (If using a still air box, do every step that follows inside of it)
- Snip off the corner of the bag.
- Heat your needle with a torch lighter or Bunsen burner until it’s red-hot. Wait a few seconds for it to cool down a little.
- Inject 1cc of your spore solution on top of the rice through the corner you’ve cut open. It’s fine if you just drop it on top or stab right into the rice; it shouldn’t make a difference. Gravity will take the liquid where it needs to go, provided you’re not doing this in space.
- Tape over the corner you cut open with micropore tape. I squeezed mine so it was propped open a little before I did so to allow for good gas exchange. Here is a photo of what I mean.
- Wait for mycelium growth. If it’s near the bottom of the bag, you’ll be able to see it through the clear window. Here is a photo of one bag after 6 days.
- Shake your bag once it’s about 30% colonized. If necessary, you can gently break up any large clumps you feel with your fingers.
- Once the entire bag is colonized, spawn to bulk using the method of your choosing.
Of course, not everyone is going to want to go through all the time, money and effort of growing their own magic mushrooms. Magic Mushies sells tons of different strains of magic mushrooms, as well as microdose capsules and delicious edibles, all full of psilocybin goodness!
Have you ever tried your hand at growing some mushrooms? What kind of shrooms were they and how did it go? Let us know in the comments section below.
