Help! My magic mushroom grow kit is contaminated! Growing magic mushrooms can be educational and rewarding. And the harvest can bring you a lot of wonderful experiences.
Because magic mushroom grow kits are nature products, there is this one thing to be cautious of: contamination.
Let’s go through the different forms of contamination, so you know what to look out for! and what to do
Your mushroom grow kit is getting to the fruiting stage and you start to see white mold coming out. There are 2 types of white mold.
One of them is a good ‘mold’ coming from the magic mycelium itself.
The other one is bad and you will read why.
Good white mold
If this is what your kit looks like then that is a good sign, it is the start of the fruiting stage. From these little mycelium spots, the mushrooms will start popping out soon!
Bad white mold : Trichoderma Tarzianum
Then there is the other type which is called Trichoderma Tarzianum. which looks like this:
When the Trichoderma Tarzianum gets into your grow kit it will show up as a small white spot and start to spread out rapidly. Usually, it will take over your complete kit in a matter of one or 2 days. The white mold will cause soft rotting of the substrate and will start producing spores of their own which are green of color.
Bad Green Mould : Trichoderma harzianum
This type of green mold is called Trichoderma harzianum. When this green mold starts to show up, your kit it is unfortunately lost. Some cultivators try to scoop the bad parts away. Once in a while this can help, but usually the mold will return within a matter of days.
Bad grey mold : Cobweb
Grey mold (Cobweb) grows very fast and looks like a big puffy cloud. Here are a couple of examples:
After you have contacted us or if you are sure your kit has a cobweb contamination you can try to treat it with hydrogen peroxide. Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) you can find in the pharmacy as a disinfectant and it is also used for dying your hair blonde.
How do I get rid of Cobweb ?
You can take the 3% hydrogen peroxide and spray it directly (in fine droplets) on the cobweb and you will see it will disappear. If It comes back the next day you can repeat the process. Hydrogen peroxide is not poisonous and will just break down in water and oxygen.
Do you have other healthy grow kits?
If you suspect contamination, please move the contaminated grow kit to a different room from other grow kits. The sooner you do this, the bigger chance you have with preventing cross-contamination.