Resources/Equipment
What you need, organized by stage. You don't need all of it to start; the Essentials column is enough for a first monotub grow from a spore syringe or liquid culture.
Spores and live cultures can be ordered from Denver Spore Company. Most of the general gear is at hardware, grocery, and feed stores. Items that are genuinely hard to find are linked under hard-to-find items below.
By stage
| Stage | Essentials | Nice to have |
|---|---|---|
| Clean work | Still air box (a 60–100 qt clear tote), 70% isopropyl alcohol in a spray bottle, nitrile gloves, face mask | Flow hood, butane torch, alcohol lamp |
| Sterilizing | Pressure cooker that holds 15 psi (a 16–23 qt model fits quart jars) | A larger canner or an All American for bigger batches; a dial gauge for altitude adjustment |
| Agar | Petri dishes, agar powder, light malt extract, scalpel | Media bottles, Parafilm, a digital scale that reads to 0.1 g |
| Liquid culture | Mason jars, lids with injection ports and filters, syringes with 16–18 gauge needles | Magnetic stir plate and stir bars |
| Grain spawn | Quart mason jars or filter-patch grain bags, lids with filters, grain (oats, rye, or millet) | Impulse sealer for bags |
| Bulk substrate | Coco coir bricks, vermiculite, gypsum, 5-gallon bucket or cooler with lid | Probe thermometer |
| Fruiting | 54–66 qt tote, micropore tape or polyfill, spray mister | Hygrometer, clip-on LED, fan |
| After harvest | Paper towels, clean containers | Food dehydrator |
Hard-to-find items
Bag tek
- Clear thick tape for holding injection ports in place on grain bags
Add more here as you find them. Include what it's for, not just the link.
Where to buy
Denver Spore Company
A Denver-based spore vendor run by owner Eric B. Sells spore syringes, spore prints, and live culture syringes, plus gourmet spores and bundles. Orders ship to your door.
- Order online: denversporecompany.com (browse the catalog and place your order there)
- Questions: see the contact details on their site
Want your shop listed here? Contact the wiki admin.
| Cultivation guide | |
|---|---|
| Basics | Sterile technique · Pressure cooking at altitude · Glossary · Equipment |
| Culture work | Spores · Agar plates · Three transfers · Cloning · Storing cultures · Smash tek · Liquid culture · LC recipes: PGT, ClemGrows |
| Spawn & substrate | Grain spawn · Coir and CVG · Manure-based substrates |
| Fruiting & problems | Monotub fruiting · Contamination ID · Drying and storage |