It is based on Psylocybe Fanaticus's spore syringes,
but you can also use a spore print or a piece of sterile mycelium. I
heartily recommend getting PF's syringes, as they make the sterile process
very easy.
It is extremely easy.
It is optimized for the individual home grower.
This writeup is my personal technique developed after trying both the Homestead and Psylocybe Fanaticus Kits. I also read Stamet and Oss & Oeric's books on mushroom cultivation, and experimented with the techniques published on the net.
I found it rather difficult to grow actual mushrooms (carpaphores), but ridiculously easy to grow the mycelium. This document explains my ultra simplified technique for growing the mycelium and extracting the psilocin with cranberry juice.
It is based on Psylocybe Fanaticus's spore syringes,
but you can also use a spore print or a piece of sterile mycelium. I
heartily recommend getting PF's syringes, as they make the sterile process
very easy.
The latest research shows that something completely different happens when large numbers of strains are growing together. With numerous strains, the various clones somehow cease to be antagonistic, and form a "symbiosis" that is actually beneficial. This is great, because it allows us to simplify, simplify, simplify!
I have read that the concentration of Psilocin is lower in the mycelium, but you have to weigh that with the fact that it is really hard to get good fruiting. Besides, I have definitely proven that the mycelium is plenty strong enough!
Here's how to grow the mycelium on organic rye without the tedious fruiting step.
I punch a hole in the (upside-down) canning lid with a nail. Add the rye and water to the quart jar. Some recommend also adding a crushed calcium tablet for better growth. Put the lid on the jar and cover with a 6" square of aluminum foil, crimped around the lid. Process at 15 lbs pressure for 30 minutes. Let cool slowly. Remove the jars, and place in a dust and draft-free sterilized transfer chamber. (You can use an aquarium turned sideways with a plastic sheet taped over the opening)
For each jar, take off the foil, exposing the hole in the lid. Set the
foil, topside-down on a clean surface (don't contaminate the inside of
the foil, as you will be re-using it to cover the lid again). Sterilize
the P. Fanaticus spore syringe tip in a alcohol lamp
flame and (shake well) inject about .5-1 cc of liquid through the hole in
the lid. Replace foil with the sterile side against the jar. Repeat
process for each jar.
Alternatively, you could remove the lid and scrape in some dry spores from a spore print or use some sterile mycelium taken from an existing culture.
At this point, you simply place the jars in a clean, dark place and wait
for permeation. You get the most rapid growth if you shake up the
grains every 3 or 4 days. This is part of the reason for using rye
berries. Rice simply won't shake up properly. It clumps. The inside
of the clumps never get innoculated and it takes weeks for the mycelium
to permeate. While it is taking such a long time, it is easy for
contaminants to get the upper hand. Organic rye stays loose and allows
the mycelium to rapidly colonize.
Once colonized, you are done. The jars will stay nice and useable for 3 or 4 months if kept in a cool, dark place. If I break open a jar and use part of it for a dose, I usually keep the remainder in the fridge, where it will last a month or so until you finish it off.
It is probably an aquired taste, but I have found the resulting brew to be quite palatable, and have never had any nausea using this method. The onset of the trip occurs in about 20-30 minutes.
When you are done, there is always some residual mycelium left on the grain. Rather than throw it out, try innoculating your backyard compost pile. Or take it to you local field, etc. Perhaps we can encourage this fungus to extend it's range across the world.
After many transfers, you may find reduced vigor. At this point, you will need to have to use spores to start the cycle over again. (Or get more syringes from PF - The syringes will keep at least a year in the fridge.) It is nice to be self-sufficient, though. I wouldn't count on our fascist government allowing PF to stay in business indefinitely.
A large pressure cooker will process 7 quart jars. Because of the time
factor, and the tolerance that one quickly develops to the mushrooms,
you can really only indulge about oncd a week. 7 jars will produce 14
doses, or about 4 months worth of mycelium. The effort required to
maintain a continuous supply is only 1 or 2 hours every 4 months. The
mycelium may be grown in total darkness, and the jars are quite easy to
discretely conceal.
Even though you can trip as often as once per week, I don't recommend it. A "full" dosage opens your perceptions to a completely different view of the world. The experience is so at odds the "standard" view of "consentual reality" that you risk losing touch with friends, work, politics, business, etc, if you over indulge. For this reason, I have found it best to think of your usage as something to provide sacred inspiration, and not something for casual entertainment. Perhaps two consecutive trips, every 2 or 3 months would be a good balance for initial investigation.
Also be careful with the dosage. Start small the first few times. A full, entheogenic dose can be absolutely frightening, as you are completely drawn into an alien world. To me this world seems to be the inner workings that lie just below the surface of consentual reality. Don't freak. You just need to remember that you will be back to normal in a few hours. Try to learn as much as you can. For many people, this is the most intense spiritual experience of their lifetime.
Because the vision that is received through P. cubensis appears to be so consistent across multiple people, I am inclined to believe that it is an actual, useful view of the way the universe is organized. The insight that I've gotten is very much in harmony with quantum physics and my understanding of the Buddhist view of the world. I believe it is a very valuable eye-opener and the experience should be available to any adult that desires to explore their mind and the way it interacts with the numinous cosmos. When taken in this light, P. cubensis becomes a freedom of religion issue.
The experience has been described as a "trip", and like a "trip" you have some control the destination. You can, with light doses, steer it towards a hedonist, masturbatory sort of thing. Alternatively, you can be find yourself overwhelmed with nature, have very deep cosmological insights (that still make sense when you are sober again!), or you can blow it watching some stupid movie. Think ahead and make the most of your 6 hours. At higher doses, a lot of your control vanishes, but you can still keep your wits about you and keep yourself from freaking. The Aztecs preferred to take their mushrooms indoors in total darkness for maximum visuals and personal insight.
Plan ahead. You will be awake for 6-10 hours (including a several hour "afterglow" where you will no longer be tripping, but you will still not be able to sleep). I usually take shrooms on Saturday afternoons. This gives me ample time to come down, get some good sleep, and have all of Sunday to be ready to return to work/school, etc.
Be responsible. This is very heady stuff. I have never given any doses to anyone, although I would consider sharing spores with a friend. I think that this is such a mind-blowing experience that it is good to have a strong barrier to experimentation. If someone is clear-headed enough to master the culturing requirements, then they can very likely handle the implications of mushroom experience. Treat it like a loaded handgun. It is much more likely to be a positive experience when the user is informed, mature, and aware.
nepenth@media.internex.net.