Pink Oyster Liquid Culture

Species: Pleurotus djamor (pink oyster)

Colonisation: 24 to 30C, dark

First growth: A few days

Full colonisation: One to two weeks

Rate: About 1 to 2 ml per pound of grain

Storage: Warm room temperature, never refrigerated

A live culture, ready to inject

Each syringe holds live mycelium of Pleurotus djamor, the pink oyster, suspended in a sterile nutrient broth. The mycelium is the white root-like network the mushroom grows from. Because it is already alive and feeding, it spreads through fresh grain faster than spores, which first have to germinate.

Pink oyster is a warm-climate oyster strain known for quick growth and dense clusters of pink fruit. It is one of the easier gourmet oysters for a first attempt, as long as you can keep it warm.

Inoculating grain

The usual path is to inject the culture into sterilised grain to make spawn, then use that spawn to run a bulk substrate such as pasteurised straw or supplemented sawdust. Work clean. A still-air box or a flow hood lowers the chance of contamination.

1

Shake the syringe

Shake well first. This breaks up the mycelium and spreads it evenly through the liquid so each injection carries live culture.

2

Flame the needle

Heat the needle with a flame until it glows, then let it cool for a moment. Do not let the cooled needle touch anything before you inject.

3

Inject the grain

Push the needle through the injection port or self-healing patch on the lid and inject. A common rate is about 1 to 2 ml per pound of sterilised grain, so roughly 1 to 2 ml for a 1 litre jar and about 5 to 10 ml for a 2.3 kg bag.

4

Incubate warm

Keep the grain at 24 to 30C in the dark. You should see the first white growth within a few days, with full colonisation usually in one to two weeks.

One syringe goes a long way. At 1 to 2 ml per jar, a 10 ml syringe inoculates several 1 litre jars if you keep everything sterile.

Keep it warm, never cold

Pink oyster is a tropical strain and the cold harms it, so it is not stored like most other cultures. Do not refrigerate it. Fridge temperatures can weaken or kill this species. Keep it at warm room temperature, around 20 to 22C, out of direct light, and use it within a few months for the best result.

Never freeze it. Freezing forms ice crystals that puncture the cells and kill the mycelium. If you need to hold it for a while, keep it somewhere steady and warm rather than in the fridge.

It is a heavy spore producer

Pink oyster fruits drop a lot of pink spores as the caps open and flatten. Some people are sensitive to inhaled mushroom spores, so give the fruiting area good air movement and harvest while the cap edges are still curved, before they flatten and release. A dust mask helps when you work close to mature clusters.

The fruit itself does not keep. Once harvested, pink oyster softens within a day or two, so pick it just before you plan to cook it.

Not a finished kit

This is a starting culture, not a ready-to-fruit kit. You supply the sterilised grain, the clean working space and the warm grow area. If this is your first grow, plan the grain and substrate steps before the culture arrives, since it is best used fresh.