This method is highly recommended for people who have limited funds, time and equipment.
It produces smaller yields than other methods. But it works and is suitalbe for first time growers,
and experienced mushroom growers alike. I recommend reading as much information on
mushroom cultivation before starting if it is your first attempt.

To grow mushrooms you need these bits of kit;

A spore print/spore syringe - Cubensis for this project.
I would use Cambodian ,Mexican or maybe Amazonian.
The mycelium of these strains is very aggressive and reliable.
(Buy from a good source only!.)

A pressure cooker - the bigger, the better.
These are not expensive. About 25 pounds from Argos.

Atleast 12 canning jars.
If you cant get canning jars, use pickle jars from the supermarket.
Check for cracks before you pressure cook though.

A bag of organic brown rice. If it is not organic, fungicides used
when growing the rice may inhibit the mushrooms or stop them totally.
Wild rice will do, but not white rice.

If using a print you need something to scrape the spores off.
I would suggest a spore syringe if you are novice.
You want something like a bit of stiff wire, so you can heat
the end red hot in a flame to sterilize it. A scapel if best.

An alcohol lamp or lighter.
A lamp is better as a lighter can be a source of contamination.

A plastic crate.
Use this a grow chamber when fruiting.

Germ killing disinfectant.

A clean place to store your jars, that has a relatively constant temprature.
Room temperature works well. But the optimum temperature for starting mushrooms is 86 F.
I find keeping them in a clear plastic crate with lid, helps to keep temprature constant
and airbourne contaminants to a minimum.

If you can get these - get them.

Germ killing disinfectant.

A home made glove box.

Alcohol for sterilizing hands etc.

Surgical gloves, dust masks, hairnets etc.

Laminar flow hoods
They cost over a grand, but you can pick up cheap airfilters sometimes.

Distilled water.

Spray bottle.

Bleach.

The above is all stuff to help make things a bit more sterile - highly recommended!

Procedure for growing magic mushrooms.

Make sure your work area is draft-free.
Set up the pressure cooker, make sure you follow instructions.
Wash the jars and lids. Dont towel dry them, you will just wipe germs and dust back on them.
Wash yourself, too. Some people recommend that you wear a long sleeved shirt,
I wear a T shirt and disinfect my forearms when doing shroom work.

For each canning jar, add 1/4 cup brown rice and 1/3 - 1/2 cup water.
I use bottled water, but boiled tap water is fine.
Fill 6 1/2 pint jars or as many as will fit into your pressure cooker,
without stacking or jamming them in there. Place the lids on the jars,
and leave the lids very loose.
Place the jars on the bottom of the pressure cooker.
You want about 1.5 inches of water in there.
Now follow the directions for sealing the pressure cooker. Allow the pressure inside the cooker to build up to 15 lbs.
Once the pressure inside the cooker has reached 15 lbs, you want to maintain
it at that level for one hour. You may have to turn it down so that the pressure
doesn't rise to unsafe levels above 15 lbs.

When the hour has passed, turn off the stove and let it cool before you open it.
After 10-15 minutes - remove jars from cooker.
Don't try to rush the cooling process, as the jars may crack.
I would suggest leaving jars to cool for atleast 2 hours. 4-6 if you can.
Too much heat and your spores will die.

Wash up again, use your bleach etc.
Wash your hands and fore arms, put your hat on.
Long sleeves and a hat etc is recommended because millions of germs are falling off your body
at any given moment. Sterility and the absence of drafts are of utmost importance from here on.
Use your face/dust mask now if you have one.

I recommend filling a spray bottle with a 10% bleach / 90 % water solution.
Use it to mist the air in the room to further reduce airborne contaminants.

Inocculation.

Heat your wire loop/scapel until it is red hot.
Put on your dust mask or pull your shirt up over your nose and mouth.
I suggest using a glovebox (homemade will do)
Lift the lid off the jar and place it face down on a sterile surface.

Get out your sporeprint and hold it over the open jar at an acute angle.
Use the sterilized wire/scapel to gently scrape and tap the sporeprint to get
the spores onto the rice cake. If you can see dark specks fall onto the rice,
you've done it sufficiently -- anything you can see is probably several thousand spores.
A sporeprint the size of a penny is enough to inoculate a 12 1/2pint jars.

Screw on the lid tightly and shake the jar until the rice cake breaks up.
This will allow the spores to spread throughout the rice medium.
When you've done this to all the jars, put them in a safe, clean place with a fairly constant temprature.
A dark place is best as light can induce fruiting too early.
In 3 days to 2 weeks you should see white, fluffy mycelia appear.
Any other colour ie. green, black, etc. is mold. Dispose of the jar.
Bacterial infections usually give off a putrid odor.
With experience bacterial infection will become easy to reconize.

Now sit back and wait for nature to take its course.
It will take anywhere from 2 weeks to 1 month for the mycelia to completely permeate
the rice medium, then it will start getting these stringy looking or fan shaped runners
in the white fuzzy growth.

Fruiting.

Now expose to a couple of hours of light per day.
Mushroom formation is not far off now.
Of course at all stages be on the lookout for any possible contaminants in the mycelia.
As the mycelia matures, it may start staining blue in spots, due to bruising,
so don't mistake this for a mold infection.

Fruiting chamber.

I would suggest using a plastic crate as a fruiting chamber.
Sterilize some compost in the pressure cooker.
Disinfect fruiting chamber, add soil to container.
Then place rice cakes on soil.
Mist with distilled water. Replace lid.
The mushrooms first appear as tiny white pinheads and then
the caps will darken to a lovely reddish brown.
Mushrooms grow best in an environment with a humidity of over 90%.
So if you think that your mushrooms may need a more moist environment,
Simply respray boiled or distilled water directly over rice cake/soil.
You don't want things too wet, however, as this will promote mold/bacteria
growth and inhibit mushroom formation. It is important that air exchange takes
place in the storage area, this becomes more important as fruiting occurs,
as the mycelia gives off CO 2 and needs O 2 .

Harvesting magic mushrooms.

Mushrooms are ready as soon as the white membrane connecting the cap to the stem
starts to rip. Although you don't want to pick them before they have reached their
full size, be careful not to let the spores cover the cake or you will get less shrooms.
To harvest your mushrooms, wash your hands and forearms well, or use rubbing alcohol.
Take the lid off the fruiting chamber, grasp the mushroom firmly near the base and twist.
A brisk twisting motion will help to free the 'shroom from the mycelia.

Some tips for optimal yields.

Here are some more tips. 86 F is the best temprature for starting the growth process.
The temprature inside the jars will be several degrees higher than the surrounding air temprature.
Growth of the mycelia generates small amounts of heat. I would build/buy a simple growth chamber.

This will serve a number of purposes:
it will create a more sterile environment, guarding against contamination.
it will help keep the temp. high and more constant.
it will help keep the humidity high and more constant.

You can also use those cool boxes people used when I was a kid for picnics.
Get one that's large enough to hold the 12 jars you've got.
Cut a hole in the lid. Cover with clear plastic.
Now you have a lid which allows light into the grow chamber, but it also keeps
out dust, mold, and other contaminants.

I suggest leaving the jars in total darkness for the first week or two.

Optimal growth parameters for magic mushrooms.

Spawning stage: 1st stage of growth
Relative Humidity = 90%
Substrate Temp = 84-86 F.
Thermal death limits at 106 F.
Duration = 10-14 days.
Light Incubation in total darkness.

Primordia formation: pinhead formation
Relative Humidity = 90+%
Air Temperature = 74-78 F. Duration = 6-10 days. Light Diffuse natural or exposure for 12-16 hours/day of grow-lux type fluorescent.
High in blue spectra at the 480 nanometer wavelength.
Regular fluorescent works fine, but use natural daylight whenever possible.

CROPPING: Harvest
Relative Humidity = 85-92%
Air Temperature = 74-78 F.
Flushing Pattern = Every 5-8 days.
Harvest Stage = When the cap becomes convex and soon after the partial veil ruptures. Light Diffuse natural or exposure for 12-16 hours/day of grow-lux type fluorescent.
High in blue spectra at the 480 nanometer wavelength.
Moisture Content of Mushrooms = 92% water 8% dry matter.
P. cubensis have up to 1% psilocin and/or psilocybin per dried gram.
The medium adult oral dose is 4-8 mg psilocybin.

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