THE FOOLPROOF

PSILOCYBE
CUBENSIS MYCELIAL CULTURE
TECHNIQUE
This technique works.
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.

MYCELIUM GROWING TECHNIQUE:

For the ultimate in growing ease, don't bother with trying to get the mycelium to fruit or
with all the crap about trying to isolate a pure strain. Pure strains are used in very hightech commercial enterprises, where absolute consistent yield is critical. Nature herself
doesn't work that way. The bias against multi-spore innoculation stems from an
observation that a small number of pure strains are sometimes antagonistic on agar.
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.

media preparation
For each quart canning jar of 300g rye + 300g H2O, you get one really strong dose
or two conservative doses. (This is with my strain of P. cubensis - your mileage
may vary - start with a 1/4 jar dose and work up) You should wait about 2 weeks after
complete permeation for maximum potency. Make sure that you use organic rye! If it is
not labelled, it is probably grown with fungicides that will absolutely guarantee failure.
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)
innoculation
Sterilize the tank with lysol or alcohol prior to use. (Caution: flammable) Clean your
hands with alcohol and wear rubber gloves. 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.
growth
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.
psilocin extraction
To extract the mycelium, simply add ~500g of Cranberry Juice mixed with 1/2tsp of
ascorbic acid crystals (vitamin C) to each jar of well-permeated mycelium and shake
well. Add a glass marble as an agitator if you like. The acidified liquid will remove the

active components, leaving behind the rye grains. Pour off the liquid and enjoy. The
extracted liquid should be a milky consistency with a thick, frothy layer of
mycelium. If you want to get all the material, then do a second extraction with
another cup of juice.
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.
continuing the cycle
To continue the growing process, you can either grow some other batches to fruiting
using the PF method to get spores, or you can simply transfer some grains of rye from the
old batch to new jars of sterilized grain. The transfers will have to be done with sterile
technique.
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.
personal observations, dosage, set + setting...
This section is my personal opinion developed after 10 or 12 full-strength trips. Take it
with a grain of salt. Your mileage may vary.
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 mindblowing 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.
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