The Spore Buddies are spread onto suitable material (known as the substrate) which gives them the nutrients they need to grow. This is normally straw, grain or a wood plug. Different types of mushrooms need suited substrates so it is important to get it right when growing mushrooms indoors.
The substrate needs to be warm enough for the spores to grow and then to cool down when the fruiting process starts. Depending on the type of mushroom this can take a few weeks or longer. The process of fruiting is very delicate and if the substrate is not right or the weather is unsuitable then it is possible that the fungus will not succeed and will be damaged.
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This means that the fungus may not be able to produce enough spores and this will mean that there will be no crop and the spawn will have been wasted. To avoid this happening, you must follow the instructions exactly when growing mushrooms indoors. This includes making sure that the spawn is always damp and keeping a log of your spore count to monitor it. The spore count is an excellent way to track how well your crop is going and whether you should harvest or not.
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