How to Properly Store Liquid Culture Syringes or Jars
When cultivation mushrooms its just as important to understand how to store and keep your strains/cultures in your library or rolodex. I’ll briefly go over how we create our liquid culture and then what steps we will need to take in order to maintain sterile liquid mycelium culture, lets begin!
Making Liquid Culture Solution:
Our favorite recipe for making liquid culture is a sugary solution not greater than 4% by Weight, we usually use unbleached corn syrup or honey for our sugar source. Therefore the ratio we would want is 4 grams of sugar to 100 ml of water. You don’t want to exceed 4% as this is the max threshold at which mycelium can grow.
Weigh out 4 grams and portion out 100 ml of water (Or fill out whatever Mason Jar Container you have)
Pour together and mix till the sugar is uniformly dissolved.
Depending on your container you will be using, you will have to accommodate slight evaporation from the container. I typically will add a little more water around 10% to account for any losses during the sterilization or pressure cooking step.
Place your jar solution into a pressure cooker or autoclave for 90 minutes at 15 PSI or 121C
Allow to cool to room temperature before inoculating with mycelium.
Storing Liquid Culture
To properly store mushroom liquid culture, you should follow these steps:
Use sterile equipment and Storage Area: Make sure that all the equipment you use for handling the liquid culture is sterile. This includes the container, the lid, and any tools you use for transferring the culture. Things like the luer lock, syringe, plastic bag, Ziplock bag, etc. needs to be as clean as possible. You do not want to have any cross contamination between your sterile liquid culture solution. I have a dedicated laboratory refrigerator I clean regularly and only use to store Agar Agar or Liquid Cultures.
Choose a suitable container: The container you choose should be airtight and able to withstand high temperatures. Glass mason jars are the ideal container, you can also get them from us with Self Healing Injection Ports and Air Filters/Air Exchange.
Label the container: Label the container with the date, strain, and any other important information. This step is important! I often find that people will say to themselves they’ll remember and then they mix up their jars! Always Label as you go.
Store in a cool, dark place: The liquid culture should be stored in a cool, dark place such as a refrigerator or a cool basement. This will help to slow down the growth of the mycelium and extend the shelf life of the culture. Preventing UV light will also keep the mycelium viable for longer.
Check regularly: Check the liquid culture regularly for any signs of contamination or deterioration. If you notice any discoloration, foul odors, or other signs of contamination, discard the culture immediately. We''ll provide another guide here on how to identify contamination in your liquid cultures. Follow this Link for more definitive guide on identifying contamination within your liquid culture.
Use within a reasonable timeframe: Liquid culture can be stored for several months, but it is best to use it within a few weeks to ensure the best results.
By following these steps, you can properly store mushroom liquid culture and extend its shelf life for future use. As a rule of thumb, we will store liquid culture at room temperature if we plan on using it within a few days to a week. If you plans on inoculation or preparing other materials in the mean time, it is best to store the liquid culture in the refrigerator to slow down the metabolism of the mycelium. It is also possible to keep them at Sub-Zero temperature to really prolong the mycelium and liquid culture shelf life.