An Easy Way to Make Coco Coir & Vermiculite Substrate for Growing Mushrooms in Monotub - Pasteurized

The calculator is now at: www.oneearthmushrooms.com
Support this work directly on Patreon: / oneearthmushrooms
One of the easiest things you can do in the mushroom cultivation process! No special tools or skills necessary; making pasteurized coco coir-vermiculite substrate for growing mushrooms is easy. In four or five steps with supplies found at your local hardware store, you can have this monotub ready substrate ready in a few hours with minimal hands on time. This substrate is perfect for many types of soil loving mushrooms, but is not great for the wood lovers.
Hit me up with any questions! I'd love to make a FAQ video on this subject in the future, so let's talk!

[@KROWNCHAKRA]

This the one I've been searching high and low for

[@OneEarthMushrooms]

Niceeee glad you found it! I just posted an updated one thats easier, here it is: kzbin.info/www/bejne/mXPTlJ53hdqgrLM

[@MysticNorthwest]

Let’s all take a moment and thank this amazing soul blessing us with the calculator he has gifted us! Thank you! Your videos are super helpful and always appreciate the content you give us

[@Roscoe187311]

Yeah, thank the glorious leader, yeah...

[@dandy8308]

This is what I've been looking for!!! What a legend! Wish we xould donate somehow

[@blenderbenderguy]

Love the calculator..... just what I was looking for!

[@knowitintobeing]

Thank you so much, this is the perfect tutorial! 😊😊😊👍 Best I have ever seen! 😊

[@dowork4u]

The calculator is amazing. Thank you

[@OneEarthMushrooms]

You're welcome! Glad to hear it worked for you.

[@dany-922]

Best vid out there in regards to using ONLY coco coir & vermiculite. Thanks my guy!

[@dougs5990]

God to see a new video!!

[@fartmasterflex]

Good vid, glad to see you're back at it!

[@OneEarthMushrooms]

Thanks! Haha love your username!

[@AllChemiczny83]

Welcome back. I missed you 🍄☺️

[@OneEarthMushrooms]

Thank you!

[@radmiracl3]

Thank you so much dude! Waiting for my grain to spawn then I will be using all of your videos as my guide!

[@jommarjommar7437]

Thanks for your idea.. I learn more watching from Zamboanga del Norte Philippines

[@OneEarthMushrooms]

Nice!

[@CameronNiemela]

Heck yes brother! Love to see you back at it.

[@OneEarthMushrooms]

Yeah, feels great to be back! Hoping to maintain the fun in filming and editing without the pressure of my own high expectations.

[@coreybunting6354]

S t f u

[@tommywilliams8953]

Good work friend. From my understanding gypsum is only to stop grains from clumping..

[@donkulasmushroomsandagri3123]

Thank you for your time and sharing ur ideas 💡 new friend sir see you

[@Pierce1987]

Thank you!

[@OneEarthMushrooms]

You're welcome!

[@dennisthamenacee]

I usually make mine at night, so that it’s ready the next morning! 3 hours seems pretty quick! Mines usually still a little warm the next morning lol.

[@OneEarthMushrooms]

Perfect! 3 hrs seems to work for me, but maybe thats because it's inside in the AC.

[@CarrieMilburn]

thank youuuuuu!

[@rosseisenschenk7364]

exactly what I was looking for - thank you sir!

[@OneEarthMushrooms]

Great, thanks for watching, Ross!

[@Thros1]

You should use gypsum, raises the pH helping keep trich away.

[@johnbauby6612]

I have been using PF / BRF tek in jars and hoping to go to bulk next try. What strains are going to do well in this substrate in your experience?

[@palpisotv]

good video friend, I just subscribed, do you know where I can download the spreadsheet?

[@nickboyce5850]

Thank you! Easy to follow. What species of gourmet mushrooms is this substrate suitable for? Is the grain more important?

[@loudaddy2001]

Fuckin LOVE that when you pointed to "It'll be here", it was on the other side of the scene!!!🤣🤣 ... not sure why it was so funny. Maybe I'm high🤷🏼‍♂️😜

[@OneEarthMushrooms]

Ha! I always forget what side the thing is on!

[@potassiumc]

I would advice adding vermiculite along with gypsum after the coco coil has absorbed water (the water should be a little hotter than 70 degrees Celsium,it'll cool down to the right temperature while the coco coil will absorb water) there are types of vermiculite that break up into small fractions if poured immediately and mixed strongly

[@Jay-mh6fo]

How long can you leave it in the bucket before adding it into your mono? And will leaving it longer provide a bigger opportunity for bacteria?

[@reagande-giorgi219]

I just has my first monotub go bad. Would I be better off sterilising the bulk sub in my pressure cooker?

[@sagarn5372]

Hello, At what rate do you buy the Coco coir? And where is your farm located?

[@carlwebb4679]

Thanks so much for the guide man! I couldnt find any other ones that explained this stuff the way you did! I have all the stuff just didnt know how to put it together! Hahaha! One thing.. wheres the calculator again? Lmao, sorry if im missing it somewhere but i didnt see it. Thanks again tho! 👊🏻👊🏻🤘🏻🤘🏻

[@OneEarthMushrooms]

Hey Carl, sorry for the slow reply. It's on the website, oneearthmushrooms.com. Pretty easy to find on the site!

[@jesuschrist-zw5pv]

i just tried coco wool 3days ago for lions mane, coco is like a hard wood, next time try builders lime, it was recommend by professional mushroom suppliers. im in Australia and love mucking around trying different way to grow mushrooms, im also trying to grow lions mane just using cardboard without sterilizing it, its been a week for cardboard and its growing well, good job on the clip, p.s. dont cut big holes in plastic, 5mm is all thats needed. but you get a thumbs up from W.A. mate.

[@harveyharrison3840]

hi! hows your cardboard grow coming along? Ive been thinking about doing the same!

[@jesuschrist-zw5pv]

@@harveyharrison3840 hi, yes its got king oyster growing now about 1 inc tall, just in a bucket with cardboard, it took maybe 3 weeks longer but it worked. i only added boiling water to cardboard to soften and kill any germs, layered the oyster spore's with the cardboard and water every weekend, i used glad wrap or clear plastic wrap to cover the top. im now trying popcorn to spore my mushroom with, it works only been 3 days i have been watching for but its growing of popcorn seeds at a faster rate. well worth looking up, how to grow mushrooms spore's off popcorn seeds without using a pressure cooker. that clip gave me some good ideas.

[@OneEarthMushrooms]

Dude, fun project! Would love to see how this turns out!

[@jesuschrist-zw5pv]

@@OneEarthMushrooms awhile ago now i harvest them and eaten 1 days later, i put more coco in the bucket and now there growing again, the 1 biggest problem in a bucket its misting it, i lost over half my mushrooms from not watering enough, plus here in west Australia its getting hot. but im now also onto the brown rice in a bag, had 2 bags work with lion mane, now i have put it into coco and its taking off, looks good. well worth trying the brown rice trick.

[@declinedalsodeclined5258]

Why in the substrate calculator do you use liquid measure for dry ingredients (vermiculite) and weight measure for liquid ingredient(water)

[@joshuafreeman6720]

Thanks for everything specifically the calculator. I would love to know what vermiculite your using.

[@OneEarthMushrooms]

This was vermiculite from Home Depot, I don't recall the brand. Of the different size grades, I believe this qualifies as "fine grade". I've since located a local supplier close to where I now live in VT.

[@martajadzyk9843]

Does it really need the bucket? Or it can stay in the pot with a lid?

[@gtacoolguy]

so I rehydrated the coco coir but I rinsed it out would that still work?

[@josefrbidenski3556]

do you need to add compost or nitrogen or is the coco coir and vermiculite ok to get max yields???

[@capcom132]

Can you send a link or name for the song you used?

[@jesusbaeza2512]

Does coco fibers work as a substitute?

[@potassiumc]

I''ve always been afraid of this method because it's too simple. But i realized thet this way is very popular and if pasteurization is done corectly,beneficial bacteria remain and accelerate the growth of myselium

[@pammotl2584]

Can your growing bucket ahead of time and freeze??

[@garylewis4955]

I love this. Don't do what I'm doing right here. This, yeah, don't do this. And make sure you don't do that 😂

[@rodrigofernandezaragones4494]

Hi. Nice video. One question. Can you say 1 cup of vermiculite is equal to 240 grams? Thank you!

[@MicroBugs]

I think he made the proportions by volume not by weight

[@MikeJones-kt4dv]

What’s the Facebook page that had the calculator?

[@jdo3333]

What size is the vermiculite?? Small, medium??

[@carlwebb4679]

Thank you again for all this info man! Finally someone who actually explains what the hell is going on! 🙏🏻 one question: do i still have to “pasteurize” my coco even if it comes pre washed. I will be using Canna Coco from the bag, not the blow up brick. Thanks in advance! Im watching the tracking of my syringes by the minute! 😂😂 spawn bags and polyfil came yesterday and im finishing my mini monotub today with painting the bottom where the substrate will be!

[@ObakuZenCenter]

Coir and verm do not need to be pasteurized.

[@lucasantonini7618]

Thanks for the video! I have a question: what could happen if I leave the temperature gets over 180 ºF.. is there some negative effect on the substrate?

[@OneEarthMushrooms]

With this substrate it's not going to have much of an effect. In more nutrient rich substrates (such as manure) the purpose of staying below 170 is to prevent killing of the beneficial bacteria that start to die off rapidly at 180F. This would open up the environment for less desirable bacteria to move in and take over. This is known as pasteurization, which kills of some bacteria but leaves others. However, coir and vermiculite have very little nutrients or bacteria, so going above 180F isn't going to be very harmful.

[@lucasantonini7618]

@@OneEarthMushrooms Great, very clear! Thanks

[@OneEarthMushrooms]

@@lucasantonini7618 great! Thanks for watching!

[@leanev4019]

Hi! So I happened to have a huge bag of expensive ground up hemp stalks just going to waste so I want to use it. I've googled and see people actually use it for mushrooms and have some good results. Any idea on how to mix it? It will be my first time growing Mushrooms.. 😁

[@Catobergcontent]

@leanev4019 how did the grow go

[@thebusiness7702]

Dude- love your approach on your videos!!! please keep them coming. this is my Son's account - I'm subscribing on mine!

[@OneEarthMushrooms]

Awesome, thanks for the subscription!

[@yanekmiller2531]

How long is best to leave it sittin in the water for, philly gold teacher says around 8 hours but someone else says 3 days , mine has been left over night and is way to wet to be field capacity

[@OneEarthMushrooms]

I calculate the amount of water needed to get right to field capacity (calculator at oneearthmushrooms.com). I let it sit overnight.

[@ashilee3333]

Where’s that calculator??

[@royallan3717]

What type of mushrooms will grow on this?

[@rexstardust9646]

Have you taken a temperature after mixing it all together? I would think adding all that room temperature coir and verm to water at only 165f would drop the mixture down below pasteurization temperature. It certainly wouldn't stay anywhere near 165. (btw, everybody I know pronounces it 'kwar' - stay strong)

[@aspjake123]

Home brewers account for the temp drop just like you mentioned. I bet at that first 180f temp woulda dropped to the 170 range when adding to the cold coco and verm. Great observation.

[@ObakuZenCenter]

Verm and coir do not need pasteurization. The only reason hot water is used is to help with hydration. The idea that such substrate needs to be pasteurized is a myth.

[@Doobie603]

@@ObakuZenCenter and sterilization

[@isaacgarcia2979]

How much water per amount of substrate?

[@aspjake123]

What is the harm adding boiling/near boiling water to the coco/verm mix? Of course it will much longer to cool down but why not go hot as poss to help with the pasteurization process? Just wondering bro, thanks for the video.

[@Stonerolog1st]

It increases the chance of contamination because it kills off the beneficial bacteria depending on type of substrate manure has a higher risk due to the extra nutrients but coir isn't nutritious

[@aspjake123]

@@Stonerolog1st Gotcha!!! Thank you

[@joeblow1942]

I need shredded coconut husk for a compost toilet. What is the easiest and quickest way to shred a brick of this stuff so it’s the consistency of thick saw dust? A knife will take way too long.

[@OneEarthMushrooms]

Maybe a hammer?

[@joeblow1942]

@@OneEarthMushrooms The coconut husk is already shredded and compressed into a rectangular block. A hammer wouldn’t be useful in this case.

[@leanturkey2480]

Is this sterile enough for the spawn?

[@ravon1982]

Man I have a couple of questions as a noob grower if you could help.

[@shaggy6249]

can somebody please link the calculator he used

[@OneEarthMushrooms]

I moved it to OneEarthMushrooms.com. Still free there!

[@coreybunting6354]

Why do they always say optional for gypsum and vermiculite ? Doesn’t they help it ? And how would it hurt it ??!!!!!

[@chasole4025]

Why shoot for 165-170 deg F and not just bring the water to boiling? Is boiling water harmful to the coir/verm mixture?

[@lucasantonini7618]

I got your calculator on excel to help me about the amount of spawn, vermiculite and coco coir. Looking at the number just came a question: whats the ratio of coco coir and vermiculite you consider? Its 50% coco coir and 50% vermiculite ? I've seen people doing this ratio and also 60% coir and 40% vermiculite. Thanks!!!

[@potassiumc]

I think everyone has their own experience and obcervations. :) if happens that people use only coco coil for save money

[@Naoryaakov]

How do i get to that insane calculator!?!?

[@OneEarthMushrooms]

It's new and improved now! Oneearthmushrooms.com

[@Naoryaakov]

@@OneEarthMushrooms King! Thanks man!!

[@cdcd9781]

is the substrate good for oysters and shiitake

[@Maderbiich]

No. Hard wood pellets+wheat bran+ gypsum or Hard wood pellets + soy hull

[@guaromiami]

Does it matter that you added the vermiculite after mixing in the hot water?

[@OneEarthMushrooms]

I don't think so. Can you say more about what your concern with that is?

[@guaromiami]

@@OneEarthMushrooms Sure, thanks for replying. 🙂 My concern would be that the vermiculite wouldn't be properly pasteurized if it doesn't get the hot water poured on it. Would that be the case? Thanks again. 😊

[@gjonesjr1]

So it’s ready to use now you don’t have to sterilize it?

[@OneEarthMushrooms]

No need to sterilize, it's ready to go!

[@brandonlanguein2870]

Does this work for cubenisis?

[@MO-fl8vm]

Yes

[@MO-fl8vm]

This is a general substrate

[@DrGaryGreen]

What happens if the water is too hot? Hotter the better, I'd think? What am I not understanding?

[@chrishudson4940]

If its too hot the grain and spawn will get shock due to high heat

[@OneEarthMushrooms]

When we get it too hot, it kills off everything. We don't want to create a completely bare landscape, that would allow certain bacteria/fungi to thrive better without the benefits of helpful bacteria, phages, nematodes, etc. But this would be a good experiment for me to run...comparing unpasteurized, pasteurized and sterilized substrate to see what the difference is!

[@OneEarthMushrooms]

The substrate should be allowed to cool to room temp before adding the spawn to prevent this.

[@jamesmiller4195]

Water was to hot? Don't really think that matters when it's being used to pasteurise

[@mr.jessiejames5625]

If you end up making too much, can you save and use it later or does it need to be thrown out?

[@dennisthamenacee]

I’ve left it in the bucket for quite a while before using it and it still worked great. So I believe so.

[@OneEarthMushrooms]

There aren't many nutrients in this mix, so should be pretty safe. I've never tried it myself though.

[@groundhopeunder717]

can you use coco coir only as substrate mushrooms will still grow right? whats the point of the gypsum and vermiculite? is it just optional

[@harveyharrison3840]

why is it 8?

[@MicroBugs]

What types of mushroom can I grow in this substrate?

[@OneEarthMushrooms]

Most dung- and soil-loving species will do well in this. Oyster mushrooms would love it!

[@royallan3717]

@@OneEarthMushrooms even button mushrooms?

[@LeslieBernard222]

How much water??

[@jazzyg530]

4 quarts

[@alvinleonardo1263]

Can Coco Coir Vermiculite be used to fruit Lion’s Mane Mushrooms?

[@OneEarthMushrooms]

I'd recommend a hardwood substrate for lion's mane...although I've never tried coco coir with this species!

[@alvinleonardo1263]

@@OneEarthMushrooms Could you try it in a future video?

[@suneettalukdars7256]

Can you please explain the role of the ingredients ? As per my knowledge coco coir is non nutritious medium & vermiculite is good for absorbing lots of water and you mention adding gypsum is optional. I am confused from where the mycelium will get nutrients to give nice yield. M just a beginner that’s why the above query

[@augustusbetucius1572]

I'm pretty dubious about nutrients and fungi. I've experimented with substrate that have very high nutrient levels, and it doesn't seem to make much difference. Most, if not all soil based fungi have grown as well on C/V/G as they have on a mix of coir, horse dung, molasses and coffee grounds. The nice thing about C/V/G is that you'll have much less chance for contamination/infection.

[@OneEarthMushrooms]

Here's my understanding: 1) Colonizing grain spawn gives the organism a nutrient rich environment where they convert the various sugars and compounds from the grain into "food" digestible by the fungi. 2) When the spawn is "fully colonized", the fungi has started to run out of material to consume, and is also running low on water. 3) Moving the organism into a moisture rich, CO2 rich environment (coco/verm in a mostly sealed container) allows the fungi to rapidly search for more nutrients, and consolidate water needed for reproduction (fruiting body development) 4) The coco coir provides some moisture retention, some carbon and complex compounds, and some minerals for the fungi, although it's my understanding that the coir is so low in nutrients that it's biggest contribution is providing a structure for the mycelium to rapidly build a network. This network is used for sharing resources to all corners of the organism. The vermiculite is mostly for retaining moisture in a way that is easily accessible for the organism. As far as gypsum goes, in the words of RogerRabbit: "gypsum serves two purposes. It adds calcium and sulfur, both essential mushroom nutrients, and helps prevent the grains (when used in grain spawn) from sticking and clumping up" 5) The organism will quickly discover that there is limited nutrients available in the coir/verm substrate, and consolidate its resources to reproduce (spread it's spores into the wind onto more fertile ground). This results in fruiting bodies being formed, which we humans then pluck and consume! The Tl;dr is: nutrients come from the grain, moisture and structure come from the verm/coir, gypsum adds some trace amounts of calcium+sulfur.

[@suneettalukdars7256]

@@OneEarthMushrooms one thing I understood is that contamination issue is less in CVG medium. But in terms of yield is it same, less or more when compared to straw / sawdust + bran medium ?

[@marcusjohansson8902]

I just boiled some water and threw on 🤷🏻‍♂️ let that sit for 3 hours then boom , it worked tho 🥴😂

[@breakit2makeit393]

Has anyone done a video using bagged coco coir instead of using the blocks? I can get it far cheaper bagged than in blocks 🤔

[@toddwmac]

Most CV(G) mixes are not overly picky in terms of precise measurements. Since you are typically using dry weight ratios, as long as you measure the dry weight of your CC, you should be close Just keep an eye on your field capacity as the expanded CC will likely be a moister than the brick. As for cheaper by the bag, that is pretty cool. I've not seen that. Be sure you are comparing apples to apples. Bags are often measured in volume while bricks are often in weight of the brick with an "expected" volumetric conversion. A typical 650g brick makes about 8 quarts. Cheers

[@breakit2makeit393]

@@toddwmac thank you

[@ricks2907]

Cocoanut coir substrate.

[@jimihayes150]

British electric kettle bouls water hot enough

[@mountainman4410]

If you are truly trying to be sterile, hotter will not hurt anything.

[@OneEarthMushrooms]

I suppose so! I'm not trying to be sterile here, just generally clean. Sterile at this stage would do more harm than good.

[@paulsullivanable]

you entered the numbers incorrectly on your calculator.... just saying

[@OneEarthMushrooms]

Naa, looks right to me! Are you talking about the depth? I like to go a few cm below the bottom of the vent holes.

[@paulsullivanable]

@@OneEarthMushrooms i think you said 33cm depth and 8cm tub width

[@OneEarthMushrooms]

@@paulsullivanable ahh yes, right you are! Took me a third watch of it to catch that. Lol well luckily it's a simple volume calculation!

[@paulsullivanable]

@@OneEarthMushrooms great video anyhow! love ya buddy!

[@justinlacey1406]

No no no no... I oven pasteurise for two hrs.... Otherwise the dreaded trichoderma nely everytime

[@harveyharrison3840]

1:28 are you sure thats 8cm???

[@codename793]

is this legit 😯😯😯

[@OneEarthMushrooms]

Is the method legit?

[@augustusbetucius1572]

Why wouldn't it be legitimate? That word, I do not think it means what you think it means.

[@Acolis]

its pronounces coy-er not kwar

[@OneEarthMushrooms]

Thanks!

[@Elvampiro.]

Don’t do what he does not the right way to do it

[@OneEarthMushrooms]

Please elaborate! I'd love to hear your technique, I'm always excited to learn new/different ideas!

[@coreybunting6354]

Don’t do this ???? Wtf

[@theexper1ment656]

Why not

[@Eric-yj5xg]

waste of money. i bought 10$ large plastic garbage bags filled with hardwood shaving from a guy and i mix a bit of brown rice in there and voila. cost me basically nada

[@danielboomers]

biggest BS and redneck mycology