I'm sure many of you have seen these out there now, they seemed like a good idea so I bought several as I start all my vegetables from seed. I used 6 to try them out and 4 of those six grow mushrooms every night. It's not the soil I use as I have many seedlings in the same soil but different containers such as peat pots and styrofoam trays and they have no problems. It's a shame the manufacturer didn't sterilize these properly.
Does anyone have any ideas how I could do sterilize the ones I have left unplanted?
COW POTS HAVE MUSHROOM SPORES
Oh, that's interesting. I have 100 Cowpots, but have only used 3 of them so far. I haven't put them into the garden yet. I wonder what kind of mushrooms those are? Hallucinogenic types do grow in cow patties, like psylicibin. That's all I need for the cops to come and bust me for growing magic mushrooms with my leeks and peppers. LOL!
I've just been watering my pots under a growlight, so it's probably too dry to sprout any mushrooms under those conditions.
oh pugzley, but the options there are just unlimited
;)
maybe I need to pick up some of those cow pots....
This message was edited Mar 8, 2009 4:04 PM
Why don't you try putting one in the microwave and see what happens or would it catch on fire since they are so dry and paperlike? Might be dangerous to do that I don't know. Or perhaps moisten it before microwaving it to avoid that? I would think that kind of heat should kill mushroom spores?
hahaha! Yep they sure are.
Pugz you said what I was thinking......LOL! don't eat the mushrooms ;0
More on mushrooms in cow pots-I sent an email to the company and promptly received a phone call from them and then later from the manufacturer. They are very concerned and have offered to replace my box of 300. I will be sending them a photo of the lbms (little brown mushrooms) per their request in the morning. As these are under light, indoors, and using the same seed starting mix that I have in aps units and peat pots with no problems, it really seems like they're coming from the cow pots. I'll keep you all posted of the outcome.
lglavish thanks, I'd like to know what they say. My unscientific mind, having grown up in the backwoods of Texas, knows that psylicibin mushrooms are indeed what grows on cow patties after a rain. Sounds like their process method didn't sterilize or kill the spores on the pots. I can't see that it would hurt anything as the pot will be sunk into the ground and turn into "mushroom-cow pattie compost" but I realize it's strange and looks unattractive too. Mushroom-cowpot is certainly not what you paid for, LOL! Good luck, glad they're making it right with you.
Why kill the mushrooms? They do no harm, they simply aid in the decomposition of the pot, which you will want anyhow. I don't think the police would take much interest in your cowpots, but if they did you would have a paper trail to prove you didn't want the mushrooms. I do recommend that you not eat them unless you have them identified by a true mushroom expert -- on with a microscope, but mushrooms are helpful in the decomposition process -- which is what you want to have happen on your pots eventually.
Those mushrooms are dangerous and need to be properly disposed of!! Send them to me and I will ensure they are safely contained!
;)
and what she can't handle--send my way--I can handle the disposal of them for you
;)
read my mind.... better yet, i'll buy the unused cowpots.
;-))
This message was edited Mar 16, 2009 10:13 PM
add to supplies needed list--
cow pots
I haven't purchased any "cow pots" but I do get mushrooms growing from bagged cow manure. I just leave them alone as I know they are beneficial to the soil.
I used mushroom compost to plant a tree. The next year I had a lovely little clump of morel mushrooms growing under the tree. We ate them, of course, because there are very, very few morels in New Mexico. Unfortunately, it didn't come back. Sigh.
I don't know if they are edible, but we get white topped mushrooms every year in nearly every yard. Start small, grow to dinner plate size, flatten out, turn orange and flop over.
Don't rally know aobut that one and wouldn't attempt to identify anything from a particular. But I only one mushroom that starts out white and turns orange, well maybe two and I don't know if they are edible.
The point is to leave them alone. They are creating soil for you from raw materials -- usually wood.
Because we have lots of small children in the neighborhood, I just knock them over with my foot when they start, pick them up with a shovel and put down into the compost heap. The little guy next door still puts everything he sees in his mouth. Once he's older I'll just leave them.
Sounds like a good idea to me. Mycologists tell me that before you can do anything to the above ground part of a mushroom, it is probably way to late to keep it from spreading its spores. It does that first thing of all. It is best to keep them away from small children, but to be honest 90% of all wild mushrooms won't hurt anyone.