Something weird just happened...
I've currently got ten jars of Agaricus Brunnescens mycelia (perfectly legal edible mushrooms) in the incubator, of which only nine were showing any signs of colonization. Since a couple of jars are getting ready for birthing, I decided to take a look at the one un-colonized jar before cleaning it out for re-use. I put it in my glove box and peeled back the foil lid, and lo and behold there was a nice fluffy layer of mycelia growing RIGHT ON TOP OF THE 1/2" OF DRY VERMICULITE IN THE TOP OF THE JAR!!! Yes, I'm sure that it was mycelia and not a contaminant of some kind. Also, my humidity levels were normal (no excess water on the sides or bottom of the jar anywhere). The thing is, I didn't think that mycelia could colonize a dry, non-nutrient substance like vermiculite...???
:think:
I went ahead and steam-sterilized a spoon and a clean sheet of tin foil, went back to the glove-box, and stirred the contents of the jar really well before re-covering the jar. It's back in the incubator now. Any thoughts?