Opinions - Cows as mushroom producers

[D.U.M.B]

Hello,
I am so happy it's that time of year again for us irish. In ireland shrooms start to come up around this time but from october 1st or so on you're guarnteed mushrooms if you look in the right place.

I am starting tomorrow to look for them. Just in fields nearby. Probably won't pick them but want to find out what fields are sprouting early. A few mates have told me that they have come across shrooms already.

From here on for the next few weeks maybe a month I will spend a few nights picking.

My mates and I got over 2000 shrooms last year we could have got a few more but didn't want to be greedy (Still around 100+ left, which one mate is hoping to bring to india)

The irish shrooms are great. Friends who have taken various types rate the irish shrooms pretty high.

Can't wait for our big kick ass, halloween party where you've usually got a big crowd all on shrooms. Is a fun and freaky thing.

Hope you all enjoy the shrooms you have for the remainder of this year

[OneDiaDem]

Make sure to dry and store the ones you dont eat well, so you have more for another good time!

If you live near a pasture with cattle, feed the cattle apples injected with spores, Soon there will be plenty.

[RoboCop]

Lol, wow I never heard of this method before, and this works? Very cool.

[mycoguy]

ya, lol, i've never heard of that method either. Sounds questionable. ODD, do you have any references to thispractice? Just curious.

[BA]

I've raised cattle for years I would pick the shrooms from the cattle manure and dry them. At the right time of the year, I would take some of the dried shrooms, that I had put aside for seed so to speak, and mix it with the cattle feed togrow my new crop.


I've never injected apples with spores, but it would be the same principle as just mixing it with cattle feed, it goes to the same place and does the same thing, so I can see how this would work.


BA

[OneDiaDem]

Its a common practice with growers of old school. Do some research.

[Euphoric]

In theory, do you think it would be feasible to place spores in a cows water so that it would poop out mushroom growing patties?

Any ethical/health problems with this?

[Phungushead]

In theory, it will work (since this happens naturally in the wild anyway) and has been done successfully although if the climate is different than the natural habitat for cubensis mushrooms, results will be limited.

SWIM's heard of cases of this being done as far north as Washington and Oregon, well out of normal range. Anyway, the weather was just right (hot, rainy spell), and the cow pies did spit out a few shrooms.

SWIM doesn't see anything really ethically wrong with this, as cows eat spores which have landed in the grass all the time - like said, it's basically replicating a natural process.

Reputation Comments on this post:

Thanks for sharing.

[Potter]

Since the spores aren't psychoactive, shouldn't be bad for the cow, unless their immune system doesn't like them.

Will the spores survive the digestion process?

It seems like you'd need huge quantities of spores for such a project. Probably not worth it.

[nate81]

The only downside is that to ensure the spores are present for the ideal conditions, One would have to "feed" spores to the cows regularly over a wide timeline. If One has the spores to spare, go for it!

[Phungushead]

Cows don't have stomach acid, which is how the spores survive on their little "journey".

In native cubensis habitats (and other dung loving species as well), the cows are constantly eating spores that have landed in the grass and whatever else they eat as well. Cows have very slow digestion (you know, has to go through a 4-chambered stomach and all), and during this time the spores germinate. Basically, when the cows shit, they are shitting out inoculated cow pies...

Doesn't it sound delicious when put that way?

[Mikey]

That would be amazing! Might try it with my dog. A magic mushroom pooping pet, sounds too good to be true. LOL.