help with smut propagation

so, I found a source that is willing to share corn smut (Ustilago maydis) cultures with me, but I don't really know how to handle them once I've got them. the main idea is that I'll have to maintain and increase pure cultures of two compatible strains indefinitely for this to work. there is the potential for naturalization, but my permit requires me to destroy or harvest everything before the galls rupture and spread spores, a stipulation that is intended to prevent naturalization.

so I'm looking for one or more good reference books to learn from. this is a fungus, but not a mushroom, so I don't believe that the usual Paul Stamets books will be of much use to me. I suppose that some of his work does deal with sterile culture and facilities for the same, which could help me with at least part of the puzzle.

in my correspondence so far, my source did mention both agar and broth culture. any help?

There is a magazine called "Mushroom, the Journal" that comes out about three times a year. Several years ago, they had a very detailed article on how to grow corn smut. But I can't remember the year or the author's name. In case you can't find any info online about this article, you might try contacting the editor. His name is Leon Shernoff and his email is: leon@mushroomthejournal.com He probably has an index somewhere so you could find the article. It was very detailed and probably would be worth the hassle of trying to find it. Good luck!

excellent. working on getting that one from the library. that got me searching for some other journal articles and I think I found some good leads. thanks.

any hot tips for sterile culture propagation references or techniques?

For classic, old school sterile culture, there are two great books by Paul Stamets to study: "The Mushroom Cultivator' and "Growing Gourmet and Medicinal Mushrooms". Using hydrogen peroxide solution to sterilize grain or substrate can make things easier, too. Look up a person named Rush Wayne for more info on this simple but effective method. Another method, called "PF Tech" or "PF Tek"(?), utilizes spore syringes and brown rice powder/ vermiculite mix in jars. I've never tried this, but it might be the best method if somehow you could just get the smut spores into a syringe- not sure how that would work though! Best of luck with your "porn on the cob" project! One more tip- you might try using organically-grown cornmeal (or popcorn) instead of rye for you grain spawn- just an idea.

What is corn smut for? Can you eat it? Does it improve corn production?

William Bronson wrote:What is corn smut for? Can you eat it? Does it improve corn production?

depends what you mean by "improve."

it's a fungus that infects the plant and turns the kernels into grotesque grey galls. most folks in the U.S. do their best to keep it out of their corn. the stuff is pretty tasty, though, and folks who grow corn where corn came from (Mexico) are happy to see it.

so sure, it does improve corn production.

William Bronson wrote:What is corn smut for? Can you eat it? Does it improve corn production?

In Bills book :ferment and human nutrition' I think there is a recipie or he hints that corn smut can be used as a vasoconstrictor
ie assists in slowing bleeding from wounds
eg/local anesthitic like lignocane +adrenaline has a beneficial side affect of constricting blood vessals

page 34
No recepie it says it was an official remedy
smut is a fungi
dont confuse with ergot (the LSD)fungus { unless you get a chance to cook at the pentagon} You want world domination??? >

Thanks for the edification.Reminds me of the "Is it really a bug? Perhaps it's a feature? " notion...

I'm guessing Tipper Gore did NOT put you up to this?