alternatives for kinshi making?

[Defalt]

if any of you have made kinshi before, I just want to check, is it possible for me to use things other than wood chips to grow it? By this I mean straw, coffee grounds, cardboard etc. Will the beetles be able to eat their way through these materials and will they be nutritionally adequate?

 

[Defalt]

I also want to know if conifer woods can be used, since they are more readily available

 

[Ratmosphere]

I wouldn't steer away from the traditional way to make it.

 

[schmiggle]

It depends entirely on what fungus you want to grow. Oyster mushrooms are entirely un-picky--I grew them for a year and a half on cardboard, and people have had success with coffee grounds. Other fungi are often pickier. My question is, are the beetles eating the wood or the fungi? If the former, the choice of substrate is crucial; if the latter, it probably doesn't matter much.