Growing Mushrooms at Home
Updated 5th December 2008
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Mushroom Kit based on straw Ideal season Aug - Dec |
Shiitake impregnated logs |
I have always been interested in growing mushrooms and as a child I grew them in sealed bin bags behind the shed. my dad (big Fred) used to buy a lorry load of spent mushroom compost from the nearby laboratories every year as manure. I would then search through the compost, (like only a boy would do) to find the white blobs of heavily "spored" compost. I would then put these constellations in a bin bag with some compost, water it and wait 2 or 3 weeks. The size and number of mushrooms was incredible using this method. Sadly I now longer live near a mushroom laboratory so I am now trying other methods.
Mushrooms grow from microscopic spores that like stable, moist conditions. In the wild mushrooms grow on the forest floor and on the lower parts of trees. They feed and grow on decomposing material. If you can replicate these conditions then you can grow exotic mushrooms in your own garden, shed or cellar.
To grow mushrooms at home you can buy the spores or you can buy kits containing spores and sterilised compost. I have grown the mushroom kits many times with good results. The main disappointing bit is that although you can get a lot of mushrooms, they tend to come all at once in flushes of initially 250g of mushrooms. . Usually my mushroom kits have 3-4 flushes of mushrooms then go mouldy and get chucked onto the compost heap.
Growing Shiitake Mushrooms from Spores in Logs
Recently I tried a new technique that involves impregnating a hardwood log with mushroom spores. I used Shitake spores and a freshly cut oak log. (Do not attempt to grow mushrooms on conifer wood as it will not work). A 100g bag of Oyster or Shitake mushroom spawn costs £9 inc postage so if it works this will be a good investment if the log produces a crop for up to 5 years.
The theory goes that you drill holes into the log, insert the spores, plug hole with tissue paper then wax. Soak the log and leave in a cool, damp place until the mushroom erupt from the exterior like pimples on a teenagers face. There are other techniques that involve splitting logs, wetting cardboard and even putting a wet loo roll in a plastic bag with spawn. It can take years for the mushrooms to emerge so patience is required. Over 2 years my logs have yielded half a dozen mushrooms - a disappointment but I live in hope, "patience is a virtue"
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drill 10mm diameter holes in deciduous hardwood log |
fill holes with spore grains or spore impregnated dowels. Then seal hole with wet cotton wool or wax. |
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seal plugged hole with wax - I used candle wax but cheese wax is preferred. |
Stack logs in sheltered damp area, or half bury in soil. This stack is form the Mushroom valley at Raymond Blanc's Le Manoir organic garden. After 18 months the shiitake mushrooms are yet to emerge -
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Great books for DIY mushroom growers
| Growing exotic mushrooms at home requires a good
understanding of the biology of Fungi and conditions that they grow in. Each
variety requires specific conditions and are very fragile organisms when
compared to your average garden plant. To gain this understanding I strongly
recommend some reading on the subject. This will save you time and money,
and you will become more of a clever dick. If you cant understand all of the data you may still be inspired by the pictures. This book contains the most comprehensive information on amateur and professional techniques for growing mushrooms.
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This "bible" of growing mushrooms has superb photographs and a wealth of technical advice for the scientifically minded.
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Foraging for Mushrooms and Food in the Countryside If you cant be bothered with growing your mushrooms at home then how about getting them for free from mother nature? The obvious pitfalls are dying from poisoning but this can be, and is largely avoided by arming yourself with some knowledge and taking extreme caution. The following books may be of interest - and save your life!
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This is the latest best selling book and will inspire you to grow your own veg and save money and the planet!
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New Guide to Identification of European Mushrooms New for 2007 this compact little book enables beginners to identify the 100 most commonly found wild mushrooms in Europe Clear images and simple feature recognition |
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Find Edible Plants in the Countryside Referred to as the foragers bible this little book is the ideal companion for walks and some of the plants may be easier to find than edible fungi. Each of the 240 types of fruit, nut, flower, seaweed, fungi and shellfish featured in this book have clear identification criteria and recipe ideas. |
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Eat Everything in the Countryside! (Plants and Animals) Ray Mears is a master of surviving in the wild and making tasty meals from whatever is at hand. His TV shows were enormously popular and the book is a reference to food in the wild. Ideal book to read on a plane to reassure yourself that if you survive the crash you will be able to knock up a witchetty grub kebab and wow your fellow survivors with similar culinary delights until help arrives. |
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MAGIC MUSHROOM INFO
Robyn says it's legal to buy them unprepared?
All I know is that I tried some once in my student days and was sick!
Think that was more to do with the garlic butter though.
Maybe I should have bought the following 2 books first!
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buying tools, (on and off-line) mail me at
fred@fredshed.com
(please include the tool name in the subject heading)
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© Fred Walden 2008 |
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