Growing Edible Mushrooms - from kits, spawns, and plugs

[Ozark Lady]

So, was mushroom growing worth repeating?
I just ordered some spores from Amazon.
They are on "inert" seed carriers... It looks like they are on birdseed.
I don't know if I want to start them with summer coming up, so I am wondering about storing them. Is it better to store them in the fridge, freezer, or just a cool drawer?
Where does one find agar to gather that up for when I am ready to start mushroom attempts?
Did you invent a sterile box for inoculating the agar?
I got 3 different kinds:
Golden Mushroom
Italian Popular
Oyster Mushroom
Something to play with this coming winter?

[applestar]

Wow Ozark Lady, you come back and ask difficult questions! I'm out of practice but not for want of wanting to experiment. I'm going to think about how to answer, but there have been several members posting about growing mushrooms so they might have suggestions for you too.

Off hand though, I'm thinking this is a good time to inoculate with oyster mushroom spawn outside. I wish I had the energy. For me, the biggest hurdle is getting fresh wood chips or relatively freshly cut logs or trunk rounds. You want to cut them just before they strt to leaf out.

[PunkRotten]

Nice. Thanks fr sharing all the pics/info. Fungi are really cool.

[applestar]

When I was trying all this back in 2009, I also tried to propagate the spores and stems using the moist cardboard medium, but had little success.

Yesterday, I discovered this in my vermcompost bin


I think the mycelia may have grown from the brown paper bag I had portabella mushrooms in in the fridge. Either that or they are from the shiitake or portabella stem ends with extra substrate attached to them I tossed in there.

[MObeek]

Cool! I hope you get some mushrooms out of that.

[Ozark Lady]

Interesting, we work so hard to have a sterile environment to inoculate the growing medium with the spawn etc. And have limited success...

But, nature finds a way and it grew on basically, your trash, you weren't trying to keep that bag, or to start the mushrooms at all.

That reminds me of finding morel growing on a son's sneaker under his bed!
I could only assume that he walked on some of them.

That might be a new way to grow mushrooms, permaculture or stinky sneakers!

I still haven't attempted my mushroom spores, actually I forgot about them until I was going through seeds planning this years garden and what to order.

Good luck Applestar, looks like enough mycelium to start several mushrooms.

[valley]

The mycelium looks healthy, you'll have mushrooms soon. I know you're washing your hand and arms before entering their space. Pick them before the sides began to turn up.

My daughter has started common mushrooms from spore, that bought from the market. She is wanting to get: Chicken of the Woods, from a supplier. Last year her Oysters did well until the dreaded mold came to dinner.


84pagirl, if you keep the area where you planted the Winecaps damp you may get some this year.

richard

applestar, I wouldn't turn that compost. I'ed keep it damp and let them fruit.

[applestar]

Subject: Mushroom Gardening?

@hendi_alex how are your shiitake logs doing this year?

I FINALLY got the chance to try this

...

[applestar]

were r u getting your spores from?

i seen at cabrey garden center they are selling like 7 diffront types of dryed mushrooms sporses and 3 cardboard slabs to grow them in!
they have shiitake, orysters, pink oyster!, button and a good 5 6 more!
they are very cheap aswell, with a guide on the back telling u how to grow.

i am going to get some.

I was websurfin' and came across this Dutch site selling mushroom plugs like the ones I get. ATM I have NO IDEA about the quality of the vendor, but I'm plugged into a website where a Dutch member has been asked for her opinion, so maybe more updates later.

https://www.vreeken.nl/planten-schimmel ... elen-kefir

[applestar]

Her summary comment about Vreeken: "Vreeken has good seeds but it can sometimes take weeks even here in Holland before they send out your order. They're too popular for their own good I guess. "