Shitake mushrooms - All about this glorious ‘shroom and your very own how to grow to guide.
There are many common misconceptions when it comes to the fine art of growing your own mushrooms. The best we’ve heard is ‘mushrooms are grown in sh*t’, which we can assure you is not the case.
Due to these misconceptions, we thought we’d write a little blog to explain the efforts and processes that take place to grow these delightful ‘shrooms.
Mushrooms are unlike any regular plant. In the wild, the process starts with tiny spores that grow into mycelia. These mycelia break down dead organic matter to feed the growth of the upcoming mushroom. During suitable periods with warm, damp weather conditions the mushroom will begin to grow in to the fruitful funghi that we all know and love.
If you wanted to grow them yourself it’s quite easy. For starters you’ll need an oak sawdust growing log (such as the one we have on our website for £14.50).
Oak sawdust is compacted together to form a sort of ‘log of wood’. Our sawdust is a bi-product of the milling industry, from managed and sustainable sources, so we also help to reduce waste in other industries.
This log is wrapped and sealed, to help preserve moisture content.When your kit arrives - it's already over 100 days old and fully incubated ready to grow.Remove the log from the wrap and place on a small plate with a little water, this is to give the log some humidity.
Spray the log with a house plant misting bottle 2 or 3 times a day, while the mushrooms are starting to grow up until they reach the size of a 50p piece then try to avoid spraying mushrooms as this makes them turn Black. Once the mushrooms are ready to pick, cut them off the block as close as possible to substrate.
You’re ready to go! But there are a few things to ensure a great flush.You need indirect sunlight to avoid dehydration, the process will not work with direct sunlight.Keep in a temperature around 15-20 centigradeFor 3-5 days after -
-40 squirts of water to exposed areas (3 times a day)-spray the inside of the container
The mushrooms will begin to appear after 4-5 days.Can grow crops for up to 3 crops but this depends on the amount of crop produced.
All grow kits will have their own processes and instructions, please follow each one as stated. Ours includes a detailed instruction sheet that explains each stage in an easy to follow manner.Please be aware mushrooms can cause allergic reactions for some people.