Growing Mushrooms

Patty · April 26, 2010, 03:43:45 PM

We decided to try to grow our own Shiitake & Button mushrooms this year. So we bought the kits from Gurney's and here is what they sent to us.

Just add water!

We should have mushrooms in a couple weeks.

Patty · April 30, 2010, 06:05:07 PM

In 1 week, we are harvesting shiitake mushrooms! 8)

Patty · April 30, 2010, 06:16:57 PM

My first harvest.

Jeff · April 30, 2010, 06:21:41 PM

Hey! That's pretty awesome. Where do you keep the box?

SwampDonkey · May 01, 2010, 05:22:35 AM

Patty, are those the kind you have to send samples off to Canada for testing?

Roxie · May 01, 2010, 08:05:13 AM

Now, that's what I call FRESH! They look wonderful. How are you planning on serving them? Did you have any luck with the button mushrooms?

Patty · May 01, 2010, 02:21:47 PM

Yea it is pretty cool, isn't it.

Jeff, I keep the Shiitake's down in the basement near a window (they require just normal light, not direct sun) and they need to be relatively cool around 65 F. The button mushrooms require more heat (around 70F) and zero sun, so I have them upstairs under a blanket.

Norm served our first Shiitake this morning in an omelet w/ fresh asparagus. Yes it was really tasty! The button 'shrooms are not up yet. I peeked at them this morning, and all I could see was a bunch of silvery mold stuff. I re-read the instructions and I guess this is to be expected at this point. I shouldn't begin to see any 'shrooms for another week or more.

Donk, I am not sure I know what you mean by having to send them up north for testing. When I ate my omelet I didn't experience any psychedelic colors......was I supposed to??

SwampDonkey · May 01, 2010, 02:30:15 PM

Taste test.....not into the hard stuff. Unless it's coffee. :D

Norm · May 01, 2010, 06:14:56 PM

Can we tell Patty grew up in the 60's.... :D

I've never had them before but they were pretty tasty.

SwampDonkey · May 01, 2010, 07:00:21 PM

Looks mighty tasty to.

Out where I worked in northern BC, mushroom picking was a seasonal industry. They would set up camps to buy from pickers.

Right now, some folks are picking fiddle heads to sell in Toronto for $12 bucks a pound. ;D

Paschale · May 02, 2010, 02:30:05 AM

Every year, my neighbor gets a few morels in his backyard. This year, just one--and I ate it, because he always gives them to me.

I wonder if it's possible to grow morels at home... ???

fishpharmer · May 02, 2010, 05:36:41 AM

Norm and Patty, those look very good. 8)

Ron Wenrich · May 02, 2010, 08:52:07 AM

Quote from: Paschale on May 02, 2010, 02:30:05 AM
Every year, my neighbor gets a few morels in his backyard. This year, just one--and I ate it, because he always gives them to me.

I wonder if it's possible to grow morels at home... ???

There are several places that offer morel spawn. Cost is about $30 for a kit.

Patty · May 05, 2010, 06:29:59 PM

OK so here it is May 5th, and I harvested another batch of shiitake's.

8)

SwampDonkey · May 06, 2010, 02:57:32 AM

Wow, that's quite a bowl full. You got enough crew around there to help eat'm? ;D

Burlkraft · May 06, 2010, 09:07:08 AM

I am just salivatin' lookin' at that bowl full. I love mushrooms....I guess maybe it's cuz I grew up when Patty did :D :D

Mushroom and asparagus omelet........I can almost taste it now........now I gotta go look for morels today!

LeeB · May 06, 2010, 09:11:19 AM

To the best of my recollection, which I may add is fairly distorted from that time period, the mushrooms from back then tasted horrible. Much better to make koolaide with them.

Burlkraft · May 06, 2010, 09:14:14 AM

Quote from: LeeB on May 06, 2010, 09:11:19 AM
To the best of my recollection, which I may add is fairly distorted from that time period, the mushrooms from back then tasted horrible. Much better to make koolaide with them.

The Kool Aide from that time was not good to drink either!

Remember Jim Jones?

Patty · May 07, 2010, 05:51:52 PM

Wow, I guess we all are pretty old, eh? It is truly amazing we lived through those days back then. I figure I only lost about a zillion brain cells ! :D

LeeB · May 07, 2010, 05:58:26 PM

Refresh my memorie, how many is that. ??? :D :D

LeeB · May 07, 2010, 06:00:35 PM

I really am suprised how many of of us walked the same crooked path I did.

SwampDonkey · May 07, 2010, 06:03:52 PM

I wouldn't trust neither one of you bad actors. :D

Burlkraft · May 07, 2010, 10:17:54 PM

Quote from: LeeB on May 07, 2010, 06:00:35 PM
I really am suprised how many of of us walked the same crooked path I did.

Yup! ;D ;D ;D

Patty · May 09, 2010, 09:52:29 AM

Alrighty then! This has taken a crooked path, but let's go back to the original subject of my home grown mushrooms. ;) I checked on my button mushrooms yesterday and the dirt is covered with a silvery web of mold.

I quick read my instruction sheet and apparently this is exactly what is supposed to happen. Now I have to remove the plastic cover and just lay some cardboard over the box, spritz it every 3 days or so with water and wait another 2 weeks.

Norm cooking up some more fresh Shiitakes!

These are my button 'shrooms after 2 weeks under plastic.

trapper · May 12, 2010, 08:58:13 AM

found some morels under my apple trees while cutting grass monday. Wife cooked them last night.

Dan_Shade · June 16, 2011, 07:47:21 PM

Patty,

how long/how many mushrooms did you get from your experiment?

where they worth the trouble by the time you were done with them?

SPIKER · June 16, 2011, 10:25:31 PM

With those Shiititake to keep them going just add clean sawdust wet well and keep the spawn going that way they love hardwoods. chips are better or logs drilled and plugged with some dowels that you first shove into the bag you have there and let set for a month to get the dowels impregnated with the spawn.

for the button mushrooms use some dried cow patties to mix in with shredded & ground up newspaper. the manure should be composed for a year and then heated to kill every thing that is in the leftovers heat in oven to about 180F for 15 min. then enjoy...

Mark M

Dan_Shade · June 17, 2011, 06:03:38 AM

Do you use the oven while your wife is away, Spiker? :D

SwampDonkey · June 17, 2011, 10:46:23 AM

I know a couple of women that would put him out in the cow pasture for good. :D

Patty · June 17, 2011, 06:12:31 PM

The mushroom experiment was a bust in my opinion. We got 1 good crop and then they died. I tried mist, water, everything I could think of and they still died. They turned out to be pretty expensive mushrooms sine we only got 1 lousy crop. I am not sure I will try that one again. Or at least order the kit from another vendor.

isawlogs · June 17, 2011, 10:43:15 PM

Patty, them pics of those 'shrooms was worth every penny for me. I will going for a walk here over the weekend and see what I can bring home. We do have some of those funny coloured ones that where fairly popular at one time :P

Quote from: Burlkraft on May 07, 2010, 10:17:54 PM
Quote from: LeeB on May 07, 2010, 06:00:35 PM
I really am suprised how many of of us walked the same crooked path I did.

Yup! ;D ;D ;D

It's amazing how many actualy made it past the teens.

LeeB · June 19, 2011, 06:52:42 AM

;D :

Norm · June 19, 2011, 07:23:03 AM

Or the 20's for some....of course not me! :D

LeeB · June 19, 2011, 07:48:19 AM

I see them growing every now and then and for just a fleeting second,,,,,,naw, no way. I barely survived my last dose and not sure at all if I retained any sanity.

D Hagens · July 07, 2011, 03:25:22 PM

Quote from: Patty on June 17, 2011, 06:12:31 PM
The mushroom experiment was a bust in my opinion. We got 1 good crop and then they died. I tried mist, water, everything I could think of and they still died. They turned out to be pretty expensive mushrooms sine we only got 1 lousy crop. I am not sure I will try that one again. Or at least order the kit from another vendor.

When the shrooms are ready to pick, take the spores off of them, sprinkle them on top of the dirt and the silver web will appear again and act as a canopy.
I would say that they got too much water and rotted. A cool room with a very little amount of mist is what they like.
I know a lot about growing shrooms but it's better if I don't post it here

scgargoyle · July 07, 2011, 04:26:53 PM

I read an article put out by the University of North Carolina on how to grow shiitakes in your woods. Deep shady woods, oak logs, and some spores and you're good to go. I'm going to try it once I'm living at my place in SC.

SPIKER · July 07, 2011, 10:43:33 PM

One day I'll remember to take a few pics of the ones I got growing at my place. they are on Red Oak and some Hard Maple. I got a nice batch of white oster mushrooms about 2 weeks back one quick flush of them and they were gone. I got to them a little late as the bugs had 3/4 of them ate up pretty good...

got nothing off the chicken of the woods yet or the Morel patches 2nd year for them all.

mark

SwampDonkey · July 08, 2011, 04:33:39 AM

Whiskey jacks harvest mushrooms to, they hide them up in the fir thickets. Seen them doing it. :D

cinnabar · July 10, 2011, 10:54:36 PM

My Dad has been growing the shiitakes for almost 20 years now in his woods. What they can't eat they sell locally, both dry and fresh. Quite a production as he now needs help, cutting the oak, inocculating them, moving the water soaked oak logs out of the tank and stacking them. He's 80 and I think he will scale back the operation due to health issues. We help when we can and we(I) love to cook with them. They are soooo good for you too.
cinnabar

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