Mycelium does anyone spawn their own?

[Moxi]

So last year in lockdown I grew some oyster mushrooms and even cultivated my own grain spawn successfully and still have some in stasis on the shelf ready for kick off when the weather warms up.

This year I will try cultivating button mushroom mycelium as we prefer that variety to the “cheery” oyster variety.

Does anyone else grow shrooms?

Moxi

[Mr Gus]

Is that around the 7 litre size bucket?

Nice pics, which reminds me I need to cure a few kg of maple bacon & smoke some marmite ..weathers good, & a new bluetooth thermometer (with cold smoke settings)
That's the next few days sorted.

If I take up another hobby involving food or drink, i'm dead

[Fintray]

No, but I would like to try someday.

[Moxi]

Mr Gus it’s 5 litres the media is fifty fifty barley straw and sawdust (kitty litter wood pellets with boiling water added) the barley straw is pasteurised in the pressure cooker although next time I think a boiling pan of water will suffice.

Fin tray if you fancy it I will help you get started - as I say I only have oyster shroom mycelium at the moment but when the weather warms up and I get started I can send you a starter of that mycelium if you like.

Moxi

[billi]

Good stuff , Moxi

I thought about it too last year , as i like hunting for mushrooms , thought of those mycelium plugs you can buy and drill into deadwood or half rotten trees , that i have in the garden or in no-mans land nearby .... should pick up that thought again
I guess there is a limited selection/variety , that will work .

[Mr Gus]

..Oh you got me thinking how nice it would be to have some of the japanese speciality mushroom selections I used to get at waitrose (before my daughter developed taste buds for food exploring) ..now she's into the ramen (sous vide meats by dad) you've got me drooling, ...hmm, garage

PS, this is how Ivan went off the deep end too
(I wish he'd pop in)

[Moxi]

Yes I sometimes wonder about Ivan and Biff and Peter C wyleau and the others.

I have read that shiitake are straightforward to grow although I have nothing in terms of experience to back that up, for Billie the hard wood plugs for chicken of the wood and velvet pigs ears ( can’t recall their correct names ) are equally straight forward but the maturation time for the mycelium to colonise the wood is in excess of 18 months so a long term endeavour. At least with the oyster shrooms you are eating in around 8 weeks from inoculation so a process that you can actually see happening.

Moxi

[billi]

[ for Billie the hard wood plugs for chicken of the wood and velvet pigs ears ( can’t recall their correct names ) are equally straight forward but the maturation time for the mycelium to colonise the wood is in excess of 18 months so a long term endeavour./quote]

Yeah thats one downside , the time , and the cost of those wood plugs

What i was wondering too , can you keep that bucket alive for next year ? or does one have to start again , as some sell ready to go buckets filled with all , but they tell you too , that there will be a production for example of 0.8 kg ... so i suppose production will end after that , or can one reanimate ?

[Moxi]

The bucket in my photos has been on a west facing windowsill outside since October to see how the mycelium holds up. In March I will add fresh barley straw, sawdust and some used coffee grounds for nitrates to see if the mycelium will recolonise and then fruit.

In theory it should work fine as this is how it goes in nature - we shall see in March

Moxi

[billi]

Well , i should try it with those buckets too , as a compete set for a 5 l bucket , is about 16 euro online shop

worth while a try