In case you’re a mushroom fanatic, likelihood is you are paying a hefty value to select up the dear fungi at your native grocery. Since looking wild mushrooms might be dangerous enterprise (as Frodo can inform you), many mushroom lovers at the moment are opting to develop their very own at residence. It isn’t too robust to do, and with a bit endurance, you may have all of the mushrooms you may probably eat.
Selecting Your Mushrooms
Your mushroom rising expedition begins with choosing the varieties of mushrooms you wish to develop. You possibly can experiment with one kind, or be courageous and check out a spread. Some standard and easy-to-grow varieties embody white button mushrooms, Shiitakes, and oyster mushrooms.
Most residence gardeners begin out with one selection, because the completely different fungi require completely different rising habitats. White button mushrooms develop on composted manure, whereas oyster mushrooms thrive in straw, and Shiitakes usually do finest on hardwood or sawdust.
In case your area is restricted, begin with one selection and develop in batches; nevertheless, if in case you have loads of area, be happy to go wild and check out them unexpectedly! On this article, nevertheless, we’ll focus on rising button mushrooms, as these are the most well-liked amongst residence gardeners.
Beginning Your Spawn
Mushrooms develop from spores or spawn that may be bought at an excellent backyard middle. In case your native backyard middle would not carry mushroom spawn, there are many retailers on-line who carry a wonderful selection.
Arrange a rising tray that’s not less than 6 inches deep, and fill it with an excellent mushroom compost. This could be a mixture of well-rotted gadgets like straw, hay, rooster litter and cottonseed meal. Most mushroom composts embody sphagnum moss peat for consistency. Whereas you may make your individual, it is perhaps best to purchase some pre-mixed.
Moist down your compost in order that it is very moist (however not soggy), then combine in your mushroom spawn. Be certain that it is absolutely integrated into the compost, then tamp all of it down nicely with a tray or board.
Let Your Mushrooms Develop
Your trays ought to be stored at a gentle temperature of 65-70 levels for the subsequent couple weeks. Maintain the combination damp by spraying it down every day with water.
Quickly sufficient, you may see a white webbing start to seem throughout the manure. Meaning your blue meanies mushrooms are sprouting! Cowl the floor with a layer of damp peat moss and high it off with moist newspapers. Proceed to maintain the entire thing damp, and at a gentle temperature of 55 levels.
Sprout, Harvest, and Repeat
After one other ten days, you may start to see tiny white mushroom sprouts showing. Over the subsequent few days, the sprouts will develop into full-sized mushrooms. As soon as they’re on the measurement you need, you can begin harvesting and utilizing them.
However do not throw out your combine simply but. Maintain all of it damp and funky, and one other crop will sprout inside two weeks. This may maintain going for so long as six months so long as you keep the precise temperature and maintain the trays well-watered.
As soon as your mushroom trays are absolutely spent, you can begin once more from scratch, or transfer on to a brand new kind of mushroom! Whereas rising mushrooms at residence takes a bit work and quite a lot of endurance, you may discover that your home-grown mushrooms style much better than any you could possibly discover at a grocery retailer.