Inoculating Shiitake Logs,..
Contributors to this thread:Massachusetts
From: Belchertown Bowman
15-Mar-18
Belchertown Bowman's Link
So last year I followed the mushroom thread with keen interest. A buddy of mine at work told me about his mushroom growing hobby. He drills into freshly cut oak logs holes into which spore is pushed. A year later and for several years ya get mushrooms,..
I did my first small "rick" I think that is the term for the stack of logs.
Anyone else try this hobby?
From: Belchertown Bowman
16-Mar-18
This what have
From: Belchertown Bowman
16-Mar-18
This image is what I am hoping for next year.
From: Dthfrmabove
16-Mar-18
Very interesting!! I think I am gonna try it. Can also buy gen of the woods spores too and probably a whole bunch of different ones. Seems like cheap money and short time to get back some good eats
From: Will
16-Mar-18
Where do you find the spores? Mail order or plant store or something? That is a pretty cool idea. My wife loves her gardens, this would be a fun add in for her.
From: Dthfrmabove
16-Mar-18
Mail order. Found a ton of websites with them. Real cheap too they use wooden dowels soaked in a spore solution. Drill hole, tap in and wait
Shiitake and maitake both go well with venison
From: Tekoa
16-Mar-18
Thanks BB. I quickly found a few sites and will place my order this weekend. Spring inoc means fall shrooms. Many different kinds. Good stuff
Tekoa
From: Belchertown Bowman
16-Mar-18
Belchertown Bowman's Link
I used the sawdust which required an injector tool,.. allows you to wax seal them. Not sure why but my teacher said don't use the plugs.
Don't put new inoculated logs on the ground or other shit will colonize them before the shiitake can establish itself... I bought from Fungi Ally in hadley mass.
And picked the top shiitake as that is prolific. Shiitake LE 46
Worst part is ya gotta wait a year,.. but you can get many years of growth outta your inoculated logs.
I also picked up two grow bags of Lion's Mane,.. I was stunned when i read about the health benefits of that stuff. They are already growing big bubulous brain like growths outta the side of the bad in 1 week!
From: Belchertown Bowman
16-Mar-18
Roar lol
From: Belchertown Bowman
16-Mar-18
PS the hen of the woods is very tricky to do right and not recommended for beginners. First year,.. stick with the easy stuff.
Just my 2 cents
From: Dthfrmabove
16-Mar-18
Sounds good to me. I will keep it simple. I have 2 places I get them regularly in the woods. Also have 5 spots for chicken of the woods, will be picking those earlier this year now that I know where they are.
The whole mushroom foraging thing is new to me. Just started to look into it last year but found it a very fun way to spend time in the woods. Can kill 2 birds with one stone, mushroom hunting and scouting. Last year I found about 15 lbs of chicken of the woods where I hunt. Of course those are the easy ones and the hens were a little past their prime to pick
From: hunterma
16-Mar-18
Hey Death, while you are looking keep your eyes open for oyster mushrooms, easiest to spot and my personal favorite to eat. Check them out online, no deadly look alikes to worry about either.
From: Dthfrmabove
16-Mar-18
I will.... starting to learn the different types that have no lookalikes
From: Belchertown Bowman
16-Mar-18
Same here DFA. Complete novice but having fun learning. At this stage though growing inside and out,.. i guess novice is history soon. Still alot to learn! Wanna find natural grown hens and chicks. I still do not know the diff between those! Anyways find a good article on how to inoculate your logs. Keep clean. Dont be spewing spittle into each drill hole while yelling for more coffee. Wash hands. Keep your inoculation clean. Seal up holes with a non oil based wax. Follow good instructions or waste your time and labor.
Do it right and be rewarded by nature!!!!!!
From: Jebediah
16-Mar-18
Sorry to drag this topic into the gutter, but every time I see “shiitake” it looks to me like “shitcake.” Just had to get it off my chest. Now back to the mushrooms.
From: Dthfrmabove
16-Mar-18
First pic is the chicken. Always. Right yellow and orange. Can't miss it grows on oak trees. Second pick is the hen. grayish to brown and grows at the base of oaks
From: Dthfrmabove
16-Mar-18
From: Dthfrmabove
16-Mar-18
From: Dthfrmabove
16-Mar-18
The gen you can cut up and freeze directly. The chicken has to be precooked first. I think parboiled or something close to that. I only picked a portion of the chickens I found and ate them right away. Gave the rest away to friends that I surfcast with
From: hunterma
17-Mar-18
The chickens are ok if you get to them when they are small. If too large/old they become very tough. Hens are more forgiving size wise, even the large ones can be good but you are competing with bugs and weather.
From: bowandspear
17-Mar-18
BB I did a shitake log in the basement about 5 years ago because the spores we're easy to buy online. I think I harvested 3 growth cycles off if it. Fun stuff. I am glad to see others have an interest in foraging and stuff, kind of rounds you well as an outdoorsman.
From: bowandspear
17-Mar-18
bowandspear's Link
You can harvest your own sporesfrom wild mushrooms too. FirNy interested, Ryan over at Southern Jew England Mushroom Hunting just published a treat guide. It's a book/calendar that is is great guide by each month highlighting what types are prolific during those months as well as a bunch of other helpful info. Very knowledgeable people who do a great field class as well. Check out the calendar/book at link .
From: bowandspear
17-Mar-18
bowandspear's Link
You can follow them on FB at link. Him And Emily have been to my place and we have shared some items we have harvested.
From: Will
17-Mar-18
Xi - if you read this, we are both likely to have to quit on bowsite... Maple syrup, now this... :)
From: xi
17-Mar-18
Ok, I've been trying to ignore this thread. The last thing I needed was another OCD hobby. What are these mushrooms in the picture, just wondering if this is what your talking about. There're on a Oak stump. Thanks
From: Dthfrmabove
17-Mar-18
You know I was looking at their FB page and thought it was great. A lot of their classes and appearances aren't that far from my house and was thinking that if I really decide I can find the time to do something with the fungi then a day trip with them would be a great idea
From: Belchertown Bowman
17-Mar-18
Round 2 going to get done tomorrow. This is like work. Thanks HunterMa for the assistance today!
From: hunterma
18-Mar-18
XI, those are called turkey tail not hen of the woods. Technically edible but leathery and nothing you'd want to eat. BB Your welcome, use your spawn and go forth and multiply.
From: xi
18-Mar-18
Thanks Hunter, figures, They are on every oak stump here at my house, to good to be true. Serious question guys, is red or white oak better than the other ?
From: hunterma
18-Mar-18
Depends, if you are talking about inoculating shitake in logs then white is supposed to be slightly superior but red will fruit a little quicker.
From: hunterma
18-Mar-18
FYI If anyone is planning to give this a try you should cut your tree(s) soon before they bud. The mushroom spawn feed on the cellulose in the wood and at this time of year there is still a high sugar content in the wood, this level will drop once the trees put their energy into buds and leaves. You want to choose a healthy, live tree and once cut try to do your inoculating within a few weeks so the tree doesn't have a chance to dry out. Mushrooms like moisture.
From: Belchertown Bowman
18-Mar-18
Second round of innoculation completed. Whew its like real work! Lolol
Hoping for next year will keep all updated
From: Belchertown Bowman
18-Mar-18
Lions mane keeps exploding
From: Belchertown Bowman
18-Mar-18
Lions mane keeps exploding
From: Belchertown Bowman
25-Mar-18
Belchertown Bowman's Link
So the lions mane experiment was a success! ,.. large heads, great taste, unlike anything I have tasted before,.. seafood,. ya sorta,.. but no,.. mushroom,. ya sorta,.. but no,.. it is a taste like nothing I have tried before. It is amazing and delicious,. the more ya chew/masticate it the better the taste almost like jerky. Suzanne said it smelled like fish while cooking.
Double thumbs up from me,.. will do it again for sure.
Now they say you get successive smaller harvests on the same sawdust bag,.. I will keep posted on how that works out,.. I added a little desalinated water to the bag through the slices as I noticed it getting drier inside,.. So they say 2x to 5 more harvests, each smaller, as nutrients in the bag go bye bye,.. that is a big variable. It has to be sterility and moisture am thinking?
Just my 2 cents.
From: Belchertown Bowman
25-Mar-18
From: Jebediah
25-Mar-18
Mushrooms look wonderful. Really fighting the urge to make a joke about mastication.
From: Belchertown Bowman
25-Mar-18
Hey i am masticating now ,.. and everything is coming out ok,..
Mom was a dental assistant for 30 years I have drilled into my molars . Lol
