For those of you with patience and access to fresh cut logs from conifer or hardwood trees or stumps such as alder, oak, birch or cottonwood, you can grow lots of mushrooms at home. Mushrooms grown from dowels are very winter hardy and can be grown throughout most of the nation. Using our “dowel plug spawn” you can inoculate logs or stumps with mushroom cultures. It is important that the logs are freshly cut, and the bark in good condition. It is best to cut the logs in late winter or early spring before the buds break and leaves appear. A 4-6" diameter and 4 foot length is convenient, but not essential, stumps and odd sized pieces can also work. Using a 5/16 drill bit, drill holes about 1.5" deep and space them 5 or 6" apart. A 4' log will need about 30 or more dowels. More will result in faster colonization and perhaps quicker production. Hammer a plug in each hole and seal with paraffin or a compound like Doc Farwell’s Tree Heal. (See page 88) The logs are then stacked in a shady location where moisture can be maintained. Mushrooms should begin to appear in from 6 months to 2 years and will continue to appear on the logs for several years. Softer woods like alder or cottonwood will produce fewer mushrooms than denser woods like oak, but may start sooner. Or use dowels in stumps. Full directions are provided!
(Grifola frondosa) Maitake, also known as "Hen of the Woods" is a native of Eastern North America. It is prized by mushroom hunters for it's delicious flavor, beauty and large size (the record is over 100lbs.) Maitake has been found to contain a number of healthful and medicinal compounds. It is best grown on fresh cut stumps or logs that are partially buried after inoculation. Oak and Elm are recommended but other hardwoods can be tried. Pkg of 100 dowel plugs.
(Pleurotus ostreatus) Among the easiest of mushrooms to grow and an excellent introduction to home mushroom cultivation.The mushrooms are usually white to pale gray or brown, flattened or somewhat funnel-shaped and usually borne in large shelf-like clusters. The flavor is strong and delicious. They are great breaded and fried. This mushroom is commonly collected by wild mushroom hunters. Package of 100 dowel plugs
(Lentinus edodes) Shiitake mushrooms are delicious with a rich flavor and firm texture. They are also very nutritious, containing lots of B vitamins and other substances that appear to lower cholesterol and boost the immune system. While they are an expensive delicacy, relatively new to the Western world, people in China and Japan have been enjoying Shiitakes for thousands of years. Packages of 100 dowel plugs.
