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Perhaps the most well-known and widely-cultivated gourmet mushroom of all, shiitake have been grown as food for at least several hundred years. In that time, they have been adapted to countless different climates and wood types and now come in all sorts of different shapes and sizes.
Shiitake are generally grown using one of two methods: indoors on blocks made of hardwood sawdust or outdoors on logs. For growing them indoors, I recommend using a supplemented sawdust substrate. Most often, mature shiitake blocks are stripped from their bags and placed on shelves in the fruiting environment at about 60-70% humidity (this is considered low for most species). They can be "cold-shocked" overnight in the refrigerator to induce fruiting, and they can be soaked in cold water to rehydrate between harvests.
If you want to grow shiitake outside, you'll need to work with the timing of the seasons. Most strains are hardy enough to overwinter, but when they fruit and how they handle extreme temperatures varies. Most hardwoods are acceptable, though some favorites are oak, maple and alder. See Tradd Cotter's Organic Mushroom Farming and Mycoremediation for some great info about outdoor cultivation techniques.
I recommend the "warm" strain if you live in tropical or subtropical climates, or if you are growing them indoors alongside other common gourmets like oysters. This strain performs best around 70-80°F.
Shiitake (Warm)
Lentinula edodes
Perhaps the most well-known and widely-cultivated gourmet mushroom of all, shiitake have been grown as food for at least several hundred years. In that time, they have been adapted to countless different climates and wood types and now come in all sorts of different shapes and sizes.Shiitake are generally grown using one of two methods: indoors on blocks made of hardwood sawdust or outdoors on logs. For growing them indoors, I recommend using a supplemented sawdust substrate. Most often, mature shiitake blocks are stripped from their bags and placed on shelves in the fruiting environment at about 60-70% humidity (this is considered low for most species). They can be "cold-shocked" overnight in the refrigerator to induce fruiting, and they can be soaked in cold water to rehydrate between harvests.
If you want to grow shiitake outside, you'll need to work with the timing of the seasons. Most strains are hardy enough to overwinter, but when they fruit and how they handle extreme temperatures varies. Most hardwoods are acceptable, though some favorites are oak, maple and alder. See Tradd Cotter's Organic Mushroom Farming and Mycoremediation for some great info about outdoor cultivation techniques.
I recommend the "warm" strain if you live in tropical or subtropical climates, or if you are growing them indoors alongside other common gourmets like oysters. This strain performs best around 70-80°F.
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Fungaia
Walla Walla, Washington
Copyright © 2024 Alembic Enterprises LLC.
You are not alone.
Fungaia
Walla Walla, Washington
Copyright © 2024 Alembic Enterprises LLC.