If you have always wanted to grow your own mushrooms on a log at home, the PNW has the perfect climate for you to do that. Here are some grow-at-home mushroom tips to consider before you try to sprout your own spores outdoors.
How often do I water my mushroom log?
You don’t want to let the log dry out completely, but it’s also important not to over-water it.
To begin with, logs should be stored in shady outdoor locations close to the ground. In temperate climates like the Pacific Northwest, they generally retain enough moisture to colonize fully without any supplemental watering.
Keep an eye on it, though; if the weather is super hot or dry for long periods, the best way to water the log is long periodic soaking. Which means fully submerging the log in water until it is fully saturated.
Can I Force My Log to Fruit?
I don’t know, that’s really up to you.
But technically, it’s okay to water the log to force it to fruit. You should wait to shock them into fruiting until the log has fruited at least once naturally.
Logs shouldn’t stay wet on the outside for long periods of time. Frequent light watering can even damage logs and cause contaminant growth, so be careful if you take the forced fruiting route.
Can My Mushroom Log Freeze Over Winter?
Yes.
When Should I Inoculate My Log?
You should follow all of your fungitricians' guidelines when inoculating your log.
Logs should be inoculated within a week or two of cutting. This allows the cells in the tree to die but is not long enough for the log to dry out or for other competitor fungi to become established.
How Long From Inoculation to Harvest?
Most mushrooms on standard-size logs in temperate climates will take about a year to fully colonize before they fruit, though this can vary between 6 months and two years.
Ultimately, mushrooms need cool weather and moisture to fruit, which is standard here in Oregon and why growth slows in the summer heat.
If you inoculate in the spring, you might get your first flush of mushrooms in the fall, but it will most likely take a full year to see your first fruiting.
Conversely, if you inoculate in the fall and are able to keep the mycelium from going dormant, you may get mushrooms as soon as the following spring, though more likely to be the following fall.
How Long Until My First Flush of Fruit?
First fruitings fluctuate, but you should expect to wait at least a year for most
species to colonize their log host fully. After they begin to fruit, the logs may produce for up to a year.
For How Many Years Will a Log Produce Mushrooms?
Two to four years.
What Kind of Pests Can I Expect On My Mushrooms?
Some mammals like deer or squirrels may munch mushrooms but generally don’t devastate a crop. Occasionally, you may find some insect or slug damage. Just cut out that part of the mushroom. The rest will be fine. Get over it.
How Do You Cultivate Hen of the Woods?
Hen of the Woods should be inoculated in oak or other hardwood logs. After the one-year incubation period, you bury your log under 1-2 inches of soil. They need to be buried in someplace shady where they will have access to water or rainfall.
Make sure to mark the spot where your log is buried and keep an eye out for Hen of the Woods mushrooms sprouting from the soil throughout the year (it usually fruits during the fall).
We Can Help You Get Started!
Urban Rewilding can help with native plant landscape designs, builds, and gardening services. So, no matter what point you are at in your rewilding process, we can jump in and give you a hand.
We don't use any chemicals, fertilizers, pesticides, or herbicides at any point. All our plants are native to the Pacific Northwest and do not need to be watered after the first year.
Landscape Design:
We're happy to give you advice, resources, and native plant landscape designs.
You can book a one-hour consultation with us at a time that is convenient for you. We will look at sun exposure, soil quality, and existing plantings to create a detailed, personalized plan to follow as you continue your rewilding process.
Landscape professionals can also advise on what plants work best in which part of your yard, how to make your soil healthier, and where to source plants, seeds, and soil.
Landscape Installation
Urban Rewilding is licensed, bonded, insured, and super excited to plant native trees, bushes, shrubs, ferns, mushrooms, and moss in your urban garden!
Adding biodiversity to an urban garden creates a resilient ecosystem that supports native birds, bees, bugs, and other wildlife. It also creates the potential for healthy, sustainable, organic food production that requires no water or chemicals.
We can solve issues such as invasive species, erosion, water damage, and pollution with native plants.
Book a one-hour consult with a professional native plant landscaper to find out how we can fix your problems with native plants.
Gardening Services
Urban Rewilding aims to create beneficial native plant ecosystems in urban areas to protect vulnerable wildlife and humans from the issues that arise from dense urban areas.
Hiring us to maintain your urban yard will mean that we will add native plants from other yards wherever we never use chemicals and create lush, healthy soil, remove any overgrown or unwanted native plants, and use them in other yards! We will cultivate a healthy yard that will become part of rewilding more and more and more!!!!
Book a consultation with a gardener, or send us an email with photos, and we can get you on our regular maintenance schedule today!
We protect native plants at all costs!!!
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